THREE EASY STEPS

TOWARD GREATER

AMERICAN PROSPERITY

STEP 3

THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH OF

THE U.S. GOVERNMENT IS NOT PROPERLY STRUCTURED TODAY TO

OBTAIN A COHERENT PICTURE OF THE

MYRIAD PROBLEMS CONFRONTING THE

OVERSEAS AMERICAN COMMUNITY

OR OF THE RAPIDLY CHANGING NATURE OF

A LEVEL WORLDWIDE PLAYING FIELD FOR TRADE

Here is an Appropriate Solution

Let’s Create a New Cabinet Department to be Entitled

“THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF

OVERSEAS AMERICAN AFFAIRS”

A Proposal by

The Overseas American Academy

Geneva, Switzerland

STEP 3

LET’S CREATE A NEW CABINET LEVEL DEPARTMENT IN THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH

OF THE U.S. GOVERNMENT

TO BE ENTITLED:

“THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF

OVERSEAS AMERICAN AFFAIRS”

BACKGROUND

The same problems that plague the U.S. Congress in its inability to fully comprehend the nature and rapid evolution of a Level Playing Field for Trade in world markets, also cause institutional heartburn to the Executive Branch of the U.S. Government too.

Once again, even a cursory look at the current status of U.S. participation in world markets suggests that something is profoundly amiss. Here again are just a few of these many current problems:

The United States has the world’s largest and most chronic trade deficit that currently exceeds half a trillion dollars per year and keeps growing.

The number of U.S. citizens employed by U.S. corporations for their foreign subsidiaries has fallen by 50% during the last three decades, while total employment by U.S. corporations abroad has been growing steadily.

U.S. and foreign employers are offered a very powerful financial incentive to not hire any more U.S citizens for work abroad, and to replace those currently on their payrolls with citizens of other countries.

Despite many noble statements about the sanctity of the family and the importance of human rights for everyone, children born abroad to U.S. children parents often still find themselves stateless at birth.

While many other countries provide their overseas citizens with subsidized schools, generous health and social security benefits and many other advantages, the United States just seems to want to collect billions of dollars in taxes each year from overseas Americans and give almost nothing in return.

THE INTELLIGENCE AND ANALYSIS GAP

One of the main causes of inertia in addressing these stunning inadequacies of current U.S. policies and practices, concerning the inability of the private sector overseas American community to compete on a level playing field in world markets, is that no entity of Executive Branch of the U.S. Government is currently charged with collecting and analyzing all of the relevant information and myriad details of the reality of the day to day life of those trying to compete on the front lines of today’s increasingly competitive world economy. Without such comprehensive data collection and analysis by one coherent and responsible body, the necessary policy formulation and implementation simply does not take place, and changes in relevant policies are thereby directly inhibited.

THE APPROPRIATE SOLUTION

The Overseas American Academy believes that there is a solution that is quite simple and fully appropriate to address this challenge. It is to create a new Cabinet level department in the Executive Branch of the U.S. Government that would be charged with bringing together in one place all of the powers and responsibilities necessary to collect and analyze relevant data, develop appropriate new policies, develop the mechanisms to implement them, work with the Congress to get new laws enacted, and then be held responsible for making sure that these policies are implemented and kept up to date to ensure that overseas Americans can henceforth compete on a truly level playing field in all world markets.

WHAT THIS NEW DEPARTMENT WOULD LOOK LIKE

AND HOW IT WOULD FUNCTION

The Department of Overseas American Affairs would be a new Cabinet level department in the Executive Branch of the U.S. Government. It will bring together the many different functions of the government that concern the lives of U.S. citizens living outside of the United States. One of its principle purposes will be to help promote and maintain the health, wealth and prosperity of all of the citizens of the United States by ensuring an optimal competitiveness of the overseas American community in world markets.

LEADERSHIP, TITLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The new department will be headed by a cabinet level Secretary with the title of U.S. Secretary of Overseas American Affairs

The Secretary’s principal deputy will be the: Under Secretary of Overseas American Affairs

TITLES OF SUB-DIVISION LEADERS AND THEIR DEPUTIES

Each of the major divisions of this new department will be headed by an individual with the title of Assistant Secretaries of Overseas American Affairs.

The major sub-divisions of each division will be headed by an individual with the title of Deputy Assistant Secretary of Overseas American Affairs

DEPARTMENTAL DIVISIONS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The new Department will be composed of the following divisions with their respective responsibilities.

Assistant Secretary for Research

This division will be responsible for collecting information about how other countries treat their citizens living and working away from home and how the treatment of overseas Americans by the United States affects the political, social, economic, cultural and national security interests and objectives of the United States.