1. S.Res.10. Title: “A resolution recognizing the
right of Israel to defend
itself against attacks from Gaza and reaffirming
the United States' strong
support for Israel
in its battle with Hamas, and supporting the Israeli-Palestinian peace
process.”Comment: In the midst of Israel’s brutal war and siege of the
occupied Gaza Strip, which killed more than 1,300 Palestinians and injured
thousands more, this resolution placed exclusive blame for Israel’s attacks on
Hamas; called on Hamas but not Israel to end acts of violence; asserted falsely
that Israel is facilitating humanitarian aid to Gaza when it is in fact
besieging it; and deemed Israel’s acts of collective punishment and attacks on
Palestinian civilians and civilian infrastructure to be self-defense.Scoring:
-2 sponsor, -1 cosponsor.Last Major Action:Passed the Senate by Unanimous Consent,
1/8/2009.
2. Dodd
Letter.Comment: This AIPAC-initiated “Dear Colleague” letter to President
Obama urges him to “take into account the risks” Israel will take in signing a
peace agreement with the Palestinians, as if Palestinians face no risks in
signing an agreement with an Israeli government that consistently violates
human rights, international law, and even previous agreements it has
signed.The letter is also premised on
the biased notion that only Palestinians and Arabs bear responsibility for
bringing about peace, and that Israel is free of any responsibility to take
steps in that direction.The letter
reads as if these Senators are stuck in some parallel universe where
Palestinians are occupying Israel.
The letter is clearly designed as a rebuke to the Obama Administration for its
clear insistence that Israel
end settlement building.Scoring: -2 sponsor, -1 cosponsor.Last
Major Action: Sent to President with 76 signatures, 5/18/2009.
3. Bayh/Risch Letter. Comment: This “Dear Colleague” letter urges President Obama to pressure Arab
states to normalize relations with Israel prior to it ending its
illegal military occupation of Palestinian territory and dismantling its
apartheid polices toward Palestinians.Member states of the Arab League have rightfully agreed to normalize
relations with Israel
only after Palestinians have achieved their individual and national rights. Scoring: -2 sponsor,
-1 cosponsor. Last
Major Action: Sent to President with 71 signatures, 8/10/2009.
4. Boxer/Isakson
Letter.Comment: This
AIPAC-inspired “Dear Colleague” letter attempts to exert pressure on the
Obama
Administration to paper over its policy differences with Israel and
solve them
“amicably” instead of correctly confronting it over continued settlement
expansion.The letter also blames
Palestinians for “a growing list of unprecedented preconditions” rather
than
Israel’s intransigence on illegal settlement activity for the impasse in
negotiations. Scoring: -2 sponsor,
-1 cosponsor. Last Major Action:
Sent to Secretary of State with 76 signatures, 3/29/10.
5.
S.Res.548.Title:
“A resolution to express the sense of the Senate that Israel has an
undeniable
right to self-defense, and to condemn the recent destabilizing actions
by
extremists aboard the ship Mavi Marmara.”Comment: This
outrageous
resolution attempts to justify Israel’s illegal attack on the Gaza
Freedom
Flotilla and its illegal blockade of the occupied Palestinian Gaza
Strip.It libelously refers to the Gaza
Freedom Flotilla as a “violent attack and provocation by extremists” and
condemns any civil society effort to break Israel’s collective
punishment of
Gaza Strip residents. Scoring:
-2 sponsor, -1 cosponsor. Last Major
Action: Resolution
agreed to in Senate with an amendment and an amended preamble
by Voice Vote, 6/24/2010. 6.
Reid/McConnell
Letter.Comment: This
extremely problematic “Dear Colleague” letter deems Israel blockade of
the
occupied Palestinian Gaza Strip—an act of collective punishment
considered to
be a war crime under the 4th Geneva Convention—to be “legal
under
international law.”It also
justifies Israel’s attack on the Gaza Freedom Flotilla, urges that
organizations participating in it be put on the terrorism list, and
urges the
Obama Administration to prevent any form of accountability in
international
forums for Israel’s illegal attack on the Gaza Freedom Flotilla. Scoring:
-2 sponsor, -1 cosponsor.Last
Major Action: Sent to President with 87 signatures, 6/21/2010.
