Patrick Leahy: “Senator McConnell and I have gone through this bill and we have tried to set priorities. We have put considerable…”

“Senator McConnell and I have gone through this bill and we have tried to set priorities. We have put considerable amounts of money in this bill for counterdrug programs. The House has even more. In conference, as a practical matter, the money for the Andean Initiative is likely to go up some amount. But let us not cut money for bioterrorism, money to stop plagues from reaching the United States, money to aid refugees from Afghanistan or Africa, money to support the countries which the President has promised to help with our campaign against Osama bin Laden--let's not cut those funds--and the Peace Corps and the Exim Bank and everything else, to add even more funds for counterdrug programs when they have not spent what they already have.”