today usaid remains committed to providing for people in dire situations with emergency health. in countries like yemen and nigeria where more than 70% of the population is facing severe starvation, usaid continues to step in to prevent famine and fight disease. the usaid mission is to provide emergency food assistance, is vital to many countries around the world and is a key pillar of president trump's national security strategy. its purpose is to end the need for its own existence by responding to disasters and helping our partners and chief self-reliance. a world without hunger is in america's best interest. hunger breeds instability and conflict. these programs represent a small investment to prevent future conflicts. i am proud that wheat, wheat is the most used commodity in u.s. hunger programs. kansas is known as the breadbasket of the world and is the nation's leading wheat producer. but today while our growers have full grain elevators in my state, we have four undeclared famines around the world. there is no reason why we cannot connect the starving with our ample food

it a marvelous job at usaid and gale did. we never did the reform. we never did the reform because the state department wouldn't let go of it. the state department wanted to control it. i have always thought that was a mistake. we should have, i think, separate department of developments like they do in great britain. but it's a turf thing. the state department wanted it. under the obama administration, eight years, we did nothing congressionally. raj did what he could within the confines of the law, but now i think we have the possibility of reforming that. that would be a big step forwards getting -- towards getting to us a better place of a whole government approach if usaid had more power and authority. >> there always has been in washington this debate over whether true structural reform is possible and whether one should think big to make some of these bigger structural changes or one sort of absent a major crisis forced back, if you will, into working with what you have. do you fall somewhere on that spectrum? it sounds like in this example ma

government around like hotels on a monopoly board, i would take socom and usaid. i would make them hybrid and put them in charge of this. i don't know, take 12 people from socom, 12 people from usaid, sager, you've got an agency, do this. i think those of the two groups that are in the best position to do. the state department would freak out in a heartbeat. if there's anyone from the state going to get a nasty phone call for even suggesting such a thing. but those are the two groups are really most on the ground dealing with it and they are diplomats as well as all the other things that they do. the problems the state department in being charge of all the stuff is they've got so much stuff to worry about that they don't get down into the weeds on the level that socom and usaid does. those of the two groups. i would take like i i said tha2 smartest people from socom and 12 square some usaid, century ago, here's $50 $50 billion, ge the world. i think they are in the best position to coordinate that. everyone would say wait a second, i'm not taking orders from those

that i have ever encountered and he did a marvelous job at usaid and gail after him. we never did the reform because the state department would not let go of it, and they wanted to control it, and i always thought that was a mistake. we should have the separate department of development, like they do in great britain. but it's a turf thing. and the state department wanted it. so under the obama administration for eight years we did nothing congress youngally. now raj did what he could within the confines of the law. but now we have the possibility of reforming that, and that would be a big step towards getting us at a better place of a whole government approach if the usaid had more power and authority. >> it seems there has always been this debate in washington over whether we should make true structural reform is possible and whether one should make big structural changes or one sort of absent a major crisis, one is forced back into what you have and do you fall on the spectrum by the way it sounds like an example there say view for a chance of i fundamental structu

raj shah, and not the one in the white house, but the usaid guy for a while is as brilliant a h human being that i have ever encountered and he did a beautiful job at us a aid and so was gail. we never did the reform because the state department would not let go of it, and they wanted to control it, and i always thought that it was a mistake, and we should have a separate department of development like they do in great britain, but it is a turf thing, and the state department wanted it so under the obama administration in eightt years we did nothing congressionally, and raj did what he could within the conf e confines of the law, but now we have the possibility of reforming that, and that would be a p big step towards getting us at a better place of a whole government approach if the usaid had more power and authority. >> it seems that will there is a debate in washington over the true structural reform is possible, and whether one should think big to make some of the bigger structural changes or one sort of is absent a major crisis, and one is forced back if you will back into what y

usaid is providing assistance for the elections coming up this year, the parliamentary elections and the presidential elections next year. my president tot president ghani which he was receptive to and embraced is how important the afghans consider their record of commitment to democracy and they have had a number of elections and some more successful than other others in the last 16 years, but usaid is providing the support po the government, and i met with the opposition political leaders while i was there at the embassy to talk to them about the importance of the free and fair elections and the support that the united states government through usaid is going to be providing to that end. >> plet me ask you since your testimony is that elections are vital and what specific d diplomatic and governmental tools are you willing to or are utilizing to support those, and what is the realistic time frame for you have to be part of delivering it through those entities? >> the time frame is tight. the original schedule for parliamentary elections was july. and due to my conversations with ka

