That law prohibits the granting of a permit for entry into Israel if the individual “has knowingly published a public call to engage in a boycott against the State of Israel or has made a commitment to participate in such a boycott.”
While Israel’s decision was based on established law, House Democrats have threatened to retaliate against Israel. If Democrats do so, they will be penalizing one of the United States’ strongest allies simply because it followed a law that’s there for its own protection.
“Senior Democratic members of Congress are considering legislative action against Ron Dermer, Israel’s ambassador to Washington, and David Friedman, the U.S. ambassador to Israel, according to McClatchy.
“Congresswomen Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar have a well-documented history of anti-Semitic comments, anti-Semitic social media posts, and anti-Semitic relationships. Israel has the right to prevent people who want to destroy it from entering the country—and Democrats’ pointless congressional inquiries here in America cannot change the laws Israel has passed to protect itself.”Should congressional Democrats decide to take retaliatory action against Israel, they will be playing into Tlaib’s and Omar’s hands and legitimizing their abhorrent comments calling for the boycott of the state of Israel.
“We in the United States have a constructive role to play. We give Israel more than $3 billion in aid every year. This is predicated on them being an important ally in the region, and the only democracy in the Middle East. But denying a visit to duly elected members of Congress is not consistent with being an ally. ...
“[Lawmakers] have a responsibility to conduct oversight over our government’s foreign policy and what happens with the millions of dollars we send in aid. ...
If House Democrats decide to punish the Israeli ambassador to the United States or the U.S. ambassador to Israel, it would be reasonable to assume that they align with or support the views expressed by Tlaib and Omar, who are slowly becoming the face of the Democratic Party. After all, this was the perfect opportunity for House Democrats to come out and defend Israel. However, rather than defending Israel, one of America’s strongest and most reliable allies, and condemning the ongoing and vulgar anti-Israel rhetoric espoused by these two women, House Democrats blasted Netanyahu’s decision and threatened to retaliate.
Clearly, there is no compelling reason for why House Democrats would dare to retaliate in this fashion. In essence, House Democrats are threatening to punish the state of Israel for lawfully enforcing its laws, which are there for its own survival. House Democrats are free to disagree with Netanyahu’s decision. However, they should not punish Israel or its ambassadors for this decision, as other nations have made similar decisions in the past.
“In 2012, Team Obama banned an Israeli Knesset member. In 2005, the US blocked Narendra Modi, now India’s prime minister. Britain has banned high-profile figures, from Menachem Begin and Geert Wilders to Mike Tyson, Snoop Dog and Martha Stewart.”As a sovereign and independent country, Israel had every right to ban Tlaib and Omar in accordance with Israeli law and based on their previous statements and their most recent itinerary.
House Democrats, on the other hand, have no basis to retaliate against Israel or its ambassadors. If they do, they won’t be hurting Trump or Netanyahu. Rather, they will be hurting relations between two longtime allies for no compelling reason.