A bipartisan group of U.S. senators and congressmen has requested $2 million in appropriations for the U.S.-Israel Energy Cooperation Program in the 2013 federal budget. The 44 signatories to the effort included 34 congressmen and 10 senators, the highest number since the program was created in 2008. The appropriations request was led by Reps. Brad Sherman (D-Calif.), Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.), Robert Dold (R-Ill.) and Aaron Schock (R-Ill.), along with Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) and Ron …More

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke with U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk, who is recovering from a stroke. "The two discussed issues related to Iran and the urgent need for tougher sanctions," said a statement Monday from the office of Kirk (R-Ill.), who helped shape the most recent sanctions targeting Iran's finance and energy sectors. "They agreed to remain in close contact on issues of mutual concern," the statement said. Kirk suffered a stroke in January. …More

A mostly Republican slate of 89 members of the U.S. House of Representatives sent a letter to President Obama urging him to fully enforce sanctions on Iran’s Central Bank. The letter sent Thursday, first reported by the Weekly Standard, was signed by 85 Republicans and four Democrats who emphasized that the president cannot view these sanctions as “advisory only.”   Sanctions on Iran’s Central Bank were approved by the U.S. Senate as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization …More

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee and the American Jewish Committee both wrote to the US government in support of tougher sanctions on Iran’s Central Bank. Last week, the Senate unanimously voted for an amendment by Senators Mark Kirk and Bob Menendez that would add the sanctions to a broader defense bill. House and Senate negotiators are currently meeting to produce a final version of the legislation for President Barack Obama to sign. Obama’s administration is pushing for substantive …More

Three U.S. senators urged the body's appropriators to maintain funding for a cooperative agreement with Israel that develops energy alternatives. "We understand that you are facing a difficult budget environment, which forces you to make difficult choices," Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) wrote in the letter sent Wednesday to the top Democrat and Republican on the Appropriations Committee energy subcommittee. "We believe that this is an investment worth maintaining -- …More