Monday night President Obama participated in the first Presidential virtual interview ever!  This Google+ Hangout event was part of the White House's continued public outreach following the State of the Union Address last Tuesday.  Since the president's address last week, the White House has been requesting that people send in questions via all forms of social media, and has been holding Twitter interviews with many of the senior administration officials. This Hangout  was the culmination of that week, and it turned out to be a great moment for foreign policy!

In my job, it's not that often that I look at the results of the congressional appropriations process with satisfaction, especially in the current economic and foreign policy climate.  However, Congress has surprised me this year in two welcome ways. 

First, the House and Senate passed a large "omnibus" appropriations package, including funding for the State Department, before their Christmas recess without threat of a government shutdown (okay, it's two and a half months past their original deadline, but why quibble?).  Second, the Fiscal Year 2012 budget mostly delivers pretty good results for the international affairs budget.  It's a Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanzaa miracle!

Republican presidential candidates debated again on Saturday in the CBS News/National Journal debate in South Carolina, the first debate entirely focused on foreign affairs. The candidates used the time to highlight their complete lack of awareness and qualifications on international issues. They blundered on every issue, from Iran to foreign aid, to the use of torture in the war on terror, making it clear that the vast majority of the current Republican field does not have the credentials to be our next president.

Here's a few excerpts from my latest blog at Care 2 entitled, "United States' UN-Wise UNESCO Policy," which discusses two U.S. laws that halt contributions to U.N. agencies that accept Palestinian membership.  These laws forced the United States to stop funding the United Nations Education, Science, and Cultural Organization last week when the organization's members voted to accept Palestinian membership.

"The big question to answer is who benefits and loses from maintaining this policy. The biggest winners are people who use the Middle East conflict as a platform to spew anti-U.N. views and promote an isolationist agenda for the United States. The biggest loser isn't the Palestinians or Israelis, or even the U.N. It's the United States."