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On Tuesday, Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR) and Congressman Doug Lamborn (R-CO) introduced the Taylor Force Martyr Payment Prevention Act (S. 691/HR 1408).

The legislation is aimed at eliminating “martyr payments” to Palestinian terrorists who kill Israelis and Americans, otherwise known as the “pay-for-slay” program. The bill would deter foreign banks from processing these payments for the Palestinian Authority by cutting off their access to the United States financial system.

The RJC released a statement in strong support of the Cotton/Lamborn bill.

RJC National Chairman Senator Norm Coleman said:

The 2018 Taylor Force Act was a vital first step toward ending the Palestinian Authority's "pay-for-slay" system that incentivizes deadly terrorist attacks against Israelis and Americans. The Cotton/Lamborn bill makes important progress toward that goal by denying access to the U.S. market for financial institutions that facilitate so-called 'martyr payments.’

RJC CEO Matt Brooks said:

The Biden administration has unfortunately been more interested in looking for loopholes in the Taylor Force Act than vigorously enforcing it. Senator Cotton, Congressman Lamborn and their colleagues are demonstrating strong leadership where the administration is failing.

Click here to see Senator Cotton’s full press release, and here for Congressman Lamborn’s press release, which notes RJC’s strong support for the bill.

The Senators who signed on as original cosponsors are: Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Mike Braun (R-IN), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Steve Daines (R-MT), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), John Hoeven (R-ND), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), James Lankford (R-OK), Roger Marshall (R-KS), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Rick Scott (R-FL), John Thune (R-SD), Roger Wicker (R-MS), and Todd Young (R-IN).

The Representatives who signed on as original cosponsors to HR 1408 are: Claudia Tenney (R-NY), Don Bacon (R-NE), Joe Wilson (R-SC), David Kustoff (R-TN), Randy Weber (R-TX), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Juan Vargas (D-CA), Chip Roy (R-TX), Brian Babin (R-TX), Neal Dunn (R-FL), Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), Adrian Smith (R-NE), and Max Miller (R-OH).

Republicans led the way this week to block a disastrous DC crime bill that would have significantly lowered the penalties for serious crimes, including carjackings and homicides. Yesterday, the Senate voted 81 to 14 to approve a resolution of disapproval introduced by Senators John Boozman (R-AR) and Bill Hagerty (R-TN), with 33 Democrats voting with Republicans.

Sen. Boozman called the DC bill "dangerous and irresponsible”, and Sen. Hagerty said:

Congress is tasked with overseeing Washington, D.C.—a federal district where people should be safe to live and work. The District should set a nationwide example by enacting legislation that makes its residents and visitors safer—not less safe. Our resolution makes clear that Congress intends to hold D.C. to this standard.

In February, Congressman Andrew Clyde (R-GA) introduced the companion resolution in the House, which passed it by a vote of 250-173, with 42 Democrats joining Republicans. President Joe Biden is expected to sign the Republican-led measure.

Under Article 1 of the Constitution, Congress reviews all DC legislation before it becomes law and can modify or overturn such legislation. The DC crime was so bad that Mayor Muriel Bowser vetoed it, but the radicals on the DC City Council overrode her veto. Then at the eleventh hour, the Council attempted to withdraw the crime bill before the Senate could act on it. With decisive Republican leadership in Congress, this crazy bill was appropriately struck down.

It’s no secret that antisemitism – often thinly disguised as “anti-Zionism” – is increasing on American college campuses. But now a group of Republican Senators, led by Sen.Risch (R-ID), are demanding that the Department of Education provide answers about the extent of the problem and how the Department plans to address it.

Fox News reports:

A group of Republican senators is accusing the Biden administration of allowing "taxpayer-funded antisemitism" on college campuses, arguing that the prevalence of these events and programs violate federal law and are making Jewish students feel less safe on campus. Sen. Jim Risch led a letter to Education Secretary Miguel Cardona on Wednesday morning, signed by 14 of his GOP colleagues, demanding to know "to what extent" federal dollars went toward programs and events that meet the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition of antisemitism. "We write with grave concern that the Department of Education, over the course of decades, has been allowing taxpayer-funded antisemitism to take place on college campuses throughout the United States," said the letter obtained by Fox News Digital.

Read the full letter here.

RJC CEO Matt Brooks welcomed the Republican Senators’ initiative, saying: “Americans rightly reject antisemitism – including antisemitic demonization of Israel. It’s clear more needs to be done to prevent our tax dollars being used to spread this poison on our campuses. Senator Risch and his colleagues are right to demand accountability from the Department of Education, which is responsible for protecting Jewish students’ civil rights and ensuring balance in taxpayer-funded area studies programs.”

How Taxpayer Funds Are Flowing to a Group Bankrolling Anti-Netanyahu Protests

The Washington Free Beacon reports that: “the U.S. government has been funneling taxpayer money to the left-wing group bankrolling protests against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to Israeli funding documents. The documents indicate that, since 2020, Foggy Bottom has sent over $38,000 to the Movement for Quality Government (MQG), the Israeli nonprofit stoking nationwide anti-Netanyahu protests that have seen protesters clash with police and target Netanyahu’s family members.”

Speaker McCarthy and Congressman Lawler Visit Rockland Jewish Communities

U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy toured Jewish communities in New York this past Sunday, including stops in Monsey and New Square, with Congressman Mike Lawler (NY-17), who defeated DCCC Chairman Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney last November, flipping this crucial House seat from blue-to-red.

Meet the Anti-Semitic Spiritual Guru on Cori Bush's Payroll

Meet Nathaniel Davis III – a close friend and the highest-paid private security guard for far-left radical “Squad” member Rep. Cori Bush. The Washington Free Beacon reports that Davis is a rabid antisemite who has spread antisemitic conspiracy theories “including the belief that the Rothschild family ‘runs the Western Hemisphere’ and unleashed the COVID-19 pandemic to murder 99 percent of the human population.”

RJC offices are open! Contact information for our offices can be found on our website. Please visit us online for the latest RJC news, to see details of upcoming events, and to donate to the RJC. Read past editions of this newsletter here.