This is a short message from Washington, DC. In a tie! I was in DC as part of an effort to push Congress to defend and promote its own enacted international affairs budget priorities, and to engage in normal oversight.
The Trump administration is in the process of violating the law, by refusing to spend funds passed by Congress in the 2026 budget to support critical international health initiatives. By way of background, the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act (ICA) of 1974 requires the administration to spend funds given to it by Congress. Of course, the constitution also requires the President to ensure that the law is faithfully executed.
My particular worries at the moment are the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI), and the Global Fund to fight AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria. The programs are self-explanatory, and well regarded. In a nutshell, Congress appropriated nearly $10 billion for these programs and much less than half has been spent, even though we are most of the way through the fiscal year.
These are the funds that we use to fight a whole array of diseases around the world. People die and disease spreads when this money remains unspent. We are currently witnessing a major Ebola outbreak in Africa. It could be in the USA, too, if our first line of defense, treating the disease at the source, does not happen. Even from an “America First” perspective, leaving deadly diseases untreated and allowing them to spread is foolish. If we end up in another pandemic, it will be because of this failure to do what the law requires.
The situation calls for action. The action, in this case, is to motivate Congress to stand up for itself. I do sometimes feel hopeless about this country, but it feels better to do something to avert the train wreck than to just watch it happen. Not everyone needs to lobby Congress, but pushing where and when you can sometimes makes a difference.
Here are a few useful links:
https://www.congress.gov/crs-product/R48432
https://www.kff.org/global-health-policy/the-u-s-government-gavi-the-vaccine-alliance/
https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/childhood-vaccines/us-lawmakers-seek-answers-blocked-funding-gavi
https://www.foreign.senate.gov/press/dem/release/shaheen-collins-colleagues-urge-state-department-to-restore-gavi-funding
https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/majority/senator-collins-urges-state-department-to-restore-gavi-funding
https://www.cgdev.org/blog/why-trump-administrations-plan-cut-funding-gavi-shortsighted
