Whereas, on April 3, 1948, President Harry Truman signed into law the Economic Recovery Act of 1948, inspired by a plan of economic trade and assistance for European countries proposed by Secretary of State George C. Marshall, otherwise known as the Marshall Plan; Whereas, from the years 1947 to 1951, the United States gave $13 billion, equivalent to approximately $140 billion in 2016 and less than one percent of United States gross domestic product (GDP) for nonmilitary foreign assistance programs for 2015, in economic aid and technical assistance to assist in the economic recovery of 16 European countries; Whereas the Marshall Plan, among other objectives, sought to assure global peace and defend the national security of the United States through direct foreign assistance programs aimed at combating economic, social, and political degradation; Whereas poverty, lack of opportunity, and environmental degradation are recognized as significant contributors to socioeconomic and political instability, as well as to the exacerbation of disease pandemics and other global health threats; Whereas elevating the United States standing in the world represents a critical and essential element of any strategy to improve national and global security by mitigating the root causes of conflict and multinational terrorism, strengthening diplomatic and economic relationships, preventing global climate change, curbing weapons proliferation, and fostering peace and cooperation between all nations; Whereas the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, signed into law on September 4, 1961, reaffirms the traditional humanitarian ideals of the American people and renews its commitment to assist people in developing countries to eliminate hunger, poverty, [and] illness ; Whereas Congress created the Peace Corps in 1961 and the United States has since sent more than 220,000 volunteers to 140 nations to promote the Peace Corps’ mission of world peace and friendship through service in the developing world