for the week ending November 11, 2005

I. ForOps Update
II. CJS Approps
III. Other Bills and Resolutions
IV. Dear Colleagues

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I. FOROPS UPDATE
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On November 4th the House passed the conference version of HR 3057 by a vote of 358-39; the Senate passed it on November 10th by a vote of 91-0. The bill now goes to the President to sign into law.

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II. CJS APPROPS
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On November 9th the House passed the conference version of HR 2862, the FY06 Commerce and Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations bill - formerly known as the Commerce, Justice, and State (i.e., CJS) Approps bill. The bill includes funding for Department of State operations (in Title IV of the bill), which this year includes two perennial Israel/Palestinian- related provisions:

Sec. 403: barring use of any funds for any form of assistance to the Palestinian Broadcasting Corporation (mirroring another perennial provision in the ForOps Approps bill - this year, Sec. 558 of that bill).

Sec. 405: requiring that the place of birth for American citizens born in Jerusalem be recorded on reports of birth, passports, and/or certifications of nationality, as "Jerusalem, Israel" upon request the citizen. This provision has been passed by Congress and signed into law repeatedly in recent years, the first time being in 2002, when it - along with the two other Jerusalem-related provisions that usually accompany it - was included in HR 1646, the FY03 State Department Authorization bill, signed by President Bush on September 30, 2002. At that time, the President issued a "signing statement" declaring that he would consider the provisions "advisory," since if they were considered mandatory they would "impermissibly interfere with the president's constitutional authority" in the foreign policy arena (for further details, see the October 4, 2002 Edition of the Round-Up). As noted in the September 10, 2004 edition of the Round-Up, in the first legal challenge to President Bush's position that the provisions are advisory rather than mandatory (a case involving the recording of the place of birth of American citizens born in Jerusalem), the judge ruled clearly and unequivocally in favor of the President's interpretation. This case has reportedly been appealed.

In addition, the conference report's accompanying explanatory statement notes that the conferees "expect the Board [the Broadcasting Board of Governors] to keep the Committees on Appropriations informed on the status of its efforts to acquire additional transmission capabilities in the Middle East, including Egypt." It should be recalled that the Senate version of the ForOps bill (HR 3057) included language linking a portion of Egypt's assistance to Egypt agreeing to the installation of a Radio Sawa transmitter in that country. That language was removed from HR 3057 in conference.

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III. OTHER BILLS AND RESOLUTIONS
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(JORDAN) S. Res. 309: Introduced November 10th by Sens. Frist (R-TN), Reid (D-NV), Lugar (R-IN), Biden (D-DE), Chafee (R-RI) and Brownback (R-KS), "expressing sympathy for the people of Jordan in the aftermath of the deadly terrorist attacks in Amman on November 9, 2005." Passed November 10th by unanimous consent.

(JORDAN) H. Res. 546: Introduced November 10th by Rep. Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) and 36 cosponsors, "Condemning in the strongest terms the terrorist attacks that occurred on November 9, 2005, in Amman, Jordan." Referred to the House Committee on International Relations.

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(Israel) S. Res. 310: Introduced on November 10th by Senators Lautenberg (D-NJ), Biden (D-DE), Lugar (R-IN), Chafee (R-RI) and Brownback (R-KS) "Honoring the life, legacy, and example of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin on the tenth anniversary of his death." Passed by unanimous consent on November 10th.

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(UNRWA) HR XXXX: A draft bill being circulated by Rep. Mark Kirk (R-IL) November 8th, entitled "Gaza Responsibility Act of 2005." The bill seeks to bar U.S. contributions to UNRWA (or any successor entity), "unless the Secretary of State certifies... that a timetable for transferring UNRWA's operations and activities in the Gaza Strip to the Palestinian Authority has been established."

For a detailed discussion of Congressional attacks on UNRWA and APN talking points on this issue, please see the September 30th edition of the Round-Up.

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(IRAN) HR 4242: Introduced November 7th by Reps. Andrews (R-NK) and Kirk (R-IL), "to require the Secretary of State to seek the establishment of a conference where Iranian nationals who oppose the policies of the Government of Iran can discuss the future of the Government of Iran." Referred to the House International Relations Committee.

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(Israel) H. Res. 38: Update - Introduced January 6th by Rep. Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), and currently having 41 cosponsors, "Expressing support for the accession of Israel to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)." Passed by the House November 8th by a vote of 391-0. For additional details, see the January 21st edition of the Round-Up.

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(SYRIA) S. 1713: Update - On November 8th the Senate agreed to the House amendment to S. 1713, which took advantage of a bill written to update U.S restrictions regarding Iran to extend these restrictions to Syria. The bill now goes to the President to be signed into law. For further details of S. 1713, see the October 28th edition of the Round-Up.

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(OTHER) H. Con. Res. 296: Introduced November 10th by Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) and no cosponsors, "Expressing the sense of Congress that there is no honor in "honor killings." Referred to the House International Relations Committee.

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IV. DEAR COLLEAGUES
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(Syria/Lebanon) On November 9th, Rep. Robert Wexler (D-FL) circulated a Dear Colleague seeking co-sponsors to H. Res. 510, supporting the findings of the Mehlis Commission. The letter notes that "It is now time to hold the Syrian regime accountable for their actions and demand Syrian compliance with the ongoing Mehlis investigation."

(Iran) On November 4th, 60 members of Congress, led by Reps. Waxman (D-CA), Schwartz (D-PA), and Rahm Emanuel (D-IL) sent a letter to UN Secretary General Kofi Annan commending him for "swiftly rejecting Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's virulent and unprovoked threats against Israel." The letter goes on to discuss Iran's apparent effort to develop nuclear weapons and notes that "the Iranian leadership's open belligerence is a grave matter that must be dealt with decisively by the U.N. leadership." The letter notes, in closing that, "...the U.N., which has a long history of unfair treatment of Israel, must speak out loudly and clearly in support of its existence."

(Israel) On November 10th Reps. Ackerman (D- NY), Waxman (D-CA), and Engel (D-NY) circulated a Dear Colleague seeking cosigners on a letter to Secretary of State Rice thanking her for her efforts regarding pressing the Israeli Magen David Adom Society. The letter notes that "Like yourself and the President, we are deeply concerned about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and we strongly support U.S. efforts to end the violence and bring peace to both people. There is not, however, and there never has been, any justifiable reason to allow this decades-old dispute to impede the work of Israel's humanitarian aid society, the Magen David Adom (MDA), or any other humanitarian organization that would benefit from the availability of a neutral symbol other than a red cross or red crescent."

On November 7th the Department of State issues a press statement welcoming the Swiss Government's announcement that same day that it will convene a diplomatic conference on December 5-6, 2005 "to adopt a Third Additional Protocol to the 1949 Geneva Conventions. If adopted, the Protocol will create a new, neutral emblem in addition to the red cross and red crescent... The United States strongly supports diplomatic efforts that will lead to the full members of the Magen David Adom (MDA), Israel's national society, in the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement..."

For more information contact APN Government Relations Director Lara Friedman at 202/728-1893, or at lfriedman@peacenow.org.