IRAQ | Middle East Peace | China | Foreign Aid | International Trade | The War on Drugs | Weapons Proliferation | The Rights of Women and Children

As a member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, as the ranking member of the Senate Judiciary's Subcommittee on Technology, Terrorism and Government Information and the Senate Appropriation's Subcommittee on Military Construction, and a former member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Senator Feinstein has played an active foreign policy role for more than a decade. Her record on foreign policy includes:

IRAQ - Senator Feinstein voted in favor of the resolution granting the President Congressional authority to oust Saddam Hussein and rid the world of his weapons of mass destruction. However, she believes that the President should have pursued such action multilaterally, with the support of the United Nations, and that America's effort to win the peace in Iraq poses the most significant foreign policy challenge since the end of World War II.

Middle East Peace - Senator Feinstein strongly believes that solving the Israeli - Palestinian crisis should be our top priority in the Middle East. Much of the Arab hatred of the West in general and the United States in particular is caused by this long festering dispute. Senator Feinstein believes that the Palestinian people deserve a homeland and Israel deserves to exist with safe and secure borders as a democratic state. The only way this is going to happen is to put an end to the terror and to be able to mount a top, high level diplomatic initiative to implement the road map proposed by the Bush Administration

China - Senator Feinstein believes that, in the long run, there is no more important long-term bilateral relation for the United States than China and was a longtime supporter of China's entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO), which finally came about in December 2001. China's entry in the WTO will expand opportunities for California companies to export a wide variety of products to the growing Chinese market. Today, more than one-quarter of California's trillion dollar economy depends on international trade and investment, and California is the leading exporting state to China. California trade with China and Hong Kong topped $ 8 billion in 2002, making China the state's fourth largest trading partner.

In 2001, Senator Feinstein also introduced the Tibet Policy Act to protect the cultural, religious, linguistic, and ethnic identity of Tibetan people and encourage dialogue between the Dalai Lama and the Chinese government. These provisions were signed into law by President Bush as part of the FY 2002 Foreign Relations Authorization Act.

Foreign Aid - Senator Feinstein has long believed in the importance of U.S. foreign aid, both as a means to win the war against terror and to decrease global poverty. In March of 2003, she co-sponsored a measure, along with Senator Richard Lugar (R-IN), Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, that would authorize an additional $1.15 billion for U.S. foreign assistance spending. Foreign aid promotes tolerance, understanding, and political stability by providing education, health care, shelter, and food to those who need it most

International Trade - Senator Feinstein has continually supported trade agreements and legislation that will benefit California's economy. She supported granting the President Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) to allow him to conclude multilateral trade deals that will expand export opportunities for California businesses. She supported the creation of the World Trade Organization, granting PNTR for China, the Africa Trade and Caribbean Initiative, and the Andean Trade Preference Expansion Act.

The War on Drugs - Senator Feinstein supports fighting the war on drugs internationally. She has worked to provide more funding for the U.S. Customs Bureau and the Drug Enforcement Agency and is the co-sponsor of the Drug Kingpin Act which enables the U.S. to block and freeze the assets of narcotics traffickers who pose threats to the nation's security, foreign policy and economy. She is also a cosponsor of legislation to provide over $1 billion in assistance to aid Colombia in their fight against drug trafficking.

Weapons Proliferation - Senator Feinstein has long been concerned about weapons proliferation of all kinds - small arms, light weapons, and of course nuclear weapons. In May of 2003, she introduced an amendment with Senator Edward Kennedy to prohibit the development of low yield nuclear weapons by the Bush Administration, although the amendment was defeated.

She cosponsored legislation to limit the export and use of landmines by the U.S. She supports the nuclear test ban treaty, the START II Treaty, the ABM Treaty of 1972, the Chemical Weapons Convention, and she opposes U.S. nuclear testing.

The Rights of Women and Children - Senator Feinstein has consistently fought for the rights of women around the world. On May 6, 2003, along with Senator Joseph Biden, she introduced the "Women and Children in Armed Conflict Protection Act of 2003,"as part of a more concerted global effort to improve and protect the lives of women and children in conflict situations.

Senator Feinstein also supports micro-credit assistance programs, which are programs to provide small loans to poor women to allow them to start businesses, and international family planning programs. She is also cosponsor of a resolution urging the Senate to ratify the Convention to Eliminate all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).