“The humanitarian crisis many feared would take place in March 2003 as a result of the war in Iraq appears to be unfolding,” says a new report (pdf) from the Congressional Research Service.
“It is estimated that in total (including those displaced prior to the war) there may be two million Iraqi refugees who have fled to Jordan, Syria, and other neighboring states, and approximately two million Iraqis who have been displaced within Iraq itself.” See “Iraqi Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons: A Deepening Humanitarian Crisis?,” March 23, 2007.
Another Congressional Research Service report provides a detailed examination of the pending defense supplemental appropriations bills, which include congressional direction on redeployment or withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq. See “FY2007 Supplemental Appropriations for Defense, Foreign Affairs, and Other Purposes” (pdf), updated March 28, 2007.
Other recent CRS products which have not been made readily available to the public include the following (all pdf).
“V-22 Osprey Tilt-Rotor Aircraft,” updated March 13, 2007.
“U.S. Assistance to the Former Soviet Union,” updated March 1, 2007.
“Nuclear Power: Outlook for New U.S. Reactors,” updated March 9, 2007.
“Military Medical Care: Questions and Answers,” updated March 7, 2007.
“Military Construction, Military Quality of Life and Veterans Affairs: FY2007 Appropriations,” updated March 6, 2007.
“U.S. International HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Spending: FY2004-FY2008,” updated March 6, 2007.
In anticipation of future known and unknown health security threats, including new pandemics, biothreats, and climate-related health emergencies, our answers need to be much faster, cheaper, and less disruptive to other operations.
To unlock the full potential of artificial intelligence within the Department of Health and Human Services, an AI Corps should be established, embedding specialized AI experts within each of the department’s 10 agencies.
Investing in interventions behind the walls is not just a matter of improving conditions for incarcerated individuals—it is a public safety and economic imperative. By reducing recidivism through education and family contact, we can improve reentry outcomes and save billions in taxpayer dollars.
The U.S. government should establish a public-private National Exposome Project (NEP) to generate benchmark human exposure levels for the ~80,000 chemicals to which Americans are regularly exposed.