[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 72 (Friday, May 2, 2008)]
[Senate]
[Page S3738]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             WORLD FOOD AID

  Mr. CASEY. Mr. President, I know we are ready to wrap up for the 
week. First, I want to make a couple points about a news item in 
today's paper.
  I was looking at the Washington Post this morning, page A4. There is 
a story about the President seeking $770 million more in world food 
aid. At first glance, that sounds like very good news, and it is, to a 
certain extent. But, unfortunately, it is good news about the future in 
terms of a commitment for 2009, but it doesn't do nearly enough to meet 
the crisis that has enveloped large parts of the world with regard to 
the food insecurity we are seeing all over the world.
  Here is the point. I and others have asked the President to increase, 
for this year, our food aid from the $350 million he has proposed 
earlier by adding another $200 million to that. In the short run, we 
wanted to go from $350 million to $550 million. This $770 million is 
great, but it is in 2009. When you think about when the food would hit 
the ground, so to speak, the difference is that if the President's 
policy stays in place for the near term, what you are going to have is 
food hitting the ground, totaling $350 million, in the next couple of 
months, when we could be adding a lot more to that. The demand really 
requires that we add $200 million. Even if we add the number the 
President put on the table, which is $770 million, that food won't hit 
the ground, at the earliest, until November 2008, maybe December, or 
maybe not even until January 2009.
  We are at a point now where we have news story after news story about 
instability across the world--governments that are not just at risk of 
collapse because of the food insecurity, and we have seen all the 
reports about rioting--but this becomes not just a humanitarian crisis, 
not only a government instability problem, but it really becomes 
fertile ground, unfortunately, for terrorism. So food insecurity is 
becoming a national and international security problem.
  We know from our history--world history especially--that in places 
such as Afghanistan, where there is instability, terrorism flourished. 
We know the stories in the last couple of years, since before 2001, 
about the rise of the Taliban and the rise of terrorist elements all 
over the world.
  So I hope the President, as much as he has heralded his announcement 
for 2009 of $770 million, I hope he will reconsider for the short term 
so we can add another $200 million in food aid--not a lot of money in 
the scheme of the aid the United States generously provides to the rest 
of the world--add another $200 million in the near term so food can hit 
the ground in these countries maybe at the end of this month or in June 
or July instead of waiting until November, December, or even January of 
next year. Not just the hunger pangs and the trauma that this causes to 
real people across the world but the security implication here is very 
grave.
  I hope the President will bring the same urgency to this funding as 
he does to his call for more war funding, frankly. I think we need a 
sense of urgency because of the humanitarian, moral question here but 
also because of the security implications.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. WHITEHOUSE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Casey). Without objection, it is so 
ordered.

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