John Kerry: U.S To Start $5 Billion Anti-Terrorist Fund

[undeterred]

Source: Huffington Post

WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State John Kerry said Wednesday the United States is setting up a $5 billion "terrorism partnership fund" to help other countries push back against radical extremists. Appearing on a host of network morning-show interviews, Kerry staunchly defended President Barack Obama's decision to terminate the U.S. combat role in Afghanistan by the end of the year.

Referring in an NBC "Today" show interview to a speech Obama was set to give later Wednesday at the U.S. Military Academy,Kerry said Obama is telling the Afghans "by a specific time they have to take over management of their own security and military."

The secretary said the message to Afghanistan is "we're not going to give you all the time in the world. You have to push the envelope." "This is not an abandonment of Afghanistan," Kerry said. "This is an emboldenment. This is an empowerment of Afghanistan."

Appearing on "CBS This Morning," he said the withdrawal plan of the U.S. will allow this country to divert resources to the anti-terrorism fight in other parts of the world. Kerry said U.S. foreign policy needs to reflect a "rapidly changing, more complex world where terrorism is the principal challenge."



Read more: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/05/28/john-kerry-anti-terrorist_n_5402880.html

[valerief]

1. I thought that's why we spend trillions in WAR. nt

[Autumn]

2. $5 Billion Anti-Terrorist Fund? $5 Billion Food Stamp and Aid to the Needy Fund

would be what I would rather see, but no. More money down the fucking hole. Disgusting.

[OnyxCollie]

3. Defense contractor slush fund. nt

[GeorgeGist]

4. FAIL

so let's fail some more.

[sulphurdunn]

5. We could send every kid

who qualifies to a public university free of charge for 2/3 of what we have budgeted in Afghanistan this year, or we could increase the federal contribution to K-12 public education by 1/3. Kerry's $5 billion giveaway is 1/12 the entire federal budget for K-12 education, and he probably considers it chump change. We live in a Kafkaesque narrative where the people's money is lent at interest to their children for higher education and given free to foreign tyrants for waging war.

[karynnj]

20. First of all OBAMA announced it in his speech - Kerry spoke of what Obama's policy is

Second, this was described as an alternative to invading countries.

[geek tragedy]

6. Yeah, that's not going to be abused in any way, nope nt

[blkmusclmachine]

7. So, into whose pockets will this ill-gotten gain fall???

Fail!

[Purveyor]

8. My bet is on Tel Aviv. eom

[undeterred]

9. Proving Democrats aren't weak on Defense

[cosmicone]

10. And $2-3 billion of that will go to Pakistan to create more terrorism.

It is like starting two factories - one to make powder from milk, another to make milk from the powder and claiming high industrial efficiency and full employment.

[Jesus Malverde]

11. The (unending) war on terror continues...nt

[YvonneCa]

12. I support Sec. Kerry and President Obama...

...on Foreign Policy. It is a policy to undo the damage done by Bush/Cheney with 'pre-emptive war', to define what our values are, and to re-establish US leadership in the international community.

I hope...before dissing Democratic leaders...we will all read the full speeches/statements.

The reality is it takes a long time to end a war. Obama and Kerry are doing that. They did not start wars in Iraq and Afghanistan...but they are trying to end them. Troops in Afghanistan are going down to below 10000 this year and to half that by 2016.

That is what many here wanted Obama to do and he and his administration are doing that. The money is to stabilize the region. It was BUSH who destabilized it in March, 2003.

[Corey_Baker08]

13. I Also Support Sec Kerry & President Obama's Afghanastan Decision

as well as their foreign policy goal as a whole. We've ended the war in Iraq and are bringing to a close the war in Afghanistan. So instead of continuing these wars they are executing a very ambitous anti-terrorism aid package which cost a hell of a lot less money than fighting needless wars....

[mpcamb]

14. $5 Billion to Anti-Terrorist Fund?? Screw that!

Fix the roads and bridges instead.

There are dozens of better ways to spend the money where you'd have something concrete (no pun) when it's over.

[olddad56]

15. and it a related story, the US plans to continue to terrorize the environment.

[antiGOPin294]

16. Enough already! Our country is broke.

It's time for our politicians to stop funneling so much of our tax dollars into the MIC. Our country's downtrodden are suffering from a lack of medical care, shelter, and community. The $5 billion should go towards taking care of them, rather than feeding our gargantuan war machine.

[YvonneCa]

22. Welcome to DU. n/t

[MisterP]

17. this was actually Ollie North's operation: a stand-alone trust fund

even less accountable than the CIA's black ops (which still needed Congress's dinero)
it's actually a copy of Argentina's plan (that got us the 1980 Cocaine Coup in Bolivia) where the intelligence agencies created an entirely autonomous, stand-alone network of counterinsurgency experts, Dirty War veterans, drug- and gunrunners, and people too extreme for Emilio Massera; the US half was basically run by Birchers and "bought in" to Argentina, Chile, Taiwan, and Israel's covert networks

[karynnj]

21. Lots of total misinformation there

Did you hear Obama explain what it is?

[Leme]

18. slush fund

bales of money

[rug]

23. "This is an emboldenment. This is an empowerment of Afghanistan."