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Dear Board of Directors,

Happy Saturday. Woke up to few nice items to share. Our op-ed, penned by Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed and former Senator Saxby Chambliss, USGLC’s Georgia Co-Chair, appeared in today’s Atlanta Journal Constitution<http://www.myajc.com/news/news/opinion/americans-should-stand-together-on-global-leadersh/ntHny/> (see below). While we were hoping it would land the week of the Rep. Price event, it is a strong message and will bode well for our continued work with the state delegation – including Senator David Perdue. Click here<http://ctt.ec/lhuR5> to share on Twitter.

On another note, Senator Hatch posted a video of himself on Facebook at the USGLC event in Utah, so his office was obviously pleased with the gathering. And we just had an appearance on a top Alabama radio show this week with one of Senator Jeff Session’s closest allies, former Rep. Jo Bonner (our state co-chair), and our Executive Director Jason Gross.

Enjoy your weekend,

Liz


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ATLANTA JOURNAL CONSTITUTION
Americans should stand together on global leadership

By Saxby Chambliss and Kasim Reed

Fresh off the heels of a turbulent and polarizing race, much of our nation has been left divided. And while the two of us have spent our careers on opposite sides of the aisle, we believe there is one issue that everyone — Republican or Democrat — can rally behind: strengthening America’s global leadership. From the rise of ISIS to global pandemics, we simply cannot afford to turn inward as a nation.

As Georgians who have spent our careers in public service, promoting the welfare of those here in Georgia is at the core of what we do. We are committed to creating a thriving economy, keeping our citizens safe and having a positive global impact. To achieve these goals, we need robust development and diplomacy programs. From the Peace Corps to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to the State Department, we have both seen how vital programs supported by America’s International Affairs Budget are to this great country and the rest of the world.

Every day, the small 1 percent of the federal budget is making a world of difference. Peace Corps volunteers, many from right here in Georgia, are teaching new farming practices and empowering impoverished communities to become self-sufficient. Development workers from USAID are building schools, expanding literacy and laying the foundation for good governance. Relief workers are offering care, as well as hope to the millions of people who have fled war and conflict.

Because of the success of these efforts, American leadership has helped cut the number of people living in extreme poverty globally in half in the last 25 years. Smallpox has been eradicated. The world is close to eliminating polio. Deaths from malaria have reached new lows. Across the world, our HIV/AIDS relief programs have saved more than 9 million lives, and a new generation of children are being born HIV-free. Across the world, the number of children in primary school has tripled – all because of American innovation and generosity.

Not only are efforts like these the right thing to do, they are also the smart thing to do. With 95 percent of the world’s consumers living outside our borders, we can’t afford to ignore the rest of the world. Today, over half of our exports go to countries that are not our traditional trading partners, making our diplomacy and development programs critical to establishing new markets and building new relationships for Atlanta businesses.

This is particularly critical for our state, where trade supports more than 1.2 million jobs and overseas exports brought $38.5 billion into our economy last year. Global brands such as CNN, Coca-Cola, Delta and UPS have all chosen to call the Peach State home. With one of the nation’s largest ports in Savannah, and the world’s busiest airport right here in Atlanta, our nation’s global economic competitiveness matters for almost every aspect of Georgia’s economy.

In addition to promoting economic growth, our non-military tools keep us safe in an increasingly unstable world. Retired Gen. James Mattis, the former head of U.S. Central Command, testified before Congress, “If you don’t fund the State Department fully, then I need to buy more ammunition.” We firmly agree – by fostering peace and stability, our nation’s international affairs programs prevent conflicts. With growing threats overseas that will inevitably come knocking on our doorstep, it is important we are taking proactive steps to put out fires before they start.

It is also important that we honor those who have served and all those in our nation’s armed forces by keeping them out of harm’s way except as a last resort. Here in Georgia, this is particularly important with our 88,521 active duty and reserve members of the military. We know that if America doesn’t lead, then we may not like who fills the void. By promoting stability in fragile places in the world, extremist voices are less likely to gain a foothold and a costly U.S. military deployment is less likely.

American development and diplomacy not only makes our nation safer and stronger, but also brings a real return on investment to taxpayers. We urge the Georgia delegation in Congress to strengthen and protect our nation’s International Affairs Budget. At a time when our country still feels divided, all Americans and Georgians can stand together on the mere fact that the United States must lead to build a better, safer world.

Kasim Reed is mayor of Atlanta. Saxby Chambliss served in the U.S. Senate from 2003 to 2015 and previously in the U.S. House of Representatives. They both serve on the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition’s Georgia Advisory Committee