[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 164 (Thursday, November 5, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Pages S11215-S11216]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  By Mr. BROWNBACK (for himself, Mr. Inhofe, Mr. Kyl, Mr. Cornyn, Mr. 
Lieberman, Mr. Vitter, and Mr. Bunning):
  S. 2737. A bill to relocate to Jerusalem the United States Embassy in 
Israel, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Foreign Relations.
  Mr. BROWNBACK. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Jerusalem 
Embassy Relocation Act of 2009. My colleagues and I have sponsored this 
important piece of legislation in order to pave the way for the United 
States to correct a longstanding and--I believe--dangerous deficiency 
in our diplomatic relations and foreign policy. For too long, our 
embassy in Israel has been located in a different city than Jerusalem, 
which is the capital of Israel according to longstanding Israeli and 
American law and practice. The time has come to remove the barriers 
that have encouraged this state of affairs to continue, and that is 
precisely what this legislation will do, by repealing the waiver 
included in the Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995 that has

[[Page S11216]]

been abused by the Executive Branch for 14 years.
  Jerusalem is the spiritual center of the Jewish faith. First 
conquered by King David more than 3000 years ago, there has always been 
a Jewish presence there, a fact attested to by incalculable 
archaeological evidence. Although at various times the Jewish people 
lost sovereignty in the land of Israel--to the Babylonians, Greeks, 
Romans, Byzantines, Ottomans, British--Jerusalem has never served as 
the capital of any other political or religious entity in history. In 
every year during the nearly two thousand year exile in 70 A.D., Jews 
around the world concluded their Passover seder with the phrase, ``Next 
Year in Jerusalem.'' Despite the depths of despair to which the Jewish 
people descended throughout their long exile, Jerusalem always remained 
at the center of Jewish religious life.
  Since 1950, just two years after the miraculous rebirth of the State 
of Israel, Jerusalem has served as Israel's capital. The seat of 
Parliament, Prime Minister's residence, and Supreme Court, all reside 
there, in addition to numerous ministries and government buildings. 
American officials conduct business with Israeli officials in 
Jerusalem, in de facto recognition of the status of the city. The 
Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995, passed into law by an overwhelming vote 
of Congress, stated unequivocally as a matter of United States policy 
that ``Jerusalem should be recognized as the capital of the State of 
Israel,'' and ``the United States Embassy in Israel should be 
established in Jerusalem no later than May 31, 1999.
  This is our policy, yet for some reason our embassy remains in Tel 
Aviv. This is despite the fact that the government of Israel many times 
has declared Jerusalem to be the eternal and undivided capital of 
Israel, a policy reflected in American law. Such a state of affairs 
constitutes an ongoing affront to the people of Israel who, under 
international law, have the sovereign right to choose the location of 
their capital. It also harms the interests of American citizens living 
in Israel, who face procedural and substantive harm as a result of the 
confusing diplomatic structure that has arisen in place of a Jerusalem 
embassy.
  The failure of the State Department to relocate the embassy is not 
only inconvenient and inefficient, but also is dangerous. The State 
Department's refusal to acknowledge clear U.S. law and policy 
radicalizes Israel's opponents by creating the false hope that the U.S. 
would support the division of Jerusalem. Were the embassy to be moved 
to Jerusalem, and Israel's capital respected in both American law and 
in practice, then Palestinians and Arab governments would have no 
choice but to accept the unchanging reality of Jerusalem, which is that 
Israel, regardless of the political party or government in power, will 
not move its capital away from this city.
  I and my fellow sponsors of this legislation recognize that the 
Executive Branch generally has discretion over diplomatic arrangements. 
However, when a waiver included for the limited purpose of national 
security becomes perfunctory and contradicts the clear will of the 
Congress, the time has come to reevaluate the wisdom of such a waiver. 
This bill simply restores the statutory effect of the Jerusalem Embassy 
Act, updating the timeline of fiscal years required for action, but 
without the waiver.
  I urge my colleagues to support this necessary and appropriate 
legislation.
                                 ______