Michael Kinsley: You can't cut that

A block from the Lincoln Memorial and right across the street from the State Department, a gorgeous new building is just being completed. Designed by the famous Canadian architect Moshe Safdie, it is the new headquarters of the United States Institute of Peace, established by Congress with the support of President Reagan in 1984. The institute was a sop to people who felt that Reagan was a dangerous warmonger, and who used to say things like, "We spend hundreds of billions every year on war, and yet we spend nothing on peace." On that logic, the institute was founded and by 2011 had 325 employees and an annual budget of $44 million. The federal budget passed by the Republican House last month adjusts that down to zero.

By Michael Kinsley

March 15, 2011