Testimony before the Subcommittee on Immigration Policy and Enforcement Committee on the JudiciaryUnited States House of Representatives …
When the Nigerian sect Jama'atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda'awati wal-Jihad, otherwise known as Boko Haram, and the Nigerian Taliban emerged from their year-long hiatus in 2010, few in Washington noticed.[1] But when Boko Haram launched a suicide attack against the United Nations headquarters in the capital city of Abuja…
The U.S. government’s public diplomacy institutions are running on autopilot. While other nations, such as China, are ramping up public diplomacy and soft-power capabilities, the attention of the political leaders in this country is focused elsewhere: the budget deficit, the economy, the presidential election, etc. The effect is that the…
Today, Congressman Mike Quigley (D–IL)—along with several co-sponsors from both parties—introduced the Visa Waiver Program Enhanced Security and Reform Act. The bill, in consultation with the Departments of Homeland Security (DHS), Justice, and State, offers updated refinements to last year’s H.R. 959. These include several key reforms to modernize the…
Revised and Updated on January 12, 2012 Download a PDF version with hyperlinks to House and Senate Appropriations Committee documents: Appropriations Tracker: FY 2012 Designed to inform American policymakers and citizens, the…
On October 11 in New York, the Justice Department charged Manssor Arbabsiar, an Iranian-born naturalized U.S. citizen, and Gholam Shakuri with an array of charges related to a plot to assassinate the Saudi Arabian ambassador to the U.S., Adel al-Jubeir, by bombing a public venue in Washington, D.C. The plotters…
From the last century, America learned that growing the economy also promotes the free flow of goods, people, services, and ideas. From the last decade, America learned that “smart” security can prevent terrorists, transnational criminals, and other malicious actors from exploiting the networks that facilitate travel among nations. Initiatives such…
The Security Assistance Act of 2011 (Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Year 2012, H.R. 2583), which authorizes appropriations for the State Department for fiscal year (FY) 2012, represents a strong, back-to-basics answer to the Obama Administration’s overly ambitious attempts at redefining U.S. foreign relations. The bill’s aim is to tie…
Abstract: Countries that receive U.S. foreign aid routinely oppose U.S. diplomatic initiatives and vote against the U.S. in the United Nations. While linking humanitarian and security aid to support of U.S. policy priorities would undermine the purposes and effect of that aid, the effectiveness…
More than 2 billion people worldwide now have some degree of access to the Internet, a figure that has doubled over the past five years. Yet while the Internet is emerging as an increasingly powerful tool for political activism, governments around the world are also becoming more expert at controlling…
Abstract: China’s human rights record is dismal and not improving. Successive editions of the U.S. Department of State’s annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices have documented China’s lack of progress in human rights, ranging from continued abuses in Tibet to imprisonment and harsh…
For the third year in a row, The Heritage Foundation has highlighted the policies, people, and ideas that contribute to national security in our Protect America Month. We were delighted to host speakers, such as Representative Howard P. “Buck” McKeon (R–CA), who gave the opening address, Senator Kelly Ayotte…
Controversy has swirled around the Smith–Mundt Modernization Act since it passed mark-up as an amendment to the House...…
The U.S. State Department has decided to grant a visa to Mariela Castro Espin, daughter of Raul Castro, the country's...…
Depending on Russian government-funded media to broadcast news from Voice of America (VOA) is about as brain-dead as...…
On her first visit to China in 2009, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told Chinese leaders that she considered human...…
A top activist for human rights in China warned on Thursday that if the United States wants to maintain its image as a...…
Last week, experts fired back at the assertion by an unnamed senior State Department official that “The war on terror is...…
[caption id="attachment_96544" align="alignnone" width="550" caption="April 20, 2012 - Cairo, Egypt - Egyptian Islamist...…
India’s successful test of the Agni-V, a nuclear-capable long-range missile, is a major step forward for New Delhi in...…
Rolling up her sleeves should be new Undersecretary for Public Diplomacy Tara Sonenshine’s first act in office. For the...…
Thirty-two members of the House of Representatives have asked Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to remove a factually...…