NOVANEWS
A map showing Islamic State ambition is displayed as US Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel (L) and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey testify during the Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on US policy toward Iraq and Syria and the threat posed by the Islamic State on Capitol Hill in Washington, Sept. 16, 2014. (photo by REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque)
In 2014, the rise of the Islamic State (IS) and the diplomatic dance with Iran dominated Congress while the civil war in Syria entered its fourth year.
The White House pulled out all the stops early in the year to prevent lawmakers from passing new sanctions legislation that the administration worried could scupper the nuclear talks. Labeling sanctions champions as warmongers may have bought negotiators some time, but their failure to reach a deal empowers the incoming Republican Senate to put its stamp on the talks in 2015.
Worries that Iran was hoodwinking the international community were overshadowed in June by reports that a previously little-known insurgent group had routed the Iraqi army and taken Mosul. While the Obama administration scrambled to build an international coalition to “degrade and defeat” IS, Congress approved a $5 billion plan to bomb militants and train and equip Iraqi and Kurdish forces. Lawmakers also began debate on a new war authorization for Iraq and Syria, but punted off a vote until next year.
Congress also took the first concrete step to empower the so-called moderate Syrian opposition battling President Bashar al-Assad’s forces by approving a $500 million Pentagon plan to train and equip vetted rebels in its year-end spending bill. The vote follows months of increasingly strident criticism of the Obama administration’s reluctance to get involved in the civil war, but comes with one major caveat: The rebels are meant to focus on IS, not Assad.
Lawmakers weighed in on a host of other Middle East issues this past year, including:
The collapse of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks
Congress championed Israel’s right to self defense during this summer’s war in Gaza, approving emergency funding for the Iron Dome missile shield and accusing Hamas of using human shields. Lawmakers also lambasted the unity government with Hamas but cleared a $230 million aid package this fall because it doesn’t directly fund the Palestinian Authority.
The ongoing repression in Egypt
The issue of how to handle the annual $1.3 billion military aid package to Egypt has been one of the most hotly contested foreign policy quandaries behind the scenes on Capitol Hill. In the end, lawmakers decided to impose a series of demands — “free and fair” elections, democratic reforms, the prosecution of human-rights violators — while giving Secretary of State John Kerry the option to ignore all of them for “national security” reasons.
Rising tensions with allies
Lawmakers have also sought to fix strained relations with key allies such as Israel, Saudi Arabia and Jordan. They’ve done so by ruling out any rapprochement with their common rival, Iran, as part of the war against IS while boosting support for Jordan and other countries dealing with an influx of refugees.
Last but not least, 2014 saw the launch of Al-Monitor’s Congress Pulse page dedicated to complete coverage of Capitol Hill. The new Pulse offers readers behind-the-scenes scoops on everything from Hezbollah sanctions to Egypt aid, exclusive interviews with top lawmakers and in-depth coverage of the foreign lobbying shaping US policy.
