Lantos, Ackerman oppose aid cut to India

Two top Jewish congressmen led an initiative chiding the Bush administration for slashing aid to India. Rep. Tom Lantos (D-Calif.), chairman of the U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, and Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-N.Y.), chairman of the Middle East and South Asia subcommittee, joined Rep. Jim McDermott (D-Wash.), who chairs the congressional caucus on India, in complaining Wednesday to U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice about President Bush’s proposal to slash assistance to India from $131 million to $81 million.The cut “disregards the critical priorities of our Indian partners,” the letter said. Among other elements of India’s close ties to the United States are its friendly relations with Israel.