U.S. Leadership in Global Affairs
Congresswoman Lowey has always believed that maintaining a robust foreign policy is critical to United States national security. She is a strong proponent of all three elements of a strong national security strategy: defense, diplomacy, and development.
As the Chairwoman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on State and Foreign Operations, Lowey is responsible for the annual funding bill that directs foreign aid and State Department operations. The House-passed Fiscal Year 2008 bill is aimed at increasing stability, security, and prosperity around the world through reducing poverty and investing in education and economic development; rebuilding Afghanistan and Iraq; fighting HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and other infectious diseases in sub-Saharan Africa and other regions; promoting democracy in developing societies; and encouraging the export of U.S. products around the world.
War and Reconstruction in Iraq
Congresswoman Lowey believes that from the very beginning, the U.S. involvement in Iraq has been fatally flawed with missteps, misrepresentations, and misjudgments. Our brave men and women in uniform have met every challenge with skill, bravery, and selfless dedication. However, the Administration has failed at every turn to execute the war in Iraq competently. The President rushed to war based on false and faulty intelligence against the protests of the vast majority of our allies. Warnings from U.S. commanders about troop levels and equipment went unheeded, and short-sighted decisions were made at the earliest stages which seriously damaged our efforts to restore peace and security in Iraq. Our troops have become targets of a brutal insurgency. This Administration’s horrendous miscalculations have put us in an untenable situation – damaging our ability to deal with other emerging threats around the world and threatening the stability of the Middle East.
Lowey traveled with Speaker Pelosi to Iraq in January 2007 and met with Prime Minister Al-Maliki and other U.S. and Iraqi officials. She also visited with U.S. soldiers in Iraq and at Landstuhl Military Hospital in Germany. She was humbled by their professionalism, sacrifice and commitment. They are serving with honor and courage, but we are not doing our part. Our Armed forces are not battle ready nor is their mission clear and achievable. It is unconscionable that our troops are sent into harm’s way without the protection and training they need.
We must chart a new direction in Iraq. That is why Lowey voted against continued funding for the war in Iraq in the Fiscal Year 2008 Supplemental spending bill in May 2008. As Chairwoman of the State and Foreign Operations Subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee, Congresswoman Lowey has worked to craft clear parameters for our involvement in Iraq, including measurable benchmarks, enforceable and requiring the Iraqis to match our assistance dollar for dollar.Lowey believes that no amount of U.S. military support or funding can help Iraq if Iraqis do not help themselves. We must work with allies in the Middle East and around the world to help secure Iraq’s future, but the success or failure of the Iraqi nation depends on the willingness of the Iraqi people to set aside sectarian differences and make the hard compromises upon which stable nations are built.
Looking to the future, Lowey believes that U.S. policy toward Iraq should be focused on bringing our troops home as soon as possible and encouraging the Iraqis to take responsibility for their country. An open-ended commitment and unilateral check-writing privileges cannot continue.
U.S.-Israel Relationship
Lowey is a key proponent of a strong U.S. - Israel relationship. She is a leading advocate for the annual U.S. aid package for Israel - our only democratic ally in the Middle East and a key partner in the war on terrorism. Lowey has also fought for funding to help Israel resettle refugees from the former Soviet Union, securing $40 million for this purpose. In 2003, Lowey led efforts to provide Israel with $9 billion in loan guarantees and $1 billion in military assistance to help alleviate the Israeli economic crisis and maintain the country's qualitative military superiority in the region. Lowey will continue to support a package that recognizes Israel’s unique role as a strategic ally essential to U.S. national security.
Lowey is committed to ensuring that Palestinian leaders are held accountable for their actions. Congresswoman Lowey believes that we must work tirelessly for peace in the Middle East, using our diplomatic and development tools to encourage the moderate elements of Palestinian society to stand up for peace. However, Lowey believes that all U.S. funding provided for the Palestinian terrorities must be fully vetted and audited. Under no circumstances should the U.S. or the international community support Hamas or other terrorist organizations.
