S. 3294 ? Advance America?s Priorities Act, the so-called ?Coburn Omnibus? bill, containing 35 pieces of bipartisan legislation, was killed in the Senate yesterday after failing to receive enough cloture votes. The vote to consider the bill amounted 52 to 40, eight votes shy of the 60 required. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid from Nevada had aligned together a laundry list of measures that Oklahoma Senator ?Dr. No? Tom Coburn has attempted to hold or stop completely for the last year. Considered non-controversial and near unanimous support in the house, this bill has gained attention mainly due to the slow progress in the Senate during the 110^th Congress, with a focus on Senator Coburn?s relentless obstruction. Reid?s spokesman Jim Manley said, ?Things have gotten so bad that Republican senators have approached Sen. Reid to ask that their bills be included in the package." Explaining the bill and the political situation at hand, Senator Reid?s wrote to President Bush and fellow members of Congress:

?Mr. President, today I am joining with Senators Leahy, Lieberman, Feinstein, Inouye, Kennedy, Boxer, and Biden, to introduce an important bill, with provisions in a variety of areas - from advancing medical research in critical areas, to cracking down on child exploitation, to promoting important U.S. foreign policy goals, to helping improve America?s understanding about the oceans. What unites this diverse package of bills? One thing - unprecedented obstructionism. ?Here are just a few examples of the legislation that this bill includes - and that Republicans are preventing from becoming law:

The Emmitt Till Unsolved Crimes bill: Would help heal old wounds and solve crimes that have continued to be unsolved and unpunished since the Civil Rights era.

The Runaway and Homeless Youth bill: Would provide grants for health care, education and workforce programs, and housing programs for runaways and homeless youth.

The Combating Child Exploitation bill: Would provide grants to train law enforcement to use technology to track individuals who trade child pornography. Establishes an Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force within the Office of Justice Programs.

The ALS Registry bill: Would create a centralized database to help doctors and scientists treat and hopefully find a cure for ALS/Lou Gehrig ?s Disease, which afflicts 5,600 Americans every year.

This is just the tip of the iceberg. These bills address important American priorities, have broad - virtually unanimous ? bipartisan support, yet, all have fallen victim to just one or two Republicans. Senate Democrats are not willing to allow this obstruction of a few to block the will of the Congress and the American people any longer. Republicans will have a choice: Will they join the side of the American people, or continue to stand beside one or two colleagues intent on blocking progress? I hope Republicans will end their obstruction and work with Democrats this week to pass this crucial and long-overdue legislation. ?

The major piece of legislation included in this bill that Citizens for Global Solutions considered vital, was the Biden/Lugar Civilian Response Corps, a provision that has recently been co-sponsored by Democratic Presidential hopeful Barack Obama. This bill would triple non-military aid to Pakistan, allowing developmental aid to start combating the War on Terror. Included in its provisions, the Civilian Response Corps would authorize $7.5 billion to Pakistan over the course of five years, to be used for building roads, schools, medical facilities, and domestic development. Further, according to Biden?s office, it calls for ?greater accountability on security assistance,? which will demand the Pakistani government to take responsibility for Taliban and al-Qaeda forces within its borders. Senator Biden has called for a new foreign policy approach in Pakistan, where the United States builds a stronger relationship with the Pakistani people, rather than writing a blank check to President Musharraf without consideration of American concerns.

In response to the bill, Ambassador to the United States Husain Haqqani said the legislation?s enactment would help win Pakistanis? trust as it signified America?s long-term commitment to the country?s uplift. Haqqani told reporters, ?The bill commits US assistance for five years, and possibly for another five years for civilian purposes including health, education and strengthening of national institutions that will directly benefit the Pakistani people.?

There has been recent discussion that the changing arena for US Foreign Policy is through developmental assistance, which allows underdeveloped communities more opportunities, education, sustainable living, and outlets for advancement that make the appeal to terrorist organizations preventable. A recent report published by the Center for American Progress entitled, ?Humanity as a Weapon of War? written by Reuben E. Brigety II, discusses the changing role of the US Military and the Department of Defense post 9/11, and how humanitarian aid for development will become a vital part of achieving long-term peacemaking goals.

The killing of the Omnibus bill was defended by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who argues energy legislation that includes more domestic oil production was the "number one issue in the country.? Senator Coburn argues that the bill includes government programs that already exist, and has no financial accountability measures to assure taxpayer money is spent wisely. For the many opposing this bills demise, a part of the progress that could have manifested from this legislation would be the passage of the Biden/Lugar Civilian Response Corps. This development would aim not only to engage more responsibly in our diplomatic relationship with Pakistan, but also begins the first step to changing the foreign policy narrative in the United States. Among the many American Priorities this bill represented, the longing for a new course in US Foreign Policy is clearly demonstrated in the Civilian Response Corps. With the steadily changing discourse and strong bipartisan support, let us hope that under a new administration progressive peace legislation like this will not be so easily discredited.