May 21, 2001 Vol. 3, No. 14

This Week in Washington...

For more information, contact Reva Price, Washington Representative at rprice@thejcpa.org

For more information, contact Reva Price, Washington Representative at rprice@thejcpa.org

The Report Is In: The "Mitchell Report" which deals with the crisis in Israeli-Palestinian relations, was presented to Secretary of State Colin Powell earlier today. The Secretary noted that "We believe that both sides should give every consideration, the most serious consideration to the committee’s recommendations. And it is in that spirit that we endorse the report." The Secretary continued, "The United States calls on both sides to address the committee’s primary recommendations by reaffirming their commitment to existing agreements and undertakings, immediately implementing an unconditional cessation of violence and resume security cooperation. In this context, we note the report’s reference to the need for the Palestinians to make an all-out effort to enforce a complete cessation of violence." You can find a full transcript of Secretary Powell’s comments as well as the report at www.washingtonpost.com. JCPA previously sent out an analysis of the report prepared by the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, an editorial from the Chicago Sun-Times that criticized the report for failing to assign primary responsibility for the violence to Arafat and the Palestinians, and an article quoting a letter from former senators George Mitchell and Warren Rudman to the ADL denying that the report links Israeli settlements with Palestinian violence.

We Are United: The Jewish community has united to sign a statement calling for Moral Reflection on Energy Policy. Coordinated by COEJL, the Coalition on the Environment in Jewish Life, the open letter to the President, Congress and the American People was signed by 39 religious leaders and urges that all Americans "reflect carefully and speak clearly from their deepest moral and religious convictions about the President’s recently announced energy plan." The letter suggests that "conservation is a personal and a public virtue – a comprehensive moral value" and outlines five major values: stewardship, intergenerational responsibility, justice, prudent human action and global leadership." The letter notes that "We pray that the wisdom, faith, and solidarity of the American people will bring us together – at this critical juncture – to redirect our national energy policy toward conservation, efficiency, justice and maximum use of the perennial abundance of clean and renewable energy that our Creator brought into being by proclaiming, ‘let there be light." Signatories include the Orthodox Union, Rabbinical Council, HUC, JCPA, United Synagogue, Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association, Central Conference of American Rabbis, the Rabbinical Assembly, Yeshiva University, Jewish Theological Seminary, Jewish Reconstructionist Federation, Aleph: Alliance for Jewish Renewal, Reconstructionist Rabbinical College and the Union of American Hebrew Congregations.

Don’t forget the Kids! Wednesday, May 23, Senator Dodd (CT) and Representative Miller (CA) will introduce a comprehensive children’s bill entitled the Act to Leave No Child Behind. Supported by many JCPA child-care advocate coalition partners such as the Children's Defense Fund, the bill focuses on a series of initiatives intended to deliver children from poverty, violence and neglect. The provisions include: expanding child healthcare and early childhood development programs like Head Start; increasing the number of section-8 public housing vouchers; increasing federal support for services to prevent child abuse; requiring mandatory safety locks with the sale of handguns; and increasing investment in delinquency prevention initiatives. There will be local events in support of the bill across the country in the next few months, and we will keep you informed of their locations as we get the information.

Here and There on Capitol Hill: The Senate will continue its work on their education bill this week and the House will begin their debate. Both Houses are expected to see amendments in support of vouchers and voucher- like programs in the next few days. Senate leaders would like to finish their work before they recess for Memorial Day however with work to continue on the tax cut proposal, the likelihood of completion is unclear. Congressman Souder's (IN) House Government Reform Subcommittee will hold a hearing this week to focus on drug treatment and Charitable Choice. This is the second in an expected series of five hearings the Committee will hold on this issue. It looks like the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Charitable Choice, postponed earlier this month, has now been scheduled for June 6^th. Senator Brownback (KS) chairman of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration will hold a hearing on immigration policy as it relates to rural and urban health care needs. The House Science Committee will hold a hearing on improving voting technology and The Terrorism Oversight Panel of the House Armed Services Committee chaired by Representative Saxton will hold a hearing on patterns of global terrorism and terrorist threats to the homeland. The Senate International Operations and Terrorism Subcommittee chaired by Senator Allen (VA) will hold a hearing on the UN Human Rights Commission in light of the vote earlier this month that excluded the US from having a seat at the table and the House International Relations Committee will hold a hearing on the State Department’s annual report of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom.

This Week in New York…

For more information, contact Ethan Felson, Assistant Executive Director; Director, Domestic Concerns at EFelson@TheJCPA.org

It’s that time of year - the JCPA office is hearing about plans for graduation prayers in numerous communities. Here’s a primer on the relevant caselaw: Prayers delivered by clergy at public school graduations, even if voluntary or nondenominational, were ruled unconstitutional in Lee v. Weisman (1992). In last year’s Santa Fe v. Doe decision, the Supreme Court ruled unconstitutional a school policy permitting an elected student representative to give a prayer at a high school football game. The Court sent a clear message: if a public school appears to support or endorse a religious message - for example by allowing a prayer over its public address system, in a school building, at an event it has organized or sponsored - a court is likely to find that prayer violates the separation of church and state. It is therefore questionable whether a prayer at a school’s graduation ceremony would be constitutional because the circumstances of such an event, such as location and sponsorship, make it very difficult for schools to escape the impression that they are endorsing the prayer. A very recent 11^th Circuit decision, however, suggests that student initiated and led messages may be permissible where school officials have absolutely no role. Stay tuned. . .