Howard Berman: “I rise to engage Mr. Dicks in a colloquy regarding an important area of funding for the Department of Defense. For more…”

“I rise to engage Mr. Dicks in a colloquy regarding an important area of funding for the Department of Defense. For more than a decade, the Department of Defense has funded programs to support established university programs that promote region-wide informal conferences and task forces on arms control, regional security, and related topics to the Middle East for Arab, Israeli, and other officials and experts. These programs serve an important national security objective-- fostering an alternative means of dialogue and engagement in an area of unparalleled significance to the United States. I know of one such program in Los Angeles, and I urge the Department to continue funding such programs. I yield to the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Dicks), the ranking member, for his thoughts on this issue.”