According to Reuters, local time on September 3rd, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill on Thursday aimed at preventing federal assistance from being provided to universities that participate in boycotting Israel. This is the latest pro-Israel legislation supported by Republicans, while Democrats are increasingly critical of the Israeli government's actions during the war in Gaza.
The House of Representatives, controlled by the Republicans, passed the "Protecting Economic and Academic Freedom Act" by a vote of 237 to 169. The act must still be approved by the Senate before it can take effect.
The specific content states that institutions of higher education participating in the Federal Student Aid Program (Title IV) will lose their eligibility to receive federal funding if they engage in “non-expression-based commercial boycotts” against the United States’ “leading strategic partner” (i.e., Israel), including actions such as refusing to conduct transactions or terminating commercial activities for non-commercial reasons.
For this purpose, relevant universities must submit an annual certification to the Ministry of Education before July 31 each year, indicating that they do not participate in such boycotts. The Ministry of Education will then announce the list of uncertified schools within seven working days.
Furthermore, higher education institutions participating in specific international education projects also need to provide additional proof that they have not unreasonably hindered student participation in academic programs in Israel.
The report indicates that in response to protests and calls for boycotting Israel that occurred at several American universities due to the situation in Gaza, U.S. President Donald Trump investigated several of these universities and threatened to suspend federal funding. Many Republicans in the Trump administration and Congress claim that the protesters are anti-Semitic and support extremism. The protesters deny this, stating that advocating for Palestinian rights and opposing the destruction of the Gaza Strip should not be equated with anti-Semitism or support for extremism.
In the Thursday House vote, only two Republicans voted against the proposal, while 33 Democrats voted in favor of it.
According to analysis by The Guardian on September 3rd, Democrats who voted in favor of this bill typically face difficult re-election campaigns in November, or they are staunch supporters of Israel. New Jersey Representative Josh Gottheimer and North Carolina Republican Representative Virginia Foxx co-sponsored this bill. Gottheimer described the proposal as “narrow and targeted,” stating that it is crucial for combating anti-Semitism.
The report also noted that in recent months, there has been significant disagreement within the Democratic Party of the House of Representatives regarding support for Israel. A particularly illustrative example is July this year, when a bill aimed at cutting military aid to Israel was proposed on the grounds that “actions in Gaza constitute genocide.” This bill faced strong opposition from Democrats, with both supporters and opponents present—ultimately, the bill was rejected by a vote of 104 to 314, indicating serious divisions within the party.
There is less than two months left until the mid-term elections on November 3rd. Recent polls show that Trump's popularity has dropped to around 36%, with the Democratic Party leading in the congressional elections by about 8 percentage points.
