What is “lobbying”… and what is propaganda?
When I asked a friend and retired federal judge about the ethics of “lobbying,” their response was simple.
“When a congressional or legislative member asks a professional for advice on a specific law under consideration, that’s “education.”
When a career “lobbyist” haunts Congress or a legislature trying to persuade members to vote one way on an issue, that’s “lobbying.”
When that lobbyist adds, “We’re having a conference in Hawaii on that very issue; you and your family are invited to attend at no cost,” that’s “bribery.”
According to a recent study published by Cambridge University Press, the expressed wishes of Americans today have little or no influence on legislation. In the last forty years, political spending had quadrupled according to Berkeley professor and columnist Robert Reich.
VTDigger recently reported that five Vermont legislators — Rep. Sarita Austin, D-Colchester; Rep. Matt Birong, D-Vergennes; Rep. Gina Galfetti, R-Barre Town; Rep. Will Greer, D-Bennington; and Rep. James Gregoire, R-Fairfield — were invited by the State of Israel to travel, all expenses paid — to Israel to attend a “50 States, One Israel” conference. The total number invited included 250 legislators from 50 states… perhaps because Democrats nationally are rapidly shifting their views on Israel in the face of the recent assault on Gaza City and media evidence of widespread famine.
While there, legislators heard from Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, who urged lawmakers to pass laws prohibiting anti-Boycott, Divest, and Sanctions (BDS) in their home states. Israeli President Isaac Herzog came down hard on Western media insisting they present a distorted view of the Jewish state. The keynote, however, was a speech by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Did the delegation take the time or have the considerable resources to research and explore the other side?
Among others, Democrat Matthew Birong seems to have drunk the Kool-Aid. Along with fellow attendees Will Greer, Sarah Austin, and Gina Galfetti, he has sponsored H.310, a bill put forward by the Vermont chapter of the Shalom Alliance. In reference to “genocide,” Birong asserts that the Congressional delegation members are… “sourcing organizations whose information and data has been debunked in the past,” even though the “genocide” declaration comes from the International Association of Genocide Scholars (IAGS) and relies on reports by Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and the Israeli human rights groups B’Tselem and Physicians for Human Rights.
A recent Quinnipiac poll found that 60% of Americans oppose the U.S. sending arms to Israel, and 77% of Democrats believe Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. Vermont’s Congressional delegation has reached the same conclusion. The Trump administration is waffling on the subject.
Although raised Catholic, I was born into a non-observant German-Jewish family. I am categorically opposed to antisemitism or any hate group that targets a specific religion, national or racial identity. Having said that, I’ve come to understand that religions, though divinely inspired by prophets living among us, are, in fact, the products of mankind and subject to the same flaws as the humans who created them. There is a critical difference, as I have written, between opposing the state policies of Netanyahu — who is supported now by a minority of Israelis — and being antisemitic.
I was as appalled as anyone when Hamas brutally attacked innocent Israelis, killing, raping and taking hostages. I supported the counterattack against Hamas that followed. But, like most of the rest of the world, I’m appalled at the two-year reign of terror Israel is raining down on Gaza (Palestine) and the West Bank, which by prior agreement, were to be Palestinian enclaves. Recently Israel has begun encouraging settler violence against resident Palestinians in the West Bank. According to the Jerusalem Post, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir intends to establish a Gaza seafront neighborhood for police officers after the “total defeat” of Hamas.
Along with many others, I urged our Legislature to create and empower a “Vermont Ethics Commission.” After much back and forth, it did half the job. It established the commission and endorsed a code of ethics but declined to create any enforcement capacity… sort of like setting speed limits and not hiring traffic cops.
So, I must ask, does the all-expenses-paid trip to Israel for five Vermont legislators at the invitation of the Netanyahu administration constitute “education,” “lobbying,” or “propagandizing?”
Who will pay the considerable sum for them to thoroughly research the other perspective?
- Bill Schubart