The U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee on Thursday approved a bipartisan foreign affairs budget bill worth $61.77 billion, trimming funding slightly and setting up a clash with the House as lawmakers must reconcile the two divergent proposals that fund critical global development and diplomacy programs.
The Senate meeting to discuss and vote on the bill was a bipartisan affair that drew praise for cooperation, and it was a clear juxtaposition from the House budget discussions, which were often partisan, testy, and included culture war debates.
The bill increases humanitarian assistance and food aid, in part, to respond to what Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, of South Carolina, warned is “an emergency on steroids coming in the food security space.” It also maintains global health funding, boosts support for the Indo-Pacific region, and seeks to counter China’s economic and development policies.