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Congress moves to save Trump’s ‘Made in Israel’ labeling policy

“Our bill will defend the integrity of the Jewish State by ensuring that Israeli products may proudly bear the label ‘Made in Israel,'” said Sen. Tom Cotton.

By Josh Plank, World Israel News

Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-NY) is set to introduce a bill on Thursday aimed at stopping the Biden administration from requiring that goods produced in Judea and Samaria be labeled differently than other Israeli products, the Jerusalem Post reported.

The Anti-BDS Labeling Act seeks to continue the policy of the Trump administration that such products be labeled “Made in Israel” and not “Made in West Bank.”

“The Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement is fueling antisemitism in the United States and around the world,” said Tenney.

“The United States must remain steadfast in our support for Israel, which is why I introduced this bill. My legislation defends the integrity of the Jewish State and prohibits the Biden administration from targeting specific goods made in Israel by banning ‘Made in Israel’ country-of-origin labels,” she said.

The bill is cosponsored by Reps. Lee Zeldin (R-NY), Ronny Jackson (R-Texas), Brian Mast (R-Fla.), and Joe Wilson (R-SC).

“This legislation takes important steps to combat anti-Israel and antisemitic boycotts by protecting American companies from being roped into international boycotts targeting Israel and other U.S. allies, and firmly establishing Congress’ position in opposition to the BDS movement,” said Zeldin.

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Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) introduced a similar bill in the Senate on July 27.

“Left-wing activists abuse county-of-origin labels in order to stigmatize products made in Israel. Our bill will defend the integrity of the Jewish State by ensuring that Israeli products may proudly bear the label ‘Made in Israel,'” said Cotton.

The Senate bill was cosponsored by Sens. John Boozman (R-Ark.), Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), and Thom Tillis (R-NC).

“Last year, President Trump dealt a serious blow to the BDS movement when he ended the U.S. government’s discriminatory treatment of Israeli goods produced in Judea and Samaria, and required these imported goods to be labeled as ‘Made in Israel,'” said Hagerty.

In November 2020, the Trump administration created new guidelines that required goods produced in Israeli-controlled areas of Judea and Samaria to be labeled as “Made in Israel.”

In 2016, the Obama administration reinstituted a 1995 Clinton-era policy requiring goods produced in Judea and Samaria to be labeled “Made in West Bank.”

The Clinton administration had changed longstanding U.S. policy by requiring the “Made in West Bank” country-of-origin labels, despite the fact that the U.S. government treats these products as “articles of Israel” for trade purposes.