the cell captured tortured and killed american journalist james foley, steven sotloff, and usaid worker peter cappic. >>> stocks closed on the heels of another jarring wall street meltdown. diane king hall is at the new york stock exchange. good morning, diane. >> good morning, anne-marie. the selloff that started last week continued. the higher wages would lead to inflation and higher interest rates senting stocks into yet another tailspin. the dow plunged over 1,000 points or just over 4 points. the dow and s&p 500 have dropped 10% from their highs, an official definition of a correction. the market has not seen a correction for two years, an unusually long time. but all indicators point to a strong economy. unemployment is at a 17-year low, the housing industry is strong and factories continue to rebond. corporate profits are on the rise. but for folks leaving close tabs on their 401(k)s, that doesn't take away from the an zit of watching a 1,000-point selloff. >> i can imagine. diane king hall at the new york stock exchange. thank you so much. >>> in philadelphia, a celebration near

and it is interesting that when mark green, the head of usaid, one of the key donor countries looking in south sudan, when he saw salva kiir recently, he emerged and sources close to him said, and i'm quoting from the us media, that he was shocked to be lied to so brazenly by the president about the situation in the country. and he then, that is mr green, said that he would undertake a complete review of american policy toward south sudan. the americans have given up on your government. this is his opinion. and we respect that. the us will continue to be an ally. of course, they have been a bit difficult with us recently. but why do you think that is, minister? why do you think that is, that they oppose an arms embargo, they have put sanctions on two of your most senior generals and the minister of information, accusing them all of outrageous levels of corruption? why do you think the americans are doing this? you know, we are really concerned about the decisions that the americans are taking. america is an ally, a friend to us, and to the people of south sudan. but for them, you don'

usaid is providing support to the government. i met with the opposition political leaders while i was there at the embassy to talk to them about the importance of free and fair elections, and the support that the united states government, through usaid was going to be providing toward that end. >> let me ask you, since your testimony says that elections are vital, what specific diplomatic developmental and governance tools to usaid and state are you utilizing to support those, and what's the realistic time frame for you to be part of delivering it through those entities? >> time frame is tight. we -- the original schedule for parliamentary elections was this july. based on my conversations in kabul, that will likely slip to this fall, probably october. but it can't slip to next year. they've got to be done before the presidential elections. >> what are we doing in terms of resources. >> specific support. for example, funding and providing advice on creating voter roles. and voter assistance. what we do here in the united states t

and it is interesting that when mark green, the head of usaid, one of the key donor countries looking the president really, he emerged and close to sources close to him said, and i'm quoting for the us media, that he was shocked to be lied to so brazenly by the president about the situation the country. and mr green and then said he would undertake a com plete and then said he would undertake a complete review of american policy toward south sudan. the americans have given up on your government. this is his opinion, and we respect that. the us is our ally, and they will continue to be an ally. they had been a bit difficult with us recently... had been a bit difficult with us recently. . . why had been a bit difficult with us recently... why do you think that is? they have imposed an arms embargo, sanctions on your two senior generals, and accusing them all of outrageous levels of collection description. —— corruption. america is an ally, a friend us and the people of south sudan. but for them, you do not sanction your friends, you sudan. but for them, you do not sanction yourfriends,

usaid is providing support to the government. i met with the opposition political leaders while i was there at the embassy to talk to them about the importance of free and fair elections and the support that the united states government through usaid was going to be providing to that end. sen. menedez: the sq, your testimony says elections are vital. what specific diplomatic developmental and governments tools areovernment you utilizing to support those and what is a realistic timeframe to be part of delivering it through those entities? sec. sullivan: the timeframe is tight. the original schedule for parliamentary elections was this july. based on my conversations in kabul, that will likely move to this fall, likely october, but they cannot move to next year, they have to be done before presidential elections. sen. menedez: what are we doing? support,ivan: specific for example, funding and providing advice on creating lls andoles -- voter ro assistance. what we do here in the united states to support our elections, providing adv

