Eliot Engel

Engel Talks Israel, a Lot

Posted by Graham Kates

For someone who’s the chairman of the Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, Eliot Engel sure talks about Israel and the Middle East a lot.

Engel is Jewish, but that’s not the only reason he’s one of Congress’ strongest proponents of Israel. His district is among the most heavily Jewish in the United States. Rockland has the highest percentage of Jews of any county in the country. Westchester has the 11th highest percentage, and the Bronx is in the top thirty.

Consider his last few days:

“The US – Israel relationship remains strong. It doesn’t mean that from time to time there won’t be differences of opinion. It doesn’t mean that the relationship is ruptured. Israel and the US share so may common interests. I know that the Obama administration is doing a lot of positive things toward Israel.”

None of this is particularly groundbreaking. Israel and the U.S. do have a strong relationship. The Obama administration certainly would prefer that Iran not have nuclear weapons, and yes, New York does have the best Jewish delis (take that Connecticut). So why is someone who’s most important congressional job has nothing to do with the Middle East, always talking about it? It could be that he just feels really strongly about it, but I think the more likely reason is that he wants his Jewish constituents to know he is with them on Middle East policy.

Engel Expects Reconciliation

Posted by Graham Kates

With his own reelection all but certain this year, Eliot Engel is free to focus on the Democratic party’s big campaign picture.

Engel thinks “the likelihood is quite good” that Congress will pursue reconciliation in an effort to get its stalled Health Bill to President Obama’s desk. With the loss of the Democratic “super-majority” (by way of Scott Brown’s special election victory last month), passage of the controversial bill suddenly became a complex matter.

According to the New York Times, since reconciliation is reserved for budgetary matters, House and Senate Democrats have…

concluded that the only way to overhaul health care, in a comprehensive way, was by pursuing a complex two-bill strategy.

First, in negotiations with the Senate and the White House, they would agree on changes to the Senate bill. These changes would be incorporated in a separate “budget reconciliation” bill. The House and then the Senate would pass the budget bill. The House would pass the Senate health bill. The two measures would be presented to the president at about the same time.

Democrats Ask, Can Health Care Bill Be Saved?

Despite the protestations of Republicans, reconciliation makes a lot of sense for a Democratic party concerned with mid-term elections. While Republicans are set to hammer the majority party for pushing through legislation they say is unpopular, it would be more damaging for Democrats to approach November as the party that can’t get anything passed.

Engel and other supporters of reconciliation know that it’s tough to rev up the “get out the vote” machine, when your platform is “we’ll keep trying to get something done.”