Lowey has worked with Secretary Rice to ensure that U.S. security assistance for training and equipping Palestinian President Abbas’ security forces is fully transparent and meets clear benchmarks. While Lowey is troubled that President Abbas’ government has lost control of the Gaza Strip, she believes that U.S. security assistance is necessary to prevent the collapse of any chance for a peace agreement and to allow the U.S. to remain at the negotiating table. She strongly believes that any chance for a lasting peace in the Middle East will require the Palestinian leadership to show steely resolve in addressing the lawlessness that has engulfed the territories under their control.
Lowey has secured provisions in the foreign aid bill restricting U.S. funding for the Palestinian Authority, requiring strict oversight of humanitarian assistance provided to the Palestinian people, and condemning the Arab economic boycott of Israel. Lowey also co-authored a provision specifying that there will be no financial assistance for a future Palestinian state unless and until the conditions included in the President's roadmap are met. These conditions include demonstration of a firm commitment to peaceful co-existence with Israel and dismantling of terrorist infrastructures.
Lowey included language in the FY2007 Emergency Supplemental Bill which ensures that U.S. funds provided to strengthen the Siniora government against Hezbollah do not end up in the wrong hands and that the Government of Lebanon fulfills its obligation to secure its borders.
Lowey has also helped provide U.S. authorities with the tools they need to cut off the funds that flow to terrorist groups. She successfully fought for funds in the foreign aid bill for State Department and Treasury Department activities to help countries around the world monitor the flow of money through their banking systems and stop funds from being diverted for terrorism.
Basic Education
Lowey has led efforts to dramatically increase the U.S. investment in educating young girls and boys in poor countries. Lowey is a key proponent of working with foreign governments to encourage investments in high-quality public education, to ensure children are not taught intolerance and hatred in school, and to give children the tools they need to contribute to peaceful and democratic societies. She has led efforts to more than quadruple the U.S. investment in international basic education since 2001, from $100 million to $700 million, and authored the Education for All Act, the first comprehensive legislative plan to achieve universal, free basic education for all children by 2015.
International Family Planning
Lowey has fought efforts to restrict U.S. funding for life-saving health and family planning programs for the poorest women and children around the world. In the Fiscal Year 2008 House-passed foreign assistance appropriations bill, Lowey included a provision that would allow international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that do not comply with the “global gag rule” to receive donated contraceptives for millions of men and women who desperately need them. The “global gag rule”, or Mexico City Policy, prohibits foreign NGOs from receiving any U.S. assistance unless they agree not to use their own funds to perform abortions, provide referrals or counseling for these services, or even promote the legalization of abortion.
Filling this unmet need for contraceptives could prevent 52 million unwanted pregnancies; an estimated 29 million abortions; 142,000 pregnancy-related deaths; and 505,000 children from losing their mothers in just one year.
Lowey also authored the Global Democracy Promotion Act, which would ensure our foreign aid policy promotes the same standards of freedom of speech and democratic participation in other countries that Americans are fortunate to have. She has also fought to maintain a high level of U.S. investment in bilateral family planning and reproductive health activities around the world and has been a leader in the effort to restore U.S. support for the United Nations Population Fund.
Empowering Women Economically
Congresswoman Lowey understands that it will be impossible for developing countries to progress toward economic stability if they leave half of their populations behind. Investing in poor women is the key to tackling poverty; when women have an income, they reinvest in their families' health, education and nutrition, creating stronger communities and nations with more robust economies. For this reason, Lowey authored the Global Resources and Opportunities for Women to Thrive (GROWTH) Act, which would provide a comprehensive, practical strategy to address women's poverty in developing countries by tackling major obstacles to women's economic opportunity, including: access to credit; property rights; better jobs; and access to the benefits of global trade.
Caucus Memberships
Congresswoman Lowey is a member of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus and has fought to end human rights abuses around the world and to hold those responsible for violations of human rights accountable. She is also a member of the Bipartisan Congressional Task Force on Terror Financing. Recognizing the importance of a number of specific regions around the world to her constituents, Lowey is a member of Congressional caucuses focusing on India, Armenia, Ukraine, Taiwan, and Hellenic issues.