state department hiring freeze and the administration's budget request for the state department and usaid. calling for a one-third reduction in funding. congress has resisted those deep cuts, though the administration's critics say the president has little interest in diplomacy, and that's an example of it. secretary of state rex tillerson says the state department budget of $50 billion is unsustainable. he acknowledges the confirmation process can be excruciatingly long for many and says he's offended by the idea that the administration and the state department are not functioning. he emphasized that again last night night in an interview with 60 minutes in which he denied he's dismantling the state department. john. >> john: rich edson at the state department. thanks so much. there's plenty of daylight between the main candidates running for mexico's presidency in the summer's election. not when it comes to president trump. our national correspondent william la jeunesse tells us from los angeles the american leader is one thing most mexicans can surely agree on. >> the race for mexico's

administration at multiple agency levels, including the state department, treasury, national security, usaidand joint chiefs and pentagon are addressing the crisis and there's so much more to do. what is and can congress do? there have been multiple hearings in both chambers. there has been movement on a resolution that the house passed, i believe unanimously, in november. just two weeks ago, the senate foreign relations committee, the human rights and freedom act which amnesty s-020, the next stop is the senate floor. and the amnesty board of directors sent a letter directly to mitch mcconnell urging him to bring that to the floor for vote asap. and monday, 300 activists across the united states will be hitting capitol hill and meeting with legislators both republicans and democrats, urging them to take action on several top priorities, including passage, ultimately final passage of the bicalmeral, bipartisan. and they're urging them robust funding and aid. and the united states notwithstanding, troubling developments from the trump administration, the united states remains the single large

a neighborhood in honduras, for example, you know, in partnership with the usaid and dod's inl's place-based strategy has made a significant improvement in a neighborhood like that. >> but it's still dangerous. >> dangerous and getting better. >> the country is. >> yeah, great. i know those are difficult questions to put you on the line for but it's important for say. as part of your earlier testimony indicated. there are almost 100 people in the united states a day dying. when you look at gang activities and other actives, but we're looking at transnational criminal organizations. the one that is killing the post people in our country, as i said, almost 100 a day, are those activities that surround opioids and fentanyl coming into our country. being counterfeited to look like perk set or other commercial drugs, coming in with great potency. it has spiked the deaths in my area and most of the country enormously and a lot of that is coming from china. can you comment on what we're trying to do where right under the nose of the chinese government the manufacturing of these drugs are occurring

administration at multiple agency levels including the state department, treasury, national security, usaid, joint chiefs, pentagon, are continuing to address the rohingya cries, and there's still so much more to do. now what is and what can congress do? there have been multiple hearings in both chambers. there has been movement on a resolution that the house passed near -- i believe unanimously in november. just two weeks ago the senate foreign relations committee marked up the burma human rights and freedom act which amnesty international strongly supports. that's s-2620. the next stop for that bill is the senate floor. amnesty international's board of directors has sent a letter directly to mitch mcconnell urging him to bring that legislation to the floor for a vote asap. on monday, february 26th, 320 am neftali international activists from across the united states will be hitting capitol hill and meeting with legislators, both republicans and democrats, urging them to take action on several top priorities, including passage, ultimately, passage of the bicameral and warm legislation on t

the hearing room with the quick wit as confirmation of bipartisan credentials his wife worked for usaid united security council during the obama administration a devoted father to three children that you have already heard some from this morning. [laughter] and perhaps more as the hearing continues. as the commissioner has experienced to the antitrust law to better protect consumers capitol hill staff may come and go to be held by my office and the entire senate judiciary committee. the commission is better off to her on -- his tenure and thank you for your consideration of his deserving and well-qualified nominee. >> thank you senator for the colleagues willingness on behalf of the nominees thank you for being here. i will recognize a member of this committee to introduce one of the others as well. [inaudible conversations] i will recognize senator cap window to introduce ms. wilson. >> to thank all the nominees in particular president traveled far nominating ms. wilson as the nominees -- nominee for ftc commissioner she works in washington d.c. and lives in falls church virginia purch

london due to likely protests since december the united states particularly department of state and usaid have been pushing the saudis very hard and very publicly on this to lift fully lift the blockade to actually ameliorate the humanitarian crisis in north and west yemen and to begin you know taking steps towards a peace settlement that can be the only resolution to the humanitarian crisis this plan is very clearly a response to that but you wonder how the plan itself will work i mean it promises one point five billion in new humanitarian funding for distribution across u.n. agencies and international relief organizations how is this going to help especially if they don't lift some of the bookcase they have in place right now in yemen. yes there are major substantive concerns with the plan the one point five billion is probably the best aspect of the plan in as much as it's given over to neutral u.n. professionals but even that in twenty fifteen we saw for vice reported that saudi arabia tried to attach strings to two hundred seventy four million and gave to the u.n. saying you know you

