GOP Budget Plan Maintains Egypt Funding

But reduces State Department's funds elsewhere

House Republicans rolled out a greatly reduced budget for the State Department and foreign aid programs Thursday but opted to forgo any immediate decision on cutting U.S. aid to Egypt following the ouster of its elected president, Mohamed Morsi.

The $34.1 billion package includes substantial investments in embassy security but deep cuts elsewhere pose a serious threat to many of President Barack Obama's initiatives.

When measured against the 2013 budget Congress approved this spring, the total appropriations represent an $8 billion or 19 percent cut. Even more striking perhaps, this translates into an estimated $6 billion reduction on top of the across-the-board cuts under the March 1 sequester.