Liberal Democrats are fuming over reports that President Donald Trump is mulling plans to begin conditioning the release of foreign aid on whether or not the recipient country treats its religious minorities well.
“The proposal is expected to cover U.S. humanitarian assistance, and could also be broadened to include American military aid to other countries,” Politico reported Monday, citing two unnamed White House officials.
“If the proposal becomes reality, it could have a major effect on U.S. assistance in a range of places, from Iraq to Vietnam. Its mere consideration shows how much the White House prioritizes religious freedom.”
Not to mention the concerns of minorities both here and abroad.
Yet for reasons that remain unclear, the report by Politico has triggered fury and outrage among the same sort of liberal Democrats who claim to care so deeply about the concerns and well-being of minorities (even the murderous ones).
Observe:
Is this a joke? Tell me it’s a joke. Stop using this regime and religion in the same sentence.
— Deb Mc ?? ?️? ? ? (@booniquee) November 12, 2019
This is an evangelical agenda.
— Jo Ann F. Martin (@joannfmartin) November 12, 2019
So he’s finding a religious crusade with military backing. I thought we opposed religious wars?
— Ralph McKenzie Jr. (@rmckenziejr) November 12, 2019
Good thing we’re not using this philosophy on our own country…
— Anaxandra (@AnaxandraSays) November 12, 2019
Such is the the hypocrisy within the king of American bigots, who’s mistreated all sorts of religious minorities his entire life, most especially since becoming POTUS!
— Janiece Staton ? #BoycottNRA & #BoycottRepublican (@JanieceStaton) November 12, 2019
This is the same Donald Trump who kicked off his presidency with a Muslim travel ban?
— welladriansays (@welladriansays) November 12, 2019
“how well countries treat religious minorities” – Not sure about this one.
Religious minorities in their country or religious minorities in our country?
— ModerateVoters.org (@ModerateVoters) November 12, 2019
Seriously? And this from an administration that is blocking Muslim immigrants?
— Janet Messer (@JZMesser) November 12, 2019
Would it apply to ourselves? Cut off our own military aid (budget) if we don’t offer robust protection for Muslims, Jews, and all religious minorities?
— Noman (@itnor1) November 12, 2019
The mainline of attack appeared to be the factually inaccurate claims that, one, Trump has blocked Muslims from immigrating to the United States (FALSE), and two, America is in no position to demand other nations treat religious minorities right because it mistreats its own religious minorities (FALSE).
According to U.S. News & World Report’s “2019 Best Countries” survey, America ranks in 5th place for religious freedom among all countries. Newsweek has likewise dubbed religious freedom “America’s greatest export.”
Politico’s sources have reportedly stressed that the plan is still in its early stages and that the administration is considering other options as well.
“One said that imposing sanctions also is being weighed as a method of punishment. The other said the idea is patterned in part on existing U.S. legal requirements that restrict aid to countries that do poorly on an annual U.S. report on human trafficking,” the outlet reported.
The left has in recent days also taken to complaining about foreign aid that’s been directed to religious minorities versus their host countries.
Last week, for instance, The Washington Post cited a new investigation from the far-left self-described “watchdog” group ProPublica that found that Vice President Mike Pence’s office has been redirecting foreign aid to Iraqi Christian groups so as to meet a campaign promise.
“Iraqi Christians are persecuted, but they make up roughly 3 percent of the total population; singling them out could inflame religious tensions rather than protect them,” the Post lamented.
It seemed as if the Post was saying that, because helping the Christian minorities in Iraq who face rape and murder could upset the nation’s Muslim majority population, said minorities shouldn’t be helped. Moreover, helping said minorities counts as a “misuse of U.S. foreign aid,” the paper alleged.
The U.S. Agency for International Development, an independent U.S. agency that handles foreign aid concerns, has disputed the latter claim.
“The Trump Administration has made responding to the genocide committed by the so-called Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) against religious and ethnic minorities a top priority,” the group’s spokesperson said to ProPublica.
“Assistance to religious and ethnic communities targeted by ISIS is not a departure from the norm, but rather a continuation of USAID’s rich history of promoting inclusive development and defending human dignity and religious freedom in our partner countries.”
Nevertheless, members of the left have reacted to this report with as much fire and fury as they reacted to the news from Politico.
Look:
There’s a lot of detail here but the theme is clear: under the leadership of Pence US aid is being explicitly used as a tool to promote Christian ideology. Increasing aid to Christians abroad is a core value for GOP supporters. #USAID https://t.co/AfDakx4SIv
— ʟᴏᴄᴜᴛᴜꜱ ᴏꜰ ʙᴏʀɢ ™ (@WildPalmsLtd) November 8, 2019
if a @VP religion is that important to him he should go work in a church and not our government.
— TheSavvyPundit (@thesavvypundit) November 11, 2019
The USA does NOT have a national religion. The USA was founded in part to avoid a national religion. The USA, as a nation, should NEVER favor one religion over another.
Trump, Pence and the @GOP are slowly destroying the USA’s international standing.#GOPBetrayedUS
— Zhi Zhu (@ZhiZhuWeb) November 11, 2019
Just another arm of the Trump/Pence Corruption. No surprise here Pence is a Religious Fanatic. These 2 are a direct danger to the USA
— DebDem (@DebDem3) November 12, 2019
No Christian Dominionist should ever be allowed to hold public office. They have committed treason in their hearts before entering the Office. They cannot be loyal to the constitution of the United States as they are already loyal to its destruction.
— Montriville Graham (@MontrivilleG) November 12, 2019
So much for caring about minorities.
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