House Proceeding 04-02-09 on Apr 2nd, 2009 :: 0:43:55 to 0:46:25
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0:43:53 to 0:44:14( Edit History Discussion )

Howard L. Berman: republicans have propos -- we cannot do this to the greatest generation or to the next generation. let's not become the reckless generation. has expired. the gentleman from south carolina. mr. spratt: i yield two minutes to the the gentleman from california.

0:43:55 to 0:46:25( Edit History Discussion )
Speech By: Howard L. Berman

0:44:15 to 0:44:36( Edit History Discussion )

Howard L. Berman: the chair: the gentleman from california is recognized. mr. berman: i rise in strong opposition tothe republican substitute and thank the gentleman for yielding. among its many proposal slashes funding for international affairs budget 20%

0:44:37 to 0:44:59( Edit History Discussion )

Howard L. Berman: below the president's request, 10% blow this year's spending level. this may be a politically appealing thing to do, but it is short sighted and harmful as any other aspect of this proposal, harmful to our national security, harmful to our national interests.

0:45:00 to 0:45:20( Edit History Discussion )

Howard L. Berman: for to long we have fai invest adequate resources in our civilian foreign affairs agencies. the starved for funds that 1% of its posts remain unfilled. the u.s. agency now relies on five engineers to oersee hundreds of infrastructure

0:45:21 to 0:45:42( Edit History Discussion )

Howard L. Berman: projects around the world. this void in our civilian capacity is increasingly being filled by the military. our brave men and women in uniform follow orders and do the best they can, but they were trained to be war fighters, not development and reconstruction professionals. that's why defense secretary

0:45:43 to 0:46:03( Edit History Discussion )

Howard L. Berman: gates called, according to the newspapers, committee chairman conrad last week to plead for more money, not for the pentagon, but for the international afairs budget. the draconian cuts proposed in this substitute could have a direct impact on the success of our efforts to stabilize afghanistan. president obama has correctly

0:46:04 to 0:46:25( Edit History Discussion )

Howard L. Berman: recognized that the fight against al qaeda and the taliban cannot be won by military means alone. in addition to 21,000 troops, he is proposing sending specialists to help that war-torn country get back on their fet. this budget would make that impossib way they could absorb the