Two Biden administration officials who resigned in protest over federal policy on Israel and the Gaza Strip launched an advocacy effort Wednesday to "seek change in U.S. policy towards the Middle East."
By creating both a lobbying arm and a political action committee, co-founders Josh Paul and Tariq Habash say their project, including A New Policy and its companion A New Policy PAC, aims to better "represent the majority of Americans" who disagree with the government's approach to Israel-Palestine as well as the broader Middle East.
Paul, who spent 11 years as director of congressional and public affairs for the U.S. State Department's Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, resigned last October, and Habash, a Palestinian American who served as a policy adviser in the Education Department's Office of Planning, Evaluation, and Policy Development, left his post in January.
"The past year has shown us just how deeply damaging our policy in the Middle East is—to the region, and to America," Paul said in a statement. "We've spent billions of taxpayer dollars while sacrificing national interests and global credibility, the safety of all people in the region has been compromised while Palestinians, in Gaza in particular, endure immeasurable suffering, and now we're on the brink of a regional war."
While U.S.-armed Israeli forces initially responded to the Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023 with a devastating assault on Gaza, which the Palestinian group has governed for nearly two decades, Israel has also killed at least 2,350 people in Lebanon over the past year, many of them with recent intensified bombings and a ground invasion.
"More than a policy problem, we have a political problem and until we address the politics, we won't make significant headway on the policy issues," asserted Paul, the first of several officials who have publicly resigned since last October. "A New Policy recognizes this dynamic, and is designed to address it head-on."
A New Policy—whose incoming board of directors includes former U.S. Ambassador to Syria and Algeria Robert Ford and corporate executive Jaleh Bisharat—plans to focus on "relationship-driven, policy-oriented lobbying" while the PAC "will direct financial support to political campaigns."
As the statement detailed, the groups are launching with the belief that U.S. policy toward Israel and Palestine should:
- Advance American national security and foreign policy interests in the Middle East, and should contribute to peace and prosperity for all Americans;
- Reflect American values in our policy towards the Middle East, including freedom, equality, and human rights, and should enhance the health, security, welfare, and prosperity of all peoples; and
- Comply with American and international law, including laws, regulations, and policies governing the transfer of arms equally to all countries in the Middle East, including Israel.
Additionally, "A New Policy will work to oppose the enactment of laws or issuance of policies that run counter to American domestic interests," the statement said, pointing to "recent efforts to repress free speech, to prevent accountability, and to limit Americans' abilities to exercise their constitutional freedoms."
As HuffPostreported Wednesday:
The decision to launch A New Policy just weeks before the U.S. election is not lost on the former officials, who said they felt it was important to avoid appearing as if they formed the group in response to whoever wins the presidential race.
"Our effort, I think, transcends this one election, right? It is more than just what’s happening in November. This is an issue that continues to undermine our own national interests and our American values in a way that is dangerous in the long term," Habash said, with Paul echoing that the issue will persist regardless of who becomes president.
Early voting is already underway for the November 5 election. The contest for the White House is between former Republican President Donald Trump and Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris, who became the party's nominee after President Joe Biden exited the race this summer.
During the Democratic primary, when Biden was still the presumed candidate, the Uncommitted National Movement formed to pressure the president to push harder for a cease-fire and stop giving Israel weapons to commit genocide. The movement said last month that although it cannot endorse Harris, it opposes the Republican, "whose agenda includes plans to accelerate the killing in Gaza while intensifying the suppression of anti-war organizing," and does not recommend a third-party vote, which "could help inadvertently deliver a Trump presidency given our country's broken Electoral College system."
The launch of A New Policy and its related PAC came just a day after reporters revealed a Sunday letter in which the Biden administration finally threatened to cut off weapons unless Israel takes certain actions to improve conditions in Gaza within 30 days. Critics of the Israeli assault responded by renewing calls for halting arms immediately, pointing over a year's worth of proof of war crimes.
As of Wednesday, officials in Gaza put the confirmed death toll at 42,409, with 99,153 others injured, though thousands more remain missing. The carnage has led to a South Africa-led genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice.
"This past year has brought unimaginable pain and suffering to Palestinians in Gaza. For decades, elected officials have compromised American interests in favor of funding Israel's continued oppression of Palestinians," said Habash. "American voters are clear: They do not want to be complicit in this humanitarian catastrophe and a majority want an end to the transfer of lethal weapons that are used to kill Palestinian civilians. Elected officials have not kept up with the sea change in public opinion and A New Policy will work to close this gap."
