The percentage of the federal budget that is direct foreign aid is tiny. However, the amount we spend on our military and other indirect forms of aid is MASSIVE. The 2 1/2 wars we've got going in the middle east aren't about terrorists. They're about supporting Israel and supporting Saudi Arabia, our biggest oil supplier. One could argue that oil is vital to what Dick Cheney called our "non-negotiable way of life", but the bottom line is that in the over 9 years since 9/11 we could have made significant strides in reducing our oil dependence without compromising much other than the size of our cars, and therefore reduce our concern about what happens in the middle east period.
A huge opportunity was lost after 9/11 when no one, most importantly not GWB, came out and said "we need to make efforts to reduce our oil dependence". The dems were just as bad with Kerry telling people to go out and buy a freakin' SUV to support the economy. But oil companies in the US are part of "Big" as kib calls it. They have political power and will do everything in their power to make sure that politicians on both sides of the aisle are bought and paid for and will do their bidding regardless of what's in the best interest of the american people overall.