Content deleted Content added
Hairy Dude (talk | contribs) grammar; don't abbreviate months Tags: Mobile edit Mobile web edit Advanced mobile edit |
Hairy Dude (talk | contribs) →Legislative history: MOS:DATE, MOS:CURLY; don't abbreviate months; rm generic author Tags: Mobile edit Mobile web edit Advanced mobile edit |
||
Line 67:
== Legislative history ==
The bill was introduced by the identical House and Senate bills HR 1697 and S 720 on March 23, 2017, by Republican Representative [[Peter Roskam]] and Democratic Senator [[Benjamin Cardin]] respectively.<ref name = "wrmea">{{cite web|url=https://www.wrmea.org/2018-november-december/goodies-for-israel-bills-continue-to-move-forward.html|title=Goodies for Israel Bills Continue to Move Forward}}</ref><ref name="auto2">{{cite web |last1=Cardin |first1=Benjamin L. |title=S.720
The purpose of the bill was to amend the [[Export Administration Act of 1979]] and the [[Export-Import Bank Act of 1945]] to bar US citizens from supporting boycotts against Israel, including its settlements. Violations would be subject to minimum civil penalty of $250,000 and a maximum criminal penalty of $1 million and 20 years in prison.<ref name = "aclu-letter"/>
The bill cited the [[United Nations Human Rights Council]]'s (UNHRC) March 2016 resolution calling for the creation of a database of companies operating in the occupied Palestinian territories as an example of a boycott supposedly covered by the law. Anyone choosing to not buy from companies listed in the database could, according to the bill's critics, be in violation and risk facing penalties or even jail time.<ref name="aclu2017jul26">{{cite web | title=How the Israel Anti-Boycott Act Threatens First Amendment Rights | website=American Civil Liberties Union | date=
The House Foreign Affairs Committee passed an amended version of the bill on June 28, 2018, and on March 3, 2018, Cardin released an amended version in the Senate. The amended bill removed the jail time provisions, but knowing violations of the bill could still lead to criminal financial penalties of up to $1 million.<ref name = "aclu-spending">{{cite web |title=Congress Is Trying to Use the Spending Bill to Criminalize Boycotts of Israel and Other Countries |url=https://www.aclu.org/blog/free-speech/rights-protesters/congress-trying-use-spending-bill-criminalize-boycotts-israel-and |website=American Civil Liberties Union |date=10 December 2018 |language=en}}</ref> All three versions of the bill were unconstitutional, according to those critics who criticized it on First Amendment grounds.<ref name="uscpr2017">{{cite web | title=Oppose Israel Anti-Boycott Act | website=US Campaign for Palestinian Rights | date=
{{quote|text=In essence, the amended Israel Anti-Boycott Act has not merely been amended. Rather, it eliminates the fundamental operating provisions of the original bill by only providing impermanent, easily revocable protections for the Israeli-controlled territories the UNHRC is specifically seeking to target. The blame for this unraveling belongs to AIPAC, the [[American Israel Public Affairs Committee]], whose staff designed the bill and ultimately watered it down in response to hostile Democratic demands as it proceeded through the legislative process. ... The Foreign Affairs Committee amendments are a clear capitulation to Democrats’ embrace of at least some forms of BDS (so-called “settlements BDS”). For such a law to pass in a Republican Congress with a Republican president would set a dangerously low ceiling for pro-Israel legislation – a lower one than existed under Obama.}}▼
In late 2018, attempts were made from both sides of the aisle to include the bill in the [[Appropriations bill (United States)|Appropriations bill]].<ref name = "aclu-spending"/> The attempts were criticized by Senator [[Bernie Sanders]] (I-Vermont) and [[Dianne Feinstein]] (D-California) who stated:<ref>{{cite web|date=December 19, 2018|title=Sanders, Feinstein Oppose Inclusion of Israel Anti-Boycott Act in Appropriations Bill|url=https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/sanders-feinstein-oppose-inclusion-of-israel-anti-boycott-act-in-appropriations-bill/|website=Sen. Bernie Sanders}}</ref>▼
{{quote|text=We believe including this bill would violate the spirit of cooperation and commitment that Senate appropriators have made to oppose controversial riders on appropriations bills, ... While we do not support the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, we remain resolved to our constitutional oath to defend the right of every American to express their views peacefully without fear of or actual punishment by the government, ...}}▼
▲{{quote|text=In essence, the amended Israel Anti-Boycott Act has not merely been amended. Rather, it eliminates the fundamental operating provisions of the original bill by only providing impermanent, easily revocable protections for the Israeli-controlled territories the UNHRC is specifically seeking to target. The blame for this unraveling belongs to AIPAC, the [[American Israel Public Affairs Committee]], whose staff designed the bill and ultimately watered it down in response to hostile Democratic demands as it proceeded through the legislative process.
Senator [[Kirsten Gillibrand]] who originally co-sponsored the bill withdrew her support from it in 2017, citing concerns over free speech. She remains opposed to the BDS movement. The pro-Israeli lobby group AIPAC criticized her change of heart.<ref>{{cite web |title=Has Gillibrand's position on Israel changed? |url=https://www.politifact.com/new-york/statements/2017/sep/08/american-israel-public-affairs-committee/gillibrand-still-opposes-boycott-israel-despite-fl/ |website=[[PolitiFact]] |language=en}}</ref>▼
▲In late 2018, attempts were made from both sides of the aisle to include the bill in the [[Appropriations bill (United States)|
▲{{quote|text=We believe including this bill would violate the spirit of cooperation and commitment that Senate appropriators have made to oppose controversial riders on appropriations bills,
▲Senator [[Kirsten Gillibrand]], who originally co-sponsored the bill, withdrew her support from it in 2017, citing concerns over free speech. She
==Combating BDS Act==
| |||