- WASHINGTON -- While congressional
support for Israel has been overwhelmingly strong in recent years regardless
of which party controlled Congress, pro-Israel lobbyists celebrated the
Republican sweep in Tuesday's mid-term election.
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- "This new Congress is very supportive and is likely
to be the most pro-Israel Congress that we've seen," said one Jewish
official who tracks the Israel issue on Capitol Hill.
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- Morris Amitay, the head of the non-partisan pro-Israel
Washington PAC, said, "If you are looking strictly at Israel, it was
a good night."
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- Others said the impact would be minimal, since support
for Israel is generally bipartisan. Several of Israel's key Democratic
detractors in the House, who often loudly opposed but failed to block pro-Israel
legislation, had already been eliminated in the primaries.
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- "There has been a tradition of bipartisan support
for Israel," said one Jewish official with a major American Jewish
organization. "I don't see any traditional implications in terms of
Congress's support for Israel arising out of this election."
-
- The number of Jewish senators grew from 10 to 11 with
the victory of Democrat Frank Lautenberg in New Jersey. Norm Coleman, who
triumphed in Minnesota, is also Jewish and has been a long-time member
of the Republican Jewish Coalition. Coleman had been competing against
another Jewish senator, Paul Wellstone, before Wellstone was killed in
a plane crash last month.
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- "Coleman is going to be terrific. He will be strongly
pro-Israel," said Amitay.
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- The number of Jews in the House of Representatives remains
26 out of a total of 435.
-
- It appeared the strong Republican showing in the House
and Senate rates would bolster the president as he pursues regime change
in Iraq. He has already won an endorsement from the outgoing Congress for
war if diplomatic efforts fail.
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- "This has empowered Bush to go forward with his
foreign policy, his battle against terrorism and Saddam Hussein, and his
strong stance against the Palestinians," said Jack Rosen, president
of the American Jewish Congress. Rosen added that he believed the American
people wanted to help Bush solidify support on Capitol Hill for his foreign
policy agenda.
-
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- Some Jewish officials expressed disappointment that Rep.
John Sununu (R-New Hampshire) had triumphed in his Senate bid against Democratic
Governor Jeanne Shaheen. While Sununu has been a consistent supporter of
foreign aid, he has rejected several prominent AIPAC legislative initiatives
over the years.
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- One Jewish activist who has tracked US-Israel relations
for decades posited that Republican control of both houses of Congress
could be problematic if Bush is prompted to take a tough line with Israel's
Likud leadership. In such a scenario, the president's own party, the activist
said, may be reluctant to criticize the president. While some forecast
that more American Jews could vote Republican in the 2004 election, the
community is still largely Democratic.
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- David Harris, deputy director of the National Jewish
Democratic Council, said that while Israel remains a bipartisan issue,
many of the Republicans' domestic priorities are opposed by the bulk of
Jewish Americans, who are overwhelmingly pro-choice and favor a strong
separation of church and state.
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- http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/A/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1036619253808
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