© Erik McGregor/Pacific Press/Sipa via AP.
Protesters demonstrate against a state-sanctioned backlash against the movement for Palestinian human rights. New York City, June 9, 2016.
In an evening vote that garnered essentially no national media coverage, the U.S. Senate
voted last night to advance the
"Strengthening America's Security in the Middle East Act of 2019" - sometimes called the "anti-BDS bill" for its component that would
allow state and local governments to punish companies or individuals who support the non-violent Boycott, Divest, Sanctions movement aimed at promoting Palestinian rights and ending Israeli apartheid and military occupation of the West Bank.
The bill was, notably, numbered S.1 - the Senate's first legislative act of its 2019-20 session.
Numerous rights groups, politicians and civil rights advocates have accused this measure of
violating freedom of speech and setting a dangerous precedent for the private political activism of American citizens, all on behalf of a foreign country.
The bill was adopted by the Senate in a vote of
74 in favor to 19 against, with seven abstentions. The bill had
previously been blocked by Senate Democrats by a 56-44 vote as part of their objection to acting on legislation during the government shutdown. However, many of those Democratic senators who had previously blocked the bill ultimately voted in support of the measure.
In order to become law, the measure would still need to pass the Democrat-run House of Representatives. However, given the amount of support for the measure among Democrats and the power of the Israel lobby, the bill stands a considerable chance of passing the House.
Comment: Wonderful. So instead of a pathological Prime Minister who's driven to destroy Palestinians, subjugate its neighbors and is faced with a lot of corruption charges, Israel will just have a a pathological Prime Minister who's driven to destroy Palestinians, subjugate its neighbors - who's not facing corruption charges; a near guarantee of a chaotic future for Palestinians, Iran, Syria, Lebanon and Israel itself.