The White House and the Democrat leadership apparently think so.Recently it was reported that the US Senate has given a major boost to a program to combat AIDS and malaria around the world, voting to triple funding for a cause championed by President George W. Bush. The Senate recently voted 80 to 16 to authorize $48 billion over the next five years - $18 billion dollars more than Bush had requested - for the program, which also includes funds to battle tuberculosis. This bill will expand American leadership on global health and foster hope around the world, Paul Zeitz, Executive director of the Global AIDS Alliance, was quoted as saying in the Agence France Presse.
The bill passed by the House in April approved $50 billion, including $5 billion for malaria, $4 billion for tuberculosis and $41 billion for AIDS. Of the AIDS money, a proportion — $2 billion next year — would go to the international Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. Actual spending levels still have to be approved in annual appropriations bills.
Also in the bill: a provision lifting the long-time HIV/AIDS travel ban.
It was also reported that compassion comes at a steep cost. Sen. Jeff Sessions cited recently that Congressional Budget Office had estimated that the new AIDS/HIV-infected immigrants entering after the travel ban is lifted might and could possibly cost the government more than $80 million over a 10-year period. And that’s just the start. However, most people don’t want to talk about that. Why? Because you’ll risk getting called a bigot or homophobe for daring to bring it up.