in fact, chairman ros-lehtinen and i had an opportunity just a few years ago to see firsthand a usaid project or waste water treatment facility that today is providing access to clean water for millions of jordanians. this is the right thing to do. both for american strategic interests, and for american values. jordan's stability is vital to regional stability. our commitment to an enduring strategic partnership with jordan is critical to our mission of defeating isis, caring for the victims of war, and pursuing end of conflict agreements throughout the middle east. so i want to again thank my colleagues for their bipartisan support of this piece of legislation. i urge all of us to vote for h.r. 2646. again, i thank my friend from pennsylvania and i yield back. mr. boyle: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from california. mr. royce: i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california yields. the question is, will the house suspend

i'm concerned because of the cuts to our state department and usaid we are not doing everything we can to position ourselves as a partner of choice for our neighbors in the region. i'd like to hear from you how china and russia are investing in central and south america and how they pose a national security threat to the united states. finally, we're all observing the humanitarian crisis in venezuela. i'd like your perspectives on how much longer the regime can survive and how the crisis will affect neighboring countries. i'm especially concerned about colombia, which is already struggling to implement its disarmament, and reintegration process and ill-equipped to deal with the long-term refugee problem. again, thank you for your serves. >> thank you, senator reed. we'll go ahead and hear opening statements by both of our witnesses. try to confine them to five minutes, if you can. your entire statement will be made part of the record. let's start with you, general robinson. >> sir, thank you. >> i just found out that your husband was best friends and a fellow f-16 pilot with my best fr

i'm concerned about the cuts to the state department and usaid we're not doing everything we can to position ourselves as partner of choice of neighbors in the region. general tidd i would like to hear how china an russia are investing in central and south america and how they pose a threat in the united states. we're observing the venezuelan crisis. and perspective how long the regime can survive and how the crisis can affect neighbor be countries. i'm concerned about colombia with the disarmment and is ill equipped to deal with a long term es refugee problem in the region. general tidd and general robinson, thank you for your service. >> thank you, senator reed. we'll go ahead and hear opening statements by both of our witnesses and try to confine them to five minutes if you can. your entire statement would be made a part of the record. we'll start with you, general robinson. general robinson, i found out your husband was best friend and fellow f-16 pilot with my best friend charles sublet in oklahoma. i was not aware of this i don't know how that went unnoticed. >> sir, when you bring him

back in 2011, at a press conference announcing the re-introduction of the dream act, here's what tol usaid. the dreements of my youth have -- tulo said. the dreams of my youth have stalled, yes. but my country still needs me. passing the dream act is critically important to me and to so many others. i don't believe i'm entitled to anything more than what this great nation has taught me. that we all have the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. imagine tulo is right. thousands of immigrant students in the united states were brought to the united states as children. it was not their decision to come to this country. but they grew up here and this is their home. the fundamental premise of the dream act is that we should not punish children for their parents' actions. this is not the american way. instead the dream act says to these students, america will always give you a chance. and i say to their parents, thank you for bringing these dreamers to america. we're in your debt. for the courage it took for you to take the risk, physically, politically, in every way, to do so. dav

statements and budget which proposed a dramatic cut in humanitarian aid and in the state department and usaidant that we showed a bipartisan message of support for our key allies in the middle east. >> senator coons, it's willie geis geist, if i can hop across the globe for a bit. i just spent the last month in south korea. there's a concern about north korea and a direct attack but there's a pool of concern that the president of the united states may at some point launch a preemptive strike into north korea which would lead to strikes into seoul and across south korea. is that a reasonable zmrn wheco? where is the president and the policy vis-a-vis north korea? >> there has been real debate about whether to pursue a so-called bloody nose strike against north korea. i personally think that would be very risky. i think in north korea you've got not as much a regime as a cult of personality where kim jong-un urchss that anything that diminishes his credibility is a direct assault on his regime. and so one of the things i worry about is that our president who has a candidate said he would aim to