Bush cuts global food aid, keeps presidential yacht

[nascarblue]

Here's a kicker, cut off food to the poor, keep the yacht and rebuild the hall of fame. What a bunch of crap...
<snip>

...The cutbacks, estimated by some charities at up to $100 million, come at a time when the number of hungry in the world is rising for the first time in years and all food programs are being stretched.

As a result, Save the Children, Catholic Relief Services and other charities have suspended or eliminated programs that were intended to help the poor feed themselves through improvements in farming, education and health.

"We have between five and seven million people who have been affected by these cuts," said Lisa Kuennen, a food aid expert at Catholic Relief Services. "We had approval for all of these programs, often a year in advance. We hired staff, signed agreements with governments and with local partners, and now we have had to delay everything."

<snip>

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/12/22/politics/22aid.html?hp&ex=1103778000&en=715a5b3235c8ae0d&ei=5094&partner=homepage

[Cobalt Violet]

1. I guess those are his christian moral values .

[northzax]

2. er, we don't have a Presidential yacht

so I don't know where that came from.

[purduejake]

3. Well, he seems to ride on aircraft carriers for fun....

[Tempest]

4. There will be one, and soon

$1 million to build it was in the $388 billion spending bill Bush signed.

[northzax]

6. actually, technically it was $2million

to acquire the Sequoia, the Presidential Yacht from Wilson to Nixon, now in private hands and dowcked in SouthWest Washington.

and the President does not have a line item veto, he cannot veto one spending item without vetoing the entire federal budget.

doesn't mean that the government will actually buy Sequoia, or that the President will ever use it (talk about a security nightmare)

[Bluebear]

5. Our Senate voted for the yacht in November

'The Senate voted 65-30 for the legislation late on Saturday that sets aside funds for a range of priorities including a presidential yacht, foreign aid and energy. It is one of the final pieces of work for the 108th Congress and they may return to finish a spy agency overhaul before the end of the year.'

Yes, a lot of our Democratic senators voted for it, having to get home for Thanksgiving and all. Meanwhile Bush gets his yacht and families have to raise their own money for armor for their kids.

[ip568]

7. Congress...

... controls whether the government keeps the yacht, not the president. No president controls any executive branch assets. Complain to your congressman. The NYT should know better.

[cosmicdot]

9. "The NYT should know better."

where in the NY Times article did it say or suggest what you say it said?

did it even mention the budgetary process?

The word "yacht" isn't in the article. I think you're reacting to the original poster's personal commentary, and incorrectly accuse the NYT of something that's not there.

[whistle]

8. It's a matter of fascistic priorities.....