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Revision as of 02:48, 27 August 2006 by Picaroon (talk | contribs) (→References: narrowing stub)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)The Arab lobby in the United States describes a collection of formal and informal groups that lobby the public and governement of the United States on behalf of Arab interests.
Origins
The lobby, according to Isaiah L. Kenen (the founder of what became AIPAC) , has its roots in the "petro-diplomatic complex" that comprises the "oil industry, missionaries, and diplomats".
According to Mitchell Bard, "from the beginning, the Arab lobby has faced not only a disadvantage in electoral politics but also in organization. There are several politically oriented groups, but many of these are one man operations with little financial or popular support."
Formal Arab lobby
In 1951, King Saud of Saudi Arabia asked U.S. diplomats to finance a pro-Arab lobby to counter the leading formal Israel lobbying organization in the US, the American Zionist Committee for Public Affairs (AZCPA), the forerunner of the modern American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) . The result was the formation of the National Association of Arab-Americans (NAAA).
The 1973 Arab oil embargo establied the Arab lobby as the "official, active, and visible spokesman for the Arab cause in the wake of the oil embargo" according to Mitchell Bard.
The most representative groups are National Association of Arab-Americans (NAAA), American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), the Middle East Research and Information Project; the Middle East Affairs Council, Americans for Near East Refugee Aid, the Arab American Institute and the American Palestine Committee .
Contrast with Israeli lobby
There are a number of differences between the Arab lobby and the Israeli lobby according to Mitchell Bard. In general the Arab lobby "suffers from a very negative image and Israel enjoys a very positive image." In terms of activities "the Arab lobby almost always lobbies negatively; i.e., against pro-Israel legislation rather than for pro-Arab legislation." Also, the Arab lobby, unlikely the Israeli lobby, makes use of paid foreign agents "Pro-Arab U.S. government officials can look forward to lucrative positions as lobbyists, spokesmen, and consultants for the Arab cause."
Public opinion polls also show both greater suspicions of the Arab lobby ("polls indicate the public sees the Arab lobby as more of a threat than the Israeli lobby") and less overall effectiveness ("Israel varied between 32 and 64 percent, averaging 46 percent, while sympathy for the Arabs has oscillated between 1 and 30 percent and averaged only 12 percent.").
Harry Truman famously said to Paul Porter, an appointed ambassador to the Arab-Israeli peace talks in Geneva in 1948:
- "I won't tell you what to do or how to vote, but I will only say this. In all of my political experience, I don't ever recall the Arab vote swinging a close election."
Noted Lobbyists
- J. William Fulbright, former Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee .
- Fred Dutton, former Assistant Secretary for Legislative Affairs and special assistant to President John F. Kennedy.
- Clark Clifford, former Defense Secretary under President Lyndon Johnson.
- Richard Kleindienst, former Attorney General under President Richard Nixon.
- William Rogers, former Secretary of State under President Richard Nixon.
See also
References
- ^ "The Israeli and Arab Lobbies", Mitchell Bard, Jewish Virtual Library, published 2006, accessed August 26 2006.
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