By Steve Sheffey
It's started again. We're hearing that Mark Kirk is more than just a vote when it comes to Israel - he's indispensable, he's irreplaceable. You get the feeling listening to some people that if the Democrats nominated Judah Maccabee, they'd still vote for Kirk. ("Maccabee may say he's good on Israel, but how do we know? He's never held office...")
Let's inject a dose of sanity into this discussion. Kirk is good on Israel, he understands the issues, and he articulates them well. Kirk is on the House Appropriations Committee, where he ranks in the bottom five of 29 Republicans. (There are 37 Democrats.) He sits on the Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs, where he is the third-ranking of five Republicans (there are eight Democrats). It's important to have backers of Israel on that committee, and Kirk backs Israel. Kirk's overall record on Israel is a plus in his column. But support for Israel is so strong and so deep in Congress that Congress will be just as pro-Israel whether Kirk wins or loses. Kirk is completing only his fourth term in Congress. He is in the minority party. He chairs no Congressional committees of importance to the U.S.-Israel relationship. Congress.org ranks Kirk only the 257th most powerful member of the House. Here's the full list, but you'll have to scroll to the bottom half to find Kirk.
Kirk does co-sponsor some pro-Israel measures, but if Kirk were not in Congress, the Democrats would find other Republicans to co-sponsor pro-Israel legislation, and those measures would pass by the same overwhelming margins. The next time you receive a list of Kirk's accomplishments, ask for the final vote tallies. You'll see that the pro-Israel measures he signs on to all pass by overwhelming margins and are all co-sponsored by Democrats. Israel enjoys strong bi-partisan support in Congress and among the American people. Israel has many friends in Congress with much more influence and power than Kirk.
Howard Berman (D-CA), who is Jewish, recently succeeded Tom Lantos as Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Berman has been described by Congressional Quarterly as "hawkishly committed to Israel, a hard-line opponent of radical Islam and a fierce defender of human rights." That's how some people describe Kirk, but Berman sets the agenda and make things happen. He has far more power and influence than Kirk, and it is hard to imagine a better friend of Israel in Congress than Berman.
The House Subcommittee on the Middle East and Southeast Asia is chaired by Gary Ackerman (D-NY), a very pro-Israel Jewish Congressman (he was sworn in on a chumash - talk about "feeling it in his kishkes"). The House Subcommittee on Foreign Operations, of which Kirk is a member, is chaired by another staunch supporter of Israel, Nita Lowey (D-NY), also Jewish. Brad Sherman (D-CA), who is Jewish, chairs the International Terrorism and Nonproliferation subcommittee. All these members of Congress have far more power and influence than Kirk, and they'll all still be there whether Kirk wins or loses.
And, of course, there are many other good friends of Israel in Congress, such as Rep. Robert Wexler (D-FL), who chairs the Foreign Operations Europe Subcommittee, Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY), who led the fight against arms sales to Saudi Arabia, Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), a graduate of Crown Heights Yeshiva and Assistant Democratic Whip, Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz (D-FL), Rep. Jane Harman (D-CA), and Rep. Eliot Engel (D-NY). I think it would come as a surprise to all of them, and to many more members of Congress not listed here, that Mark Kirk is Israel's best friend in Congress.
Strong support for Israel in Congress goes straight to the top. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) stated on March 13, 2007:
America's commitment to Israel is unshakable...Let us be very clear: Iran must not be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon...There are those who contend that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is about Israel's occupation of the West Bank and Gaza. In truth, the history of the conflict has never been about the occupation. It is over the fundamental right of Israel to exist...The United States will stand with Israel now and forever.
Whether Kirk wins or loses, Pelosi will still be the most powerful member of the House.
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) has a long record of strong pro-Israel activity and is another strong, powerful ally. In defending Israel's actions in Gaza, Hoyer recently said:
the truth is that Israel's actions constitute nothing less than justifiable self-defense. This Congress - and the American people - will not succumb to propaganda which labels Israel's actions 'unjustified' or an 'over-reaction'.
None of this is to say that Kirk is not a friend of Israel or that we should take any support for Israel for granted. The point is that the fate of Israel does not hinge on Kirk's re-election. If Kirk loses, we'll be replacing him with Dan Seals, who also is a strong friend of Israel and who will join an overwhelming bi-partisan majority in Congress that supports Israel. Congress will remain strongly pro-Israel no matter whom we elect.
For more information about Dan Seals and his views on Israel and the Middle East, click here.
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