Chair Cardin Opening Remarks at FY2025 State Department Budget Hearing

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, delivered an opening statement at the full Committee hearing, “American Diplomacy and Global Leadership: Review of the FY25 State Department Budget Request.” In his opening remarks, Chair Cardin shared his perspective on U.S. foreign policy during his tenure in Congress, and his hope that our priorities continue to reflect our country’s core values of democracy, good governance, freedom, and human rights.

“I often speak about the importance of adhering to our values in our foreign policy,” said Chair Cardin. “That’s because I believe our values are at the core of American power, and the key to achieving our foreign policy goals. This country was founded on a unique basis—in the words of our Declaration of Independence: 'that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights,' and for two-and-a-half centuries we have sought to live up to these ideals, at home and abroad.”

WATCH THE CHAIR’S OPENING REMARKS HERE

More information about the hearing is available here.

A copy of the Chair’s remarks, as delivered, have been provided below.

Secretary Blinken, welcome. We very much appreciate your being with us today back in the committee room that you are very familiar with. We thank you for your extraordinary effort on behalf of the United States. We know that you have been doing a lot of traveling, lot of talking, promoting American diplomacy based on our values and we thank you very much for all of your service. We look forward to this hearing every year as we go over, particularly, the FY25 budget.

I often speak about the importance of adhering to our values in our foreign policy. That’s because I believe our values are at the core of American power, and the key to achieving our foreign policy goals. This country was founded on a unique basis—in the words of our Declaration of Independence: "that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights" and for two-and-a-half centuries we have sought to live up to these ideals, at home and abroad.

I think there would be bipartisan agreement that we do not always succeed, but our aspirations matters; knowing where our North Star is matters. I think we often find a common ground on how values and principles add strength to hard security decisions. But there are others that view the world strictly based on a “survival of the fittest” worldview. They say, “rules are for suckers” and ask the question, “what are we getting from this?” Or, worse, “what do I get from this?”

This approach not only sees foreign policy as transactional, it also says nations only get what they want by military force or corrupt dealings. But to not adhere to American values in foreign policy decisions is making is a major strategic mistake. To be true to our founding principles, we need to support those people trying to defend human rights—those rights “endowed to us by our Creator.” Sticking to our values leads to policies that encourage people to stand up to corruption, that champion the rule of law and fair play, that support democracies, that save lives—policies that advance America’s national security interests.

These issues should inform the way the United States engages with the other countries of the world. That is why the Leahy Laws—advocated for by our former colleague from Vermont—are so important to our security cooperation in our foreign policies. It is why I am proud that Congress has enacted—and the Executive branch has implemented—the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act, as well as the recent enactment of the Combating Global Corruption Act.

The Department has at times robustly opposed values-driven, human rights proposals when they surface in Congress. We recognize there is a little competition between the executive and the legislative branch. I think we all agree that we are stronger when we work together and when we can coordinate our activities and work in unity, it is a lot better for our nation. And I think your training here as the staff director of this committee has served you very well because I applaud your efforts to try to coordinate as strong as we can, the actions of the legislative and executive branch in the best interest of our nation.

Secretary Blinken, right now, we face many serious world crises. Some of these conflicts are in the headlines—the war in Ukraine, the Hamas attack on Israel, the humanitarian situation in Gaza. Others get only passing mention, like Haiti or Venezuela or Burma or Sudan. But whether they attract widespread attention or not, all of these crises are important. From reducing the spread of malicious disinformation to reducing the threat of nuclear war; from modernizing our diplomatic corps to responsibly harnessing the power of AI; from fighting Putin in Ukraine to fighting the effects of climate change, the Department of State—and the work our diplomats do every day—has never been more important.

This committee understands the need for a healthy and thriving American diplomatic presence around the world. I want to thank Senator Risch for working with me on this year’s State Department Authorization bill. This will be the fourth Authorization bill in four years, after a long hiatus. I was glad that we had opportunity to discuss that during last week’s hearing with Secretary Verma. We need to incentivize diversity initiatives and modernize the training and professional developments for our diplomats to deal with 21st century challenges. This bill really underscores the importance we put on supporting the work of our State Department.

Secretary Blinken I want to thank you personally for all you’ve done and the hard work you’ve done to strengthen our diplomacy in the State Department and its mission around the world. I know that you’ve traveled many miles and met with many world leaders especially in the context of Putin’s war in Ukraine and in the wake of Hamas' attack in Israel. I’d like to hear you articulate how your administration plans to confront the challenges we face today because despite everything that’s happening, and the best efforts of our colleagues on the Appropriations Committee, our foreign aid budgets have been shrinking. What effect do you think this has this had on your ability to advance American priorities, defend American interests, and project American values? What kind of trade-offs have you had to make as a State Department because of shrinking budgets? That is the purpose of this hearing to discuss the FY25 budget, and I look forward to that discussion.

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