Kerry-Lugar unanimously passes the Senate!!!!

[TayTay]

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/438377/1/.html">US Senate approves sweeping Pakistan aid package
Posted: 25 June 2009 0939 hrs

WASHINGTON: The US Senate approved a bill to triple civilian US aid to Pakistan, a bid to cement a long-term partnership and help defeat Islamists who threaten the nuclear-armed ally's stability.

Lawmakers unanimously approved the measure, which ties US military aid to progress against extremists, provides 7.5 billion dollars in humanitarian and economic aid over five years, and advocates that level over another five years.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/24/AR2009062403270.html">Senate votes to triple non-defense aid to Pakistan

By JIM ABRAMS
The Associated Press
Wednesday, June 24, 2009; 7:32 PM

WASHINGTON -- The Senate voted Wednesday to triple nonmilitary aid to Pakistan in hopes of bolstering economic and political stability there and to help change the negative attitudes of many Pakistanis toward America.

The bill approves $1.5 billion a year over five years in humanitarian and economic aid to Pakistan. It also recommends a second five-year, $7.5 billion aid program conditioned on improvements in the political and economic climate in Pakistan.

The measure now goes to negotiations with the House, which passed a similar foreign aid bill earlier this month.

It passed the Senate by voice vote without debate. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry, D-Mass., said the bill was vital both to Pakistan's 175 million people and to U.S. national security.
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"Pakistan is facing a critical moment, and today the Senate has made a clear, bipartisan commitment to replace an atmosphere of mutual distrust and lack of accountability with a broad-based, durable commitment to Pakistan and its people," said Kerry, who sponsored the bill with the top Republican on the Foreign Relations Committee, Sen. Dick Lugar of Indiana.

Congrats to Senators Kerry and Lugar on getting this piece of legislation through. Now the bill has to go through a House - Senate reconciliation and then it can be signed by Pres. Obama. Nice work.

[wisteria]

1. Woo Hoo! Great news. n/t

[YvonneCa]

2. Unanimously ! WOW. That is excellent...

...news.

[beachmom]

3. Fantastic! It seems that Kerry's & Lugar's advocacy built a consensus

so that it ended up not being controversial. Hmmmm ... I have been watching BBC America this week where they are reporting from Pakistan. The Pakistani Army is fighting the Taliban hard; I wonder if there wasn't some talk between the U.S. and Pakistan, that if they showed they were serious about fighting the Taliban, then they could count on that non-military aid coming in .... Just a thought.