With the
US Senate opening 2019 with a bill aimed at protecting Israel from
boycott, similar state-level laws are facing opposition. One
newspaper in Arkansas is suing the state, calling the boycott ban
unconstitutional.
Given
that the government is still partially shut down over President
Trump’s plans to build a wall at the Mexican border, one would
imagine the first piece of legislation rolled out by the Senate this
year would prioritize breaking the impasse and ending the shutdown.
Not so.
Instead,
S.1 is a collection of foreign policy measures aimed at strengthening
military cooperation between the US and Jordan, reiterating
opposition to Syrian leader Bashar Assad, appropriating foreign aid
money for Israel, and – most controversially – giving state and
local government the authority to refuse to do business with firms
that boycott Israel.
The bill
is sponsored by Florida Republican Senator Marco Rubio, a longtime
opponent of the BDS (Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions) movement and
ally of AIPAC, the powerful pro-Israel lobby.
Aside
from Rubio, the bill is expected to receive the bipartisan support
necessary to muster a Senate majority. A similar bill introduced by
Rubio last year was cosponsored by several Democrats, and Senate
Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-New York) is expected to support
this latest effort, the Intercept reported.
Full
report:
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