"Senate passes pro-Israel bill, measure also rebukes Trump"

reuters.com

The U.S. Senate passed a Mideast policy bill on Tuesday including a measure that would allow states to penalize businesses that take part in boycotts of Israel and an amendment that breaks with President Donald Trump by opposing any plans for an abrupt withdrawal of troops from Syria.

The Senate backed the Strengthening America’s Security in the Middle East Act by a lopsided 77-23…

Many members of Congress, including several fellow Republicans, strongly disagree with a plan Trump announced in December to withdraw 2,000 U.S. troops from Syria on the grounds that the militant group no longer posed a threat…

To become law, however, the bill would need to pass the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives, where it is unlikely to move without significant changes because of concerns about the provision addressing the “Boycott, Divest and Sanction” movement targeted at Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians.

Opponents of that provision argue that Americans’ participation in boycotts is protected by the constitutional right to free speech.