Anti-Bds Labeling Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 1455, I call up the bill (H.R. 5179) to require the maintenance of the country of origin markings for imported goods produced in the West Bank or Gaza, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

The Clerk read the title of the bill.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Anti-BDS Labeling Act introduced by my good friend and Committee on Ways and Means colleague, Ms. Tenney.

For years, far-left progressives have targeted Israel through the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement. In fact, many of the recent campus protests that we saw that came in the wake of the horrific terrorist attacks on Israel shut down elite universities to try to force university endowments to divest from Israel. For these protesters, no step is too far to achieve their goals. The incidents of harassment, bullying, and intimidation of Jewish students are at this point too numerous to count.

The Ways and Means Committee will not stop holding these elite universities accountable until every Jewish student feels safe on campus.

This small, loud minority does not speak for the vast majority of Americans. Let me be clear: America stands with Israel.

Under President Trump, the alliance between the United States and Israel was stronger than ever before. He moved the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem. He brokered the Abraham Accords, sending a message to Iran that Israel does not stand alone. He canceled President Obama's disastrous Iran nuclear deal. The list goes on and on. One of the items on that list of accomplishments was a move to counter the same BDS movement fueling the chaos on college campuses.

In 2020, the Trump administration's Customs and Border Protection clarified the labeling of items imported from Israel. Items coming from regions of the West Bank under Israeli authority must be labeled as coming from Israel, just as labels on items coming from Hamas- controlled Gaza or areas of the West Bank outside of Israeli control must reflect its origin as coming from one of those two areas.

This bill before us codifies this Trump rule into law and bans the use of any Federal dollars to reverse or alter it. American families should have this information in order to buy products that support Israel's economy, particularly in a time of war.

Conversely, people should know if an item comes from a region controlled by terrorists that kidnapped and killed their fellow Americans. Public reports earlier this year indicated that the Biden- Harris administration considered reversing this policy.

Once again, Mr. Speaker, Democrats are putting the demands of radical progressives ahead of our best ally and our largest trading partner in the Middle East.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my Democratic colleagues to vote ``yes'' on this legislation and join us in empowering Americans looking to show their support for Israel.

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Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Tenney).

Mr. Speaker, first off, this bill was marked up in committee back in April, so it wasn't like it was done yesterday, and we have been bringing this forward.

Also, Mr. Speaker, it is extremely important to note that what this bill does is it codifies current rules that were put into place by the Trump administration, but the Biden administration has rescinded almost everything of Trump's except for tariffs and this policy.

They have not rescinded it. If Democrats thought it was bad, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle would have rescinded it. I would hope the President's own party would support it, but we will see today.

Mr. Speaker, the old saying is, ``knowledge is power.'' By codifying the Trump-era rule that currently labels items coming from Israel as originating in Israel, this body can empower individual Americans to buy products supporting our ally.

I thank Representatives Claudia Tenney and Greg Steube, both of whom have been leaders on this issue, for sounding the alarm about the attempt by the Biden-Harris administration to weaken Israel.

Congress should not even have to debate this topic, but the Customs and Border Protection rule in question provides no special treatment to Israel, but it does extend fair treatment to their exports. After more than 3 years in office, the Biden-Harris administration has not changed this policy.

Unfortunately, reports earlier this year indicated that the Biden- Harris administration was preparing to overturn this policy. Such a change could still happen at any time unless Congress acts.

This proposed reversal would hurt both American consumers and our ally. Israel's economy is slowing from the strain of a war it didn't start. The last thing Israel needs as it fights to end this war are trade barriers that make it harder to choose Israeli products.

The loss of revenue from American businesses and consumers would only magnify the harm done to Israel by this war. More importantly, this proposed reversal of sound policy seems to be driven more by political pandering than a consideration for Israel's ability to defend and provide for itself while under attack.

House Republicans have made our commitment to supporting our friend and ally crystal clear. We have not left Israel wondering and worrying whether Republicans will support them.

This bill is a clear opportunity to stand with Israel and empower American families, and I hope that the minority will join us in sending a clear message that Congress and America will support our ally.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on the legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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