WASHINGTON (JTA) — A U.S. House of Representatives resolution hailing George Mitchell’s "aggressive" engagement as special Mideast envoy has strong Jewish caucus support.
Eight of the 31 co-sponsors of the resolution reaching the House floor on Wednesday are Jewish, including Reps. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.), Susan Davis (D-Calif.), Bob Filner (D-Calif.), Barney Frank (D-Mass.), Jared Polis (D-Colo.) Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and John Yarmuth (D-Ky.) – a quarter of the 32 Jews in the House.
The language strongly favors "aggressive" U.S. engagement toward achieving a two-state solution and sustaining the cease-fire that ended Israel’s military operation against Hamas in the Gaza Strip last month.
The non-binding resolution "calls on the international community to aggressively pursue efforts that facilitate a just and lasting resolution of these conflicts."
It also congratulates Mitchell, a former U.S. senator from Maine, on his appointment and says that his previous foray in the region – a 2001 report that called for a settlement freeze and a crackdown on Palestinian terrorism – was "well-received."
The resolution was authored in the office of Rep. Bill Delahunt (D-Mass.).
