(Headline USA) Not content with championing radical causes that domestically promote leftist social agendas, President Joe Biden said Tuesday that he will ask Congress for $2.6 billion for foreign aid programs that promote gender equality worldwide, more than double the size of last year’s request.
Biden announced his intentions on International Women’s Day, which is set aside to celebrate the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women around the world.
In a particularly pandering display of never letting a crisis go to waste, First Lady Jill Biden marked International Women’s Day with a video tribute to women throughout the world “who courageously use their voice, no matter the cost.”
“To our sisters from Ukraine who are fighting to keep their country free and their families alive: We stand with you in solidarity,” she said. “To our sisters in Russia who are protesting and speaking out against the invasion at great personal risk: We see your courage,” she added.
It’s likely the women in both Ukraine and Russia who are taking up arms and putting their lives on the lines could not care less about social programs and toxic ideologies that promote divisiveness and radical social programs in the name of so-called diversity, equity and inclusion. They’d probably much rather have $2.6 billion in weapons to beat back the invading Russian horde, but that wouldn’t make social justice butterflies like Dr. Jill feel all warm and fuzzy.
“And to women warriors around the world, those fighting for justice and working for change: Thank you for building a better future for all of us,” said the first lady, who is visiting Arizona.
Biden created the first-ever White House Gender Policy Council on International Women’s Day last year to help promote gender equity throughout the administration.
He said everyone deserves to live up to their “God-given” potential, regardless of gender, and that societies perform better when women and girls are allowed to prosper. Because Biden and others of his ilk believe that women are just as qualified as their male counterparts, they naturally assume those same women need government assistance to prosper.
“Ensuring that every woman and girl has that chance isn’t just the right thing to do — it’s also a strategic imperative that advances the prosperity, stability, and security of our nation and the world,” the president said in a written statement.
The White House also was hosting a livestreamed International Women’s Day event Tuesday to discuss the announcement, featuring Secretary of State Antony Blinken from Europe, acting budget director Shalanda Young, U.S. Agency for International Development Administrator Samantha Power and Jen Klein, director of the Gender Policy Council. They are to be joined by young women leaders from Ukraine, Brazil, Zambia, Burma, Jordan and the United States. Biden was not scheduled to participate.
Biden’s $2.6 billion funding request will be included in his federal budget proposal for fiscal year 2023, which starts Oct. 1.
Biden sought $1.2 billion for gender equality programs in his 2022 budget proposal. The numbers haven’t been finalized since Congress is still working on the budget.
The White House has not said when Biden will send his 2023 spending proposal to Congress.
Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press
