Anti-Palestinian amendments went down with TPA

[Jefferson23]

May 13, 2015

Tuesday, when labor and environmental advocates who oppose the fast track Trade Promotion Authority breathed a sigh of relief as the Senate blocked the controversial trade legislation for now, advocates for peace and justice in Israel/Palestine joined them.

In late April, Congressional committees in the House and Senate passed a pair of little-noticed amendments to the controversial Trade Promotion Authority ‘Fast-Track’ legislation that would legislate support for Israel’s illegal settlements and would impede efforts to apply non-violent pressure on Israel to change its discriminatory policies towards Palestinians.

Congressional Democrats voted Tuesday to block the controversial ‘Fast-Track’ Trade Promotion Authority that would strip Congress of the power to amend trade deals. The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) currently being negotiated by the White House are opposed by labor and environmental groups because of the detrimental effect that they are likely to have on U.S. workers and environmental regulations. With the addition of the amendments relating to Israel, not only would damaging trade deals be negotiated in near secrecy without Congressional oversight, but U.S. trade policy would in future include combating Palestinian human rights advocacy and protecting Israel’s illegal settlements.

The proposed legislation would erase the distinction between Israel and the Palestinian territories it occupies, effectively upending longstanding U.S. policy in the region. As J.J. Goldberg, writing for the Jewish Daily Forward, noted, “This week’s congressional committee measures appear to be the first-ever formal step toward U.S. government recognition of the settlements’ legitimacy. None of the Capitol Hill sources contacted appeared to be aware of the explosive significance of the ‘territories under the control of Israel’ clause.”

in full: http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/foreign-policy/241850-anti-palestinian-amendments-went-down-with-tpa

[geek tragedy]

1. Is there any analog anywhere on the planet

for the Israel-Firsters in the US Congress-lawmakers for one country who explicitly place a foreign country's interests above that of the people who elected them?

The US Congress is now explicitly pro-apartheid. And of course Obama will sign this because the TPP trumps putting the US on the right side of the apartheid debate.

[Jefferson23]

2. One day, geek, we'll have public funded elections, our future depends on winning that fight

on so many levels. On the I/P conflict, it may be too late, I fear.

[King_David]

3. You honestly believe your views on Israel are closer to the "peoples" views than the

Democratic Party reps?

Really ?

Really...

[geek tragedy]

6. I believe the vast majority of Americans expect their government to serve

the interests of the American people, not foreign powers, and that members of Congress, even moreso than regular citizens, should be more loyal to our nation than someone else's?

[oberliner]

4. False premise

There are no lawmakers in the US Congress who place a foreign country's interests above that of the people who elected him.

Pro-Israel Congress-lawmakers represent pro-Israel constituents (or apathetic ones).

In fact, some lawmakers have found themselves voted out of office for not being sufficiently supportive of the relationship between the US and Israel.

[Donald Ian Rankin]

5. I think you're conflating "interests" with "views".

Yes, it's perfectly legitimate to place Israeli interests above American ones if that's what the majority of your constituents want, and in many cases it clearly is.

But that's a slightly different thing to not doing so.

[geek tragedy]

7. Which officeholders has the Israel lobby defeated at the ballot box? nt

[oberliner]

8. False premise

Voters defeat candidates at the ballot box.

Lobby groups just try to convince people to vote for the candidate that they think is the best on whatever issue they are lobbying for.

[geek tragedy]

9. No, voters choose, lobbies defeat. Now, how about names? nt

[oberliner]

11. You have no idea what you are talking about

Voters put people in office and voters put them out of office. Lobbies try to convince people of whatever cause they think is right and try to get politicians to support said causes.

What names are you looking for exactly?

[shaayecanaan]

10. and guns dont kill people, people kill people nt