Cantor: Take Israel Out of Foreign Aid Budget

[shaayecanaan]

\"A Republican Congress would seek to remove funding for Israel from the foreign operations budget, a GOP leader said.

U.S. Rep. Eric Cantor, the Republican whip and the only Jewish Republican in the House of Representatives, told JTA that a GOP-led House would seek to defund nations that do not share U.S. interests, even if it meant rejecting the president’s foreign operations budget.

Cantor, of Virginia, said he wants to protect funding for Israel should that situation arise.

“Part of the dilemma is that Israel has been put in the overall foreign aid looping,” he said when asked about the increasing tendency of Republicans in recent years to vote against foreign operations appropriations. “I’m hoping we can see some kind of separation in terms of tax dollars going to Israel.”

Cantor’s statement was a sign that the Republican leadership was ready to defer to the party’s right wing on this matter. Some on the GOP right have suggested including Israel aid in the defense budget, and a number of Tea Party-backed candidates have said they would vote against what is known in Congress as “foreign ops.”

However, until now at least, the GOP leadership has backed deferring to the executive branch when it comes to foreign spending, albeit after it has completed budgetary negotiations with the Congress.

The GOP looks set to win at least the House in the upcoming Nov. 2 elections, partly because of the recent surge in conservative activism.

The pro-Israel community has always backed the president’s final foreign aid budget as a whole and strongly resisted proposals to separate funding for Israel for a number of reasons.

Among them, pro-Israel activists see aid for Israel as inextricably bound with the broader interest of countering isolationism; elevating Israel above other nations might be counterproductive in an American electorate still made up of diverse ethnic groups; and such a designation would make Israel more beholden to U.S. policy and erode its independence.\"

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Read more: http://www.forward.com/articles/132410/#ixzz13Ni3GClD

Fascinating article from the Forward. The annual foreign aid budget, including aid to Egypt and the Palestinian Authority, has generally progressed through Congress because neither party wants to jeopardise aid to Israel, and because the executive prepares the budget.

Both camps within the Tea Party (the fiscal conservatives and the cultural conservatives) want to axe the foreign aid budget, aside from the aid to Israel (and possibly aid to Iraq and Afghanistan in the short term). However, creating a specific office within the US government for doling out aid to Israel obviously causes all sorts of problems.

My guess is its all too hard to separate and nothing will come of it. Still, its going to be pretty hard for the Tea Partiers to vote for foreign aid given their position on it.

[stray cat]

1. we could simply get rid of all foreign aid?

[Violet_Crumble]

7. Or maybe foreign aid should be humanitarian and not military aid?

That would seem to be a better option, though it'd be one the warmongers that profit from the sale of weapons would hate...

[oberliner]

2. Growing Tea Party Movement Is Still a Great Unknown on Israel

Washington — The Tea Party movement, a loose conglomeration of conservatives angry over government spending, is considered one of the most influential groups on today’s American political scene.

For liberals and conservatives the Tea Party movement is a politically polarizing topic, but for the pro-Israel community it is a great unknown. With Tea Party activists focusing on domestic issues more than on foreign policy, and with views on Israel running the gamut from staunch support for right-wing Israeli positions to calls for a total reversal of American support for the Jewish state, pro-Israel activists are left guessing as to how the new movement could affect their cause.

Political analysts see the Tea Party movement as having the capability to influence at least a dozen close congressional races in the 2010 elections. Increasing political representation of advocates for small government would primarily affect domestic policy, but the Tea Party movement’s new clout could also carry over to issues of foreign aid and overseas intervention.

http://www.forward.com/articles/126457/#ixzz13O3W9etQ

Older article but relevant to the one you posted I think.

[azurnoir]

3. well the Tea Party must read the Foward too they have done much to change that

Israel joins the Tea Party Movement 3/22/2010

http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/talk/blogs/j/o/joe_monster/2010/03/israel-joins-the-tea-party-mov.php

Tea Party Caucus members endorse Israeli attack on Iran 7/26/2010

http://thecable.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2010/07/26/tea_party_caucus_members_endorse_israeli_attack_on_iran

Tea Party may help Israel
The extreme right US movement could prove a useful friend of Israel 9/21/2010

http://www.thejc.com/comment-and-debate/mediawatch/38466/tea-party-may-help-israel

[shaayecanaan]

6. I think there are two perspectives within the tea party

there is a libertarian, Ron Paul movement which is isolationist and which would like to cut off all foreign aid, and there is a militarist, populist Sarah Palin element which wants to maintain military spending.

For that reason as well as many others I don\'t think anything will come of this. Egypt and the PA will continue to get their aid.

[ProgressiveMajority]

4. More proof that if there is going to be morality when it comes

to Israel it won't be comming from the repubs. Their motto has always been support Israe no matter what.

[azurnoir]

5. Isn't this the guy that wrote Young Guns

he was on the Daily Show talking about how he and his party were for smaller government, now he wants to create a new government office to funnel money to Israel

http://books.simonandschuster.com/Young-Guns/Eric-Cantor/9781451607345