Thread by @ChrisMurphyCT

The biggest national security threats we face today - climate change, pandemic disease, China competition - can't be solved with military tools.

But today we spend 13x - THIRTEEN TIMES! - more on the military than on diplomacy/smart power.

1/ A quick THREAD🧵on how we fix this:

2/ I'm teaming up with @ChrisVanHollen, @davidcicilline & @RepBera to propose a $12 billion increase in funding for State and USAID directed towards three specific challenges - competing with China, preparing for the next pandemic, and fighting climate change.

3/ China is running circles around the US when it comes to deploying diplomats and development funding. And their state-sponsored propaganda arm is working nonstop to discredit free and open democracies. We can't continue to let them go unchallenged.

4/ The best way to counter China is with strong economic diplomacy and an expanded US diplomatic presence overseas. We're proposing an additional $135M to counter disinformation, deploying 1500 new diplomats, and doubling investments in development projects.

5/ Next, pandemic prevention: we're proposing $6B in new funding for global health programs, including new investments in the @WHO and @CEPIvaccines to help us detect and prevent emerging threats.

6/ On climate change, no time to waste. We're proposing $3B for the Green Climate Fund to help developing countries invest in climate solutions, and funding to promote the export of US green energy technology.

7/ It's horrible for our nation's security when the defense budget continues to increase by tens of billions each year while funding for diplomacy remains flat.

Even with a $12B increase, our international affairs budget would still be less than 1/10th of our military spending.

8/ Our budget proposal aims to start fixing that imbalance by finally building out the set of tools that the United States needs to face the real national security threats that are banging down our door.
Check out the full proposal here:
murphy.senate.gov/download/inves…