1. Capps
Letter. Comment: This letter
expresses concern about the breakdown of civilian infrastructure, including
electricity, medical care, water, and sewage treatment, in the Gaza Strip due
to Israel’s
siege.The letter also expresses support
for an immediate ceasefire. Scoring:
+2 sponsor, +1 cosponsor.Last Major Action: Sent to President
with 24 signatures, 1/9/2009.
2. H.Res.34.Title:
“Recognizing Israel's right
to defend itself against attacks from Gaza,
reaffirming the United States'
strong support for Israel,
and supporting the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.”Comment:
In the midst of Israel’s brutal war and siege of the occupied Gaza Strip, which
killed more than 1,300 Palestinians and injured thousands more, this resolution
placed exclusive blame for Israel’s attacks on Hamas; called on Hamas but not
Israel to end acts of violence; asserted falsely that Israel is facilitating
humanitarian aid to Gaza when it is in fact besieging it; and deemed Israel’s
acts of collective punishment and attacks on Palestinian civilians and civilian
infrastructure to be self-defense.Scoring: -2 sponsor, -1 cosponsor or
yes vote, 0 not voting, +1 present vote, +2 no vote. Last Major Action: Passed the House 390-5, 22 present (Roll Call Vote #10),
1/9/2009.
3. H.Res.66. Title: “Expressing the sense of the
House of Representatives concerning the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.”Comment: This resolution is
refreshingly accurate for an Israel-Palestine piece of legislation.It mentions the impact of Israel’s attacks on Gaza
on Palestinian civilians, notes Israel’s
bombing of UN facilities, elaborates on the humanitarian crisis caused by Israel’s blockade of Gaza,
and cites Israel’s
responsibility for the welfare of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip under
international law. Scoring: +2 sponsor, +1 cosponsor.Last Major Action: Referred
to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, 1/15/2009.
4. H.Con.Res.29.Title:
“Expressing the sense of Congress that the United Nations should take immediate
steps to improve the transparency and accountability of the United Nations
Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) in the Near East to ensure that it is not providing funding,
employment, or other support to terrorists.”Comment: Couched in the
seemingly benign terms of “transparency” and “accountability,” this resolution
is part of a long-standing, concerted effort by a few Members of Congress who
vocally oppose the right of return of Palestinian refugees to de-fund UNRWA and
attempt to resettle Palestinian refugees outside the borders of their
homeland.Scoring: -2 sponsor, -1 cosponsor.Last Major Action: Referred
to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, 1/28/2009.
5. Olver
Letter. Comment: This letter
acknowledges the acute humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip and urges the United States
to play a leading role in alleviating it.The letter also advocates for the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip with U.S.
aid and directly led to the Obama Administration’s decision to release $20
million in emergency aid for the Gaza Strip. Scoring: +2 sponsor, +1 cosponsor.Last Major Action: Sent to
Secretary of State with 64 signatures, 1/28/2009.
6. H.Res.130.Title:
“Expressing support for the appointment of former Senator George Mitchell as
Special Envoy for Middle East Peace, and for other purposes.”Comment:
President Obama’s appointment of Senator George Mitchell was applauded by many
analysts who view him as an even-handed mediator, especially compared with many
previous Bush and Clinton appointments to similar positions.The resolution quotes Senator Mitchell on the
resolvability of conflicts and points to his experience in successfully
brokering peace in Northern
Ireland.The resolution also quotes President Obama on his concern regarding the
humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip.Scoring: +2 sponsor, +1 cosponsor.Last
Major Action: Referred to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs,
2/4/2009.
7. H.Con.Res.111.Title:
“Recognizing the 61st anniversary of the independence of the State of Israel.”Comment:
Where should we start with this resolution chocked full of hyperbolic gushy sentiments
about how Israel
is the best thing since sliced bread?Suffice it to say that the resolution mentions not one word about how Israel
ethnically cleansed and dispossessed Palestinians in 1948 to establish itself
as a “Jewish State.”A “shining model of
democratic values,” indeed.These types
of resolutions are beginning to feel quaint as even President Obama publicly
acknowledged in Cairo
that “For more than 60 years they've [Palestinians] endured the pain of
dislocation. Many wait in refugee camps in the West Bank, Gaza, and neighboring
lands for a life of peace and security that they have never been able to lead.”Scoring:
-2 sponsor, -1 cosponsor. Last Major
Action: Passed the House 394-0 (Roll Call Vote #230),
5/4/2009.
