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Israel-Palestine
Bush plans to give aid to Palestinians: sources
2004-11-18
The Bush administration plans to give $20 million in aid directly to the Palestinian Authority, bypassing congressional restrictions as part of a renewed push for peace in the Middle East, sources familiar with the plan said on Wednesday.
My initial thought was that it would be better to wait until after the elections take place to put any money into Paleostine, but presumably Bush expects to get something for the money. I wouldn't count on it too heavily, though...
The administration notified key congressional committees on Wednesday of its plans, which could be announced when outgoing US Secretary of State Colin Powell meets with Palestinian officials in the West Bank early next week. A congressional aide said the move does not require congressional approval, just congressional notification. But key lawmakers are already raising objections that could force the White House to reconsider. The sources said the money is part of a concerted push by the Bush administration and its European allies to help the Palestinians organize January presidential elections to choose a successor to Yasser Arafat, who died last week. The $20 million in US funding, the sources said, would be overseen by Palestinian Finance Minister Salam Fayyad, a former International Monetary Fund official with strong US backing, and could be used to pay Palestinian Authority salaries. Critics in Congress say stringent safeguards are needed to ensure that US taxpayer money is not siphoned off by corrupt Palestinian officials or used by terrorist groups.
Posted by:Fred

#22  Hey, Captain, I'm not on Blair's back.
Posted by: jackal   2004-11-18 1:02:25 PM  

#21  Is that the new money with the nano-transponders for GPS tracking?...
Posted by: mojo   2004-11-18 12:14:36 PM  

#20  If the US is going to waste our time again with these people, then they can pay us. $400/hour + expenses. It's still cheaper than Suha.
Posted by: ed   2004-11-18 11:52:58 AM  

#19  Blood money. We should not even be within sniffing distance of this.

Yoda: "Once you start down the dark path, forever will it rule your destiny."
Posted by: Jules 187   2004-11-18 11:41:39 AM  

#18  Good idea, Frank. Put the heat on the Swiss Banks as accessories to felony theft (if they have such a charge in Switzerland).
Posted by: Alaska Paul   2004-11-18 11:37:57 AM  

#17  spend the money on financial investigations to return Arafat's $ to the Paleo infrastructure (not the next honcho's bank acct). Returns would be well worth it
Posted by: Frank G   2004-11-18 11:12:12 AM  

#16  Dear Mr. Bush,

I am a poor Palestinian widow woman in need of financial assistance...

Posted by: Suha Arafat   2004-11-18 11:05:50 AM  

#15  IIUC products from the Pal territories are considered as coming from Israel, since the PA is NOT a state. IIUC Israel has good trade status with both the US and the EU.

In any case PA's best market is Israel, which is a high wage, complementary economy, and is nearby. The greatest boost for the Pal economy would be a security improvement that would ease trade with Israel, and also the return of Pal day labor to the Israeli economy.

Direct aid isnt to boost the economy, its to keep the Pal govt running, and the payoff should be its use to improve that running, plus political payback. Its well pointed out here that it needs to be watched carefully. Thats States job, I think - thats one place Ms Rice will have to make sure her subordinates are doing their jobs well!
Posted by: Liberalhawk   2004-11-18 10:59:00 AM  

#14  This would also completely turn the tables on the terror apologists in Europe and the middle east. No one can say that slashing US trade barriers is not an extraordinarily generous and bold step. In fact, it's worth more financially to a third-world nation than billions in aid because of the powerful multiplier effects.
Posted by: lex   2004-11-18 7:06:13 AM  

#13  Trade, not aid. Much more effective-- at helping the Palestinian people and at calling the bluff of their kleptocratic leaders-- would be a unilateral US reduction in tariff barriers across the board for Palestinian agricultural and commercial products.

This would force the PA thieves to actually generate something of value with the funds they now send off to Swiss bank accounts, and would begin, anyway, to empower those unfortunate Palestinians who are actually normal, hardworking businessmen.
Posted by: lex   2004-11-18 7:03:21 AM  

#12  Hope you are right TW . Someone needs to stand up and be counted over there , unfortunatley when they do , they tend to get shot or go boom .
Posted by: MacNails   2004-11-18 6:59:50 AM  

#11  Actually, if Palestinian Finance Minister Salam Fayyad has control of the money it will go where it is supposed to. Remember, he is the one who wrested control of EU funds from Arafat, and arranged for direct deposit (vs cash handouts) of PA salaries. Also, I've been pondering this, and I wonder if Bush has quietly established a quid pro quo with Fayyad to trace the accounts the money flows to -- maybe a way to find more of Arafat's (and Hamas, Hizbollah, etc.) stashes? What say you, Oh Rantburg accountants?
Posted by: trailing wife   2004-11-18 6:56:16 AM  

#10  They'll only waste it on bhurkas , guns , STD clinics , and building more mosques , bombs , then give the rest to their masters in Iran .
As .com pointed out the Paleos' problems are more deep-seated, and throwing more money at them won't solve anything.
Posted by: MacNails   2004-11-18 4:27:06 AM  

#9  Actually, 20 million in small change --- packed in small, but sturdy, sacks and droped from a plane could (given a carefull selection of place and time) do a bit of good.
Posted by: gromgorru   2004-11-18 3:41:39 AM  

#8  Great news. Now we can all look forward to a great outpourring of music, films and art from the vibrant culture of Palestine.
Posted by: Onionman   2004-11-18 2:52:57 AM  

#7  The Paleos need to show us something constructive before we donate one red cent to them. All we got for the millions so far are three dead security guards. Giving them money now makes us look like chumps 'cause we are acting like chumps.
Posted by: Alaska Paul   2004-11-18 1:34:04 AM  

#6  The Bush administration plans to give $20 million in aid directly to the Palestinian Authority, bypassing congressional restrictions as part of a renewed push for peace in the Middle East, sources familiar with the plan said on Wednesday.

GWB needs to get a clue: the Paleos' problems are more deep-seated, and throwing more money at them won't solve anything.
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama   2004-11-18 1:05:33 AM  

#5  Here you go Tony Blair, hope that gets the jackals off your back for a few days.
Posted by: Capt America   2004-11-18 12:37:24 AM  

#4  Last year the USA gave the Paleos 250 million and presumably they will get a similar amount this year. Link I believe the USA is the largest single contributor to the PA's budget.
Posted by: phil_b   2004-11-18 12:36:46 AM  

#3  "stringent safeguards are needed to ensure that US taxpayer money is not siphoned off by corrupt Palestinian officials or used by terrorist groups"

Where there is the will, there is the way. It will end up in the hands of terrs guaranteed, a good chunk of it even if it would be in the form of 'donations' by the originally intended recipients.

Donations here is an euphemism for protection fees.
Posted by: Cornîliës   2004-11-18 12:30:59 AM  

#2  He'd get more return for the money if he gave to the beavers to build dams with.
Posted by: Seafarious   2004-11-18 12:27:58 AM  

#1  Paleo PR. Waste. Same thing.
Posted by: .com   2004-11-18 12:22:06 AM  

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