One Good Thing in Omnibus Bill, and It Has to Do With the Jailed Doctor Who Helped Us Kill Bin Laden
By Bizpac Review. . .The $1.3 trillion spending bill signed by the president on Friday withholds $33 million in foreign aid to Pakistan until the release of Shakil Afridi, the doctor who helped the CIA locate and kill terror leader Osama bin Laden, Fox News reports.
Afridi assisted American intelligence by running a fake hepatitis vaccine program that allowed the CIA to confirm bin Laden’s presence in Abbottabad, Pakistan via comparison of DNA samples.
Lt. Col. Michael Waltz, a counter-terrorism adviser to former Vice President Dick Cheney, called Afridi’s role in the bin Laden capture-or-kill mission “critical.”
While hailed as a hero in America, the physician was imprisoned on charges of treason in his home country and reportedly tortured by Pakistan’s ISI intelligence agency, including being burned with cigarettes and electrocuted. (Read more from “One Good Thing in Omnibus Bill, and It Has to Do With the Jailed Doctor Who Helped Us Kill Bin Laden” HERE)
_______________________________________________
What’s Included (and What’s Not) in the $1.3 Trillion Omnibus Bill
By Forbes. Tax Administration. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) finally gets funding. After years of cuts, the bill allocates $11.4 billion to IRS, $196 million more than last year. The money is to be used to improve customer service and fund a “business systems modernization program” meant to bring IRS systems into the 21st century. Also included in that number is an extra $320 million “to be used solely for carrying out” the new tax law passed in December.
Border Security. The bill provides $1.6 billion in funding for border security. However, don’t start mixing up the plaster just yet: The funding can’t be used for “the wall.” Language in the bill only allows fencing similar to what’s already in place.
Opioid Crisis. The bill includes $500 million to fund research on opioid addiction and billions more in other programming and studies (including those related to opioid alternatives). Lest you doubt the impact of the crisis on the economy, the word “opioid” appears 24 times in the bill. Yes, a federal government spending bill.
Elections. The bill includes $380 million for states to shore up voting systems, including electronic enhancements.
Military. Medical care for veterans, including Medical and Prosthetic Research, gets a bump under the bill. There is also more money for troops (including a 2.4% pay raise, the largest since 2010).
(Read more from “What’s Included (and What’s Not) in the $1.3 Trillion Omnibus Bill” HERE)
Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.