8. Hoyer
Letter.Comments: This AIPAC-initiated “Dear Colleague” letter to President
Obama urges him to “take into account the risks” Israel will take in signing a
peace agreement with the Palestinians, as if Palestinians face no risks in
signing an agreement with an Israeli government that consistently violates
human rights, international law, and even previous agreements it has
signed.The letter is also premised on
the biased notion that only Palestinians and Arabs bear responsibility for
bringing about peace, and that Israel is free of any responsibility to take
steps in that direction.The letter
reads as if these Representatives are stuck in some parallel universe where
Palestinians are occupying Israel.
The letter is clearly designed as a rebuke to the Obama Administration for its
clear insistence that Israel
end settlement building.Scoring: -2 sponsor, -1 cosponsor.Last
Major Action: Sent to President with 328 signatures, 5/28/2009.
9.
H.Res.867. Title: “Calling on the President and the Secretary of State to
oppose unequivocally any endorsement or further consideration of the ‘Report of
the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict’ in multilateral
fora.”Comment: This resolution condemns the Goldstone Report as
“irredeemably biased and unworthy of further consideration or legitimacy” and
instructs the Obama Administration to oppose consideration or endorsement of
the Goldstone Report.The resolution is
replete with inaccurate information about and misleading characterizations of
the Goldstone Report and undermines the commitment of the United States
and the Obama Administration to the universality of human rights and the
principle of holding accountable human rights violators. Scoring: -2 sponsor, -1 cosponsor or yes vote, 0 not voting, +1
present vote, +2 no vote.Last Major Action: Passed the House 344-36, 22 present (Roll Call Vote #838),
11/3/09.
10.
Moran/Inglis
Letter. Comment:
This “Dear Colleague” letter
urges Secretary of State Clinton to pressure Israel to allow students from the
occupied Palestinian Gaza Strip to attend school in the occupied Palestinian
West Bank.As part of Israel’s illegal blockade of Gaza,
it has prevented Palestinian students from attending school in the West Bank. Scoring: +2 sponsor,
+1 cosponsor. Last
Major Action: Sent to the Secretary of State with 33
signatures, 12/22/2009.
11. McDermott/Ellison
Letter. Comment:
This “Dear Colleague” letter to
President Obama draws attention to the devastating humanitarian consequences of
Israel’s
illegal blockade of the occupied Palestinian Gaza Strip.It terms Israel’s
blockade of Gaza
“de facto collective punishment,” which is a war crime under the 4th
Geneva Convention. Scoring:
+2 sponsor, +1 cosponsor. Last
Major Action: Sent to the President with 54 signatures,
1/21/2010.
12. H.Res.1191.
Title: “Urging
the
expedient relocation of the United States Embassy in Israel to
Jerusalem.”Comment:
This resolution attempts to pre-judge the negotiation over the final
status of
Jerusalem by insisting that the United States move its embassy there. It
also
declares Jerusalem “the undivided capital of the State of Israel,”
thereby
ignoring Israel’s disregard for the UN Partition Plan arrangement for
Jerusalem
as a “corpus separatum” and its illegal 43-year military occupation of
Palestinian East Jerusalem. Scoring:
-2 sponsor, -1 cosponsor.Last Major Action:
Referred to the
House Committee on Foreign Affairs, 3/18/2010.
13.
Hoyer/Cantor
Letter. Comment:This
AIPAC-inspired “Dear Colleague” letter attempts to exert pressure on the
Obama
Administration to paper over its policy differences with Israel and
solve them
“quietly, in trust and confidence” instead of correctly confronting it
over
continued settlement expansion.The letter also attempts to
downplay the Obama Administration’s policy
disagreements with Israel, referring to Israel’s intransigence on
expanding
settlements as a mere “misunderstanding”. Scoring:
-2 sponsor, -1 cosponsor. Last
Major Action: Sent to Secretary of State with 334 signatures,
3/26/2010.
14.
H.Res.1241.
Title: “Supporting
the
right of Israel to defend itself against terrorists and the Israeli
construction of new security fences along the border of Egypt.”Comment:
This resolution justifies Israel’s construction of apartheid
walls/fences both
in the occupied Palestinian West Bank and Gaza Strip, even though the
International Court of Justice (ICJ) deemed Israel’s wall in the West
Bank to
be illegal. Scoring: -2 sponsor, -1
cosponsor. Last Major Action:Referred to
the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, 4/13/2010.
