Photo from Wikimedia Commons. The Senate passed a bill on Feb. 5 that cracks down on the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement as well as Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria.
The final margin on the S.1 bill, titled “Strengthening America’s Security in the Middle East Act of 2019,” was 77-23:
Senate approves Mideast policy bill, 77-23. Assists Israel & sanctions Syria. Also includes provision to oppose speedy Trump Administratoon troop withdrawal from Syria
— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) February 5, 2019
https://twitter.com/danholler/status/1092891731421466624
The Senate just passed S. 1, the Strengthening America's Security in the Middle East Act
This important legislation helps our Middle East allies, Israel and Jordan, sanctions Syria for its crimes against its own people, and combats the anti-Semitic #BDS movement. #GOPMajority! https://t.co/ii0nCMkqev
— RJC (@RJC) February 5, 2019
We welcome the Senate's passage of S.1, which included a strong and bipartisan rebuke of @realDonaldTrump's disastrous Syria policy. We also reject the relentless @GOP effort to politicize U.S. policy toward Israel.https://t.co/OAOFN1AZp8
— Jewish Dems (@USJewishDems) February 5, 2019
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-K.Y.) tweeted:
The Senate just passed the Strengthening America’s Security in the Middle East Act. I’m especially proud it includes my amendment reaffirming the importance of our nation’s ongoing missions in Afghanistan and Syria.
— Leader McConnell (@LeaderMcConnell) February 5, 2019
According to Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA), those voted no included Sens. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) and Rand Paul (R-Ky.).
Roz Rothstein, CEO of StandWithUs, said in a statement sent to the Journal, “We applaud the Senators on both sides of the aisle for their overwhelming support and urge members of the House of Representatives to follow in this sensible path to increased security for both the U.S. and our allies.”
The Israeli-American Coalition for Action said in a statement, “This is an important day in the fight against the hate movement commonly referred to as BDS. S.1 will strengthen the U.S.-Israel relationship and ensure that the bigotry and discrimination fostered by the BDS is not subsidized by taxpayer dollars.”
Earlier in the day, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), one of the co-sponsors of the bill, wrote in a New York Times op-ed that his bill protects the rights of states to divest from companies that boycott Israel.
“While the First Amendment protects the right of individuals to free speech, it does not protect the right of entities to engage in discriminatory conduct,” Rubio wrote. “Moreover, state governments have the right to set contracting and investment policies, including policies that exclude companies engaged in discriminatory commercial- or investment-related conduct targeting Israel.”
The bill also provides military aid to Israel and Jordan.
This article has been updated.
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