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House rejects Trump’s Middle East aid cuts

The House spending bill calls for far more assistance to North Africa.
WASHINGTON, DC - NOVEMBER 04:  Chairman Ed Royce (R-CA), participates in a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing on Capitol Hill, November 4, 2015 in Washington, DC. The committee heard testimony from State DepartmentÊofficials onÊU.S. policy after Russia's escalation in Syria.  (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images)
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Congress rejected the Donald Trump administration’s proposed cuts to Middle East aid today, in some cases even voting to increase assistance over the current year’s budget.

While the State Department request for the fiscal year that starts Oct. 1 sought deep cuts across the board, members of the House foreign aid spending panel made clear they wouldn’t be touching aid to key US allies such as Egypt, Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia. In addition, the House state and foreign operations bill released today makes clear that the administration's proposal to turn some foreign military financing grants into loans is also a nonstarter.

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