Appeasing His Extremists

The Administration's decision to block the funding for UNFPA for the fifth year in a row is descriptive of its overall attitude: set your course and don't ever change. The standard operating procedure seems to be: make a decision, and no matter what the evidence shows, stay your original course.

The Administration's decision to block the funding for UNFPA for the fifth year in a row is descriptive of its overall attitude: set your course and don't ever change. The standard operating procedure seems to be: make a decision, and no matter what the evidence shows, stay your original course. Once Bush decided that he could help keep his extremists happy by blocking funding to an organization that provides contraception, HIV prevention and safe motherhood care to the world's poorest people in the world's poorest countries, he is staying the course. It doesn't much matter that he is misapplying the law to thwart this support. Never mind that the "evidence" they use to prevent funding is counter to reality. Never mind that UNFPA's work in China is promoting voluntarism and working to protect human rights. Never mind that by not funding UNFPA he is leading the US down a road that (once again) no other country in the world shares. It keeps the extremists – his extremists – happy.