Today, the House Committee on Appropriations released its mark-up of the FY07 foreign aid bill. It put the MCC at $2 billion, $1 billion below the President's request and $250 million above FY06 enacted. And, by far, the biggest cut within the development-focused aid programs.How do I look at this outcome? Well, I think it's unfortunate that the MCC didn't get its full request. It has a dynamic new leader, is beginning to roll out more (and bigger) compacts, and it has a credible budget justification that showed it would likely use the $3 billion. But the $2 billion outcome is actually OK, and in this tight budget environment, OK is in many respects really good. I think the MCC should, overall, be relieved at the outcome, actively lobby the Senate Appropriations Committee (likely to meet after Memorial Day) to go above the House $2 billion, and use FY07 to roll out some big, bold programs and build an implementation track record that distinguishes it from other foreign aid agencies.
