The Obama administration notified Congress on Friday that it would provide Egypt’s
new government an emergency cash infusion of $450 million, but the aid
immediately encountered resistance from a prominent lawmaker wary of
foreign aid and Egypt’s new course under the leadership of the Muslim
Brotherhood.
The aid is part of the $1 billion in assistance that the Obama
administration has pledged to Egypt to bolster its transition to
democracy after the overthrow last year of the former president, Hosni Mubarak.
Its fate, however, was clouded by concerns over the new government’s
policies and, more recently, the protests that damaged the American
Embassy in Cairo.
The United States Agency for International Development notified Congress
of the cash infusion on Friday morning during the pre-election recess,
promptly igniting a smoldering debate over foreign aid and the
administration’s handling of crises in the Islamic world.
An influential Republican lawmaker, Representative Kay Granger of Texas,
immediately announced that she would use her position as chairwoman of
the House appropriations subcommittee overseeing foreign aid to block
the distribution of the money. She said the American relationship with
Egypt “has never been under more scrutiny” than it is in the wake of the
election of President Mohamed Morsi, a former leader of the Muslim
Brotherhood.
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