15.
H.Con.Res.270.
Title: “Calling on the United States
Government to investigate the case of Tristan Anderson, a United States
citizen
from Oakland, California, who was critically injured in the West Bank
village
of Ni'lin on March 13, 2009, and expressing sympathy to Tristan Anderson
and
his family, friends, and loved ones during this trying time.”Comment:
This resolution calls on the Obama Administration “to undertake a full,
fair, and expeditious investigation” into Israel’s shooting of U.S.
peace
activist Tristan Anderson, and to work with Israel “to ensure that any
incident
of this kind never occurs again”. Scoring:
+2 sponsor, +1 cosponsor. Last Major
Action: Referred to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs,
4/28/2010.
16.
H.Con.Res.271.Title:
“Commemorating the 43rd anniversary of the reunification of Jerusalem.” Comment:
This resolution audaciously
“congratulates the residents of Jerusalem” on the 43 years of Israel’s
illegal
military occupation of East Jerusalem. Perhaps the Members of Congress
who
sponsored this resolution are so ignorant of reality that they don’t
realize
the Palestinian residents of Jerusalem would not want to be
“congratulated” for
being subjected to Israeli military occupation. Scoring: -2
sponsor, -1 cosponsor.Last Major Action:
Referred to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, 4/29/2010.
17.
Kind/Delahunt
Letter. Comment: While the
choice of language in this “Dear Colleague” letter leaves a lot to be
desired
from the perspective of human rights and international law, it is
significant
in that it quotes Gen. David Petraeus, Commander of CENTCOM, as stating
that
U.S. and Israeli interests do not always align and that U.S. pressure on
Israel
is needed to achieve peace. Scoring: +2 sponsor, +1
cosponsor.Last
Major Action: Sent to the President with 61 signatures, 5/27/2010.
18.
H.R.5327.
Title: United States-Israel Rocket and
Missile Defense Cooperation and Support Act.Comment: This
resolution authorizes the expenditure of more than $200 million in
additional military aid to Israel for an anti-missile defense system,
despite
Israel’s repeated violations of the Arms Export Control Act and misuse
of U.S.
weapons. Although
technically a “defensive” weapon, the “Iron Dome” missile defense system
would
also increase Israel’s offensive capabilities, making it more cost-free
for it
to attack without fear of return missiles. Scoring:-2 sponsor,
-1
cosponsor or yes vote, 0 not voting, +1 present vote, +2 no vote.Last Major Action:Passed the
House 410-4 (Roll
Call
Vote #284), 5/20/2010.
19.
H.Res.1391.
Title:Congratulating Israel for its accession to
membership
in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. Comment:Israel’s accession to membership in Organization for
Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) was unwarranted based on
its human
rights record, and a major blow to international efforts to isolate and
de-legitimate Israel’s military occupation and apartheid policies toward
Palestinians.This resolution
congratulates Israel for joining the OECD.Scoring:
-2
sponsor, -1 cosponsor.Last Major Action: Passed the
House
418-0 (Roll Call
Vote
#320), 5/28/2010.
20.
H.R.5501.
Title: America Stands with Israel Act. Comment: This
resolution brashly declares
support for “Israel’s naval blockade of Gaza”—an illegal act of
collective
punishment according to the 4th Geneva Convention.It
advances spurious and debunked
claims that the Gaza Freedom Flotilla organizers have ties to Al-Qaeda
(would
Israel really just let Al-Qaeda members go free after capturing them?C’mon.)The resolution also opposes any
international accountability
for Israel’s illegal attack on the Gaza Freedom Flotilla. Scoring: -2
sponsor, -1 cosponsor. Last Major Action: Referred to the House Committee on
Foreign Affairs,
6/10/2010.
21.
Poe/Peters
Letter.Comment: This “Dear Colleague”
letter
justifies Israel’s attack on the Gaza Freedom Flotilla and its illegal
blockade
of the occupied Palestinian Gaza Strip.It urges President
Obama “to thwart international condemnation” of
Israel, providing it carte blanche to violate international law as it
chooses. Scoring: -2 sponsor, -1
cosponsor.Last Major Action: Send to the President
with 329 signatures,
6/17/2010.
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