Congressional Junkets to Israel: A Key Tool of the Rightwing Lobby

The New York Observer, January 25th, 2007

Christian Science Monitor has a strong piece by former S.D. Sen. James Abourezk talking about the Israel lobby's use of congressional trips to sway political opinion to the view that one side has the moral high ground in the unending cycle of violence there.

According to the Jewish Daily Forward newspaper, congressional filings show Israel as the top foreign destination for privately sponsored trips.

Nearly 10 percent of overseas congressional trips taken between 2000 and 2005 were to Israel. Most are paid for by the American Israel Education Foundation, a sister organization of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the major pro-Israel lobby group. New rules require all trips to be pre-approved by the House Ethics Committee, but Rep. Barney Frank (D) of Massachusetts says this setup will guarantee that tours of Israel continue. Ron Kampeas of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency reported consensus among Jewish groups that "the new legislation would be an inconvenience, but wouldn't seriously hamper the trips to Israel that are considered a critical component of congressional support for Israel." These trips are defended as "educational." In reality, as I know from my many colleagues in the House and Senate who participated in them, they offer Israeli propagandists an opportunity to expose members of Congress to only their side of the story. The Israeli narrative of how the nation was created, and Israeli justifications for its brutal policies omit important truths about the Israeli takeover and occupation of the Palestinian territories.

Abourezk doesn't know about the journalists. The journos who have taken one-sided junkets to Israel don't have to declare them...