U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan to Obama: Quit Giving Foreign Aid to Islamist Egypt

U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Longboat Key, has penned a letter to President Barack Obama "strenuously urging" him to cease American foreign aid -- in particular, the shipment ofF-16 fighter jets -- to the country which is fast degenerating into an Islamist theocracy.

Here is Buchanan's letter, dated Jan. 10:

"Dear Mr. President:

"I strenuously urge you to halt the shipment of 20 American F-16 fighter jets to theEgyptianair force. Simply put, the U.S. should not be providing military assistance to a regime that supports Hamas and is looking more and more like a dictatorship than a trustworthy democracy.

"Within a very short period of time, newly-elected Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi has built a disturbing track record. This includes aconstitutionalpower grab in which he granted himself immunity from judicial oversight, the forced referendum of a highly controversial constitution and the failure to protect the basic right of women and people of other religions. This is not the behavior of a nation worthy of our trust andassistance.

"That's why I recently introduced legislation to immediately suspend U.S. aid to Egypt. We can no longer afford to buy friends across the world that do not have our best interest in mind. As America's debt continues to skyrocket, we need to be focusing on policies that grow the U.S. economy, create jobs, and reduce the massive federaldeficit. It's time to put America first.

"I urge you to immediately abandon plans to send American fighter jets to Egypt."