State Dept. Was Granted $120 Million to Fight Russian Meddling. It Has Spent $0.
- 6 years ago
State Dept. Was Granted $120 Million to Fight Russian Meddling. It Has Spent $0.
In the meantime, Steve Goldstein, the under secretary for public diplomacy, said he would contribute $1 million from his own budget to "kick-start the initiative quickly." "This funding is critical to ensuring
that we continue an aggressive response to malign influence and disinformation," Mr. Goldstein said.
Robert Menendez said that It is well past time that the State Department’s Global Engagement Center gets the resources Congress
intended for it to effectively fight Kremlin-sponsored disinformation and other foreign propaganda operations,
As a result, not one of the 23 analysts working in the department’s Global Engagement Center — which has been tasked with countering Moscow’s disinformation campaign — speaks Russian,
and a department hiring freeze has hindered efforts to recruit the computer experts needed to track the Russian efforts.
Last year, the State Department spent just 79 percent of the money
that Congress had authorized for the conduct of foreign affairs, the lowest such level in at least 15 years and well down from the 93 percent spent in the final year of the Obama administration, according to an analysis of data from the Office of Management and Budget.
At the end of the Obama administration, Congress directed the Pentagon to send $60 million to the State Department so it could coordinate governmentwide efforts, including those by the Defense Department
and the Department of Homeland Security, to counter anti-democratic propaganda by Russia and China.
Richard Stengel said that There are now thousands of former Russian journalists who have
been exiled or fired who are doing counter-Russian stuff in exile who we could help,
In the meantime, Steve Goldstein, the under secretary for public diplomacy, said he would contribute $1 million from his own budget to "kick-start the initiative quickly." "This funding is critical to ensuring
that we continue an aggressive response to malign influence and disinformation," Mr. Goldstein said.
Robert Menendez said that It is well past time that the State Department’s Global Engagement Center gets the resources Congress
intended for it to effectively fight Kremlin-sponsored disinformation and other foreign propaganda operations,
As a result, not one of the 23 analysts working in the department’s Global Engagement Center — which has been tasked with countering Moscow’s disinformation campaign — speaks Russian,
and a department hiring freeze has hindered efforts to recruit the computer experts needed to track the Russian efforts.
Last year, the State Department spent just 79 percent of the money
that Congress had authorized for the conduct of foreign affairs, the lowest such level in at least 15 years and well down from the 93 percent spent in the final year of the Obama administration, according to an analysis of data from the Office of Management and Budget.
At the end of the Obama administration, Congress directed the Pentagon to send $60 million to the State Department so it could coordinate governmentwide efforts, including those by the Defense Department
and the Department of Homeland Security, to counter anti-democratic propaganda by Russia and China.
Richard Stengel said that There are now thousands of former Russian journalists who have
been exiled or fired who are doing counter-Russian stuff in exile who we could help,