Forein Aid in the Time of Soaring Budget Deficits

Insane, isnt it?  Estimates for FY 2011 budget deficit vary, but most agree the number is somewhere north of one trillion (1000 billion) dollars.  Yet, with all this red ink we continue to spend upwards of 50 billion dollars in foreign aid. Using figures from the Census Department website, http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/cats/foreign_commerce_aid/foreign_aid.html  we can see how this foreign aid is distributed worldwide and the amounts and the recipients of this aid defy common sense.

A good example is aid to Pakistan, which was 1.25 billion dollars for FY 2009.  What do we get for our money, you ask?  Elements within the Pakistani government, military and intelligence services (ISI) are actively sheltering Taliban and Al-Qaeda forces within Pakistani territory.  The article from the Washington Post sheds light on the issue.  Although commending Pakistan for latest round of crackdowns, sympathetic elements within the ISI still harbor, protect and possibly supply intelligence to Taliban and Al-Qaeda forces.
 http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/04/10/AR2010041002111.html

I find myself agreeing with Rand Paul (R-Texas) that it is time to reconsider our foreign aid expenditures.  Much budget-cutting must be done with haste to prevent a debt default here in the US and foreign aid is but one area of potential budget cuts.  Other agencies' and departments' budgets require more intense scrutiny as well.  Let's hope that the wave of Republicans swept into Congress in 2010 are serious about budget-cutting and oversight which is their constitutionally mandated power, the power of the purse.