You can affect Israel's future and promote America's interests in the Middle East by urging your Members of Congress to support these important initiatives.
The administration has requested $2.55 billion in security assistance for Israel as part of the fiscal year 2009 budget. The aid request reflects the first year of a 10-year plan to gradually increase U.S. security assistance to the Jewish state in order to meet increasing threats. American security assistance is essential in helping Israel face a potential nuclear-armed Iran, daily rocket attacks from Gaza and a rearmed Hizballah. Please urge members of Congress to support this vital aid to Israel and the overall fiscal year 2009 foreign aid bill.
Members of the House and Senate have introduced resolutions (H. Con. Res. 362 and S. Res. 580) calling on the administration to focus on the urgency of the Iranian nuclear threat and to impose tougher sanctions on Tehran. The resolutions, introduced in the House by Reps. Gary Ackerman (D-NY) and Mike Pence (R-IN) and in the Senate by Sens. Evan Bayh (D-IN) and John Thune (R-SD), urge the president to sanction Iran’s Central Bank and other international banks and energy companies investing in the country. They also demand that the United States lead an international effort to increase pressure on Tehran by prohibiting the export to Iran of all refined petroleum products. Please urge your representatives to cosponsor this critical resolution.
With Iran continuing to defy the international community's demands to suspend its nuclear activities, the House has passed and Senate is considering comprehensive legislation aimed at increasing economic and political pressure on Iran to persuade Tehran to end its nuclear program. The legislation -- introduced in the House by Reps. Tom Lantos (D-CA) and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) and in the Senate by Sens. Gordon Smith (R-OR) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) -- strengthens U.S. tools to cut off funds to Iran's nuclear program and prohibits U.S. nuclear cooperation with those aiding Iran's atomic efforts. The bill passed the House on Sept. 25 by a vote of 397-16. Please thank members of the House who voted for the bill and urge senators to cosponsor it.
As Iran continues to make rapid advancements in its illicit nuclear weapons program, the House has passed the Iran Sanctions Enabling Act of 2007 by a vote of 408-6. The bill authorizes state and local governments to divest from companies investing in Iran's petroleum and natural gas sector and protects fund managers who divest from such companies from potential lawsuits. The legislation was introduced in the House by Reps. Barney Frank (D-MA) and Christopher Shays (R-CT) while Sens. Barack Obama (D-IL) and Sam Brownback (R-KS) introduced the bill in the Senate. Please thank your member of the House for voting for the bill and urge your senators to cosponsor the bill.
