Sen. William B. Saxbe (R.Ohio) described as “ridiculous” legislation calling on the Soviet Union to modify its emigration policy in return for trade concessions from the United States. The Senator, who favored this legislation four months ago, told newsmen here several days ago that “if Zionist Jews believe that we are going to fight to the last drop of the farmers’ blood. I am not going to be part of it.”
Speaking at a news conference after a week’s stay in the Soviet Union, Saxbe declared: “If we set up a lot of artificial barriers” to Soviet-American trade “someone else could come along and say, well, okay, you have let the Jews go so now we won’t sell any wheat unless you let the Baptists go. There are a lot of Baptists over there (In the Soviet Union) that want out.”
The legislation Saxbe referred to as ridiculous is that proposed by Henry M. Jackson, Wilbur Mills and Charles A. Vanik which calls on the U.S. government to withhold credits and most favored nation status as long as the Soviet government continues its restrictive emigration practices against Jews and other citizens seeking to emigrate. Last Oct. he was one of the sponsors of the Jackson amendment to the East-West Trade-Act.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
