After an exhausting election season rife with dizzying electoral math and threats to democracy, the House of Representatives is gearing up for yet another round of electoral tug of war over its vacant committee chairmanships, including an election next week for House Foreign Affairs Committee (HFAC). After hawkish, anti-Palestinian rights stalwart Rep. Eliot Engel lost his election to a rising star progressive, the House Democratic Caucus will likely vote a mainstream hawk into this consequential position on the basis of seniority and political patronage rather than consulting the public mandate—but a coalition of progressive community and movement-based groups are insisting instead on advancing an anti-militarism agenda to put the justice visions of those impacted by the violence of U.S. foreign policy at the center of the debate.
Democratic House leadership has shown itself either shockingly oblivious or stubbornly resistant to the obvious shift by the electorate into more progressive policy directions, even in the face of the unfathomable loss of Democratic representation in the general election just gone by. Electing the new HFAC Chair will occur behind that wall of resistance, but it nevertheless presents an opportunity for House Democrats to auto-correct if politically savvy members will grasp the reality of the people’s push towards a progressive vision. One of the candidates for the Chair, Rep. Joaquin Castro (TX-20), is clearly distinguishing himself from the other contenders by adopting truly progressive policies, including on Palestinian rights, and activists can make an impact by urging their members to support his bid.
The 2020 election opened a pathway to significantly alter the aims and means of U.S. foreign policy during a new administration, but we must not be lulled in this moment into being content at simply rebooting tired, destructive policies from the Obama and Clinton administrations. We’ve faced four years of exhausting, demeaning, dangerous, and retrogressive policy. It would be an incalculable mistake and misjudgment to simply seek solace on familiar roads. The dozens of new representatives who are open to change can join Rep. Castro and other progressive incumbents to lift us to something new and better; not return us to Democratic establishment “normalcy”, but to a reimagining of the ways our country, with its history of racism, wars, and colonialism, views and interacts with the world. The timely vacancy in the HFAC Chair opens a window for advancing this new paradigm that insists on justice.
Rep. Castro will vie with two other candidates, Rep. Brad Sherman (CA-30) and Rep. Gregory Meeks (NY-5), who are both clearly candidates of the status quo: endless wars, rampant militarization with its massive profits for the few, and the propensity to settle conflict with violence; for instance Rep. Meeks has an anti-labor, anti-environmental justice record and has collaborated with right-wing leaders in Colombia responsible for murdering journalists and labor leaders. In contrast, Castro has broadcast his intent to alter the scope of the HFAC Chair to incorporate vigorous diplomacy with human rights advocacy. He has consulted with grassroots organizations and earned the endorsement of major progressive groups from Sunrise Movement to Justice Democrats for championing a robust foreign policy built on the principles of community, compassion, and justice, meaning a pivot towards “military restraint, multilateral cooperation, and people-first policy.” Importantly, Castro personally embodies the national interest in bringing immigration concerns to the forefront of his foreign policy agenda. He has continuously affirmed and championed the human rights of migrants, asylum seekers, immigrant communities, even leading congressional delegations to detention centers to hear directly from those incarcerated.
Castro further distinguishes himself in one of the most urgent foreign policy issues before us: Palestinian rights and ending U.S. support for Israel’s human rights abuses. After four years of Trump collaborating with his Zionist, primarily Christian Zionist, henchmen to consummate an idealized settler colonialist agenda, and with a new executive branch staunchly supporting Israel, any chance to reverse some of Trump’s actions will likely have to originate in the Congress. Early in his legislative career, we would not have looked to Castro for leadership here. Some of his votes in past years have been unhelpful, to be as charitable as possible, but his recent actions distinguish him from the other candidates, like signing bold “Dear Colleague” letters in March and last week to end U.S. complicity in Israeli’s ‘creeping annexation’ of demolishing Palestinian homes. Alone among the candidates and rare among Congressional leadership, Castro has courageously opened the door to consider new ways forward in this situation that include seeking and listening to the voices of the people most affected, Palestinians themselves.
Noura Erekat recently posited that there may be two opportunities provided by a Biden administration, even after the horrors of the last four years. One is time to breathe, to create a new fresh strategy to move forward, and to support and encourage the growing Palestinian popular liberation movement. This includes a role for international solidarity, which is where her second opportunity arises, to “strengthen a progressive insurgency within the Democratic Party that is committed to social, economic and racial justice and is critical of U.S. foreign policy, including on Israel.” Although Castro is hardly—yet—an icon of progressivism, his actions show us that he watches and listens, that he is adaptable, and that he is reading the signs from an electorate ready for change. Indeed, the very vacancy of the HFAC Chair is a result of voters dismissing the longtime hawkish representative who held that chair in favor of the new vision of Rep.-Elect Jamaal Bowman. It appears Castro took the cue. If there is to be hope or change towards justice from a Biden administration, we must be flexible enough to consider present actions more than past records and to encourage those who are willing to dare. Voters can ask no more and should not accept less.
Thank you!!
A very interesting and uplifting article!!
As a resident of San Antonio, I’m so glad to see this piece, which offers both hope and strategy for moving ahead in Congress. A particular shout-out to Harry Gunkel and other San Antonio activists for working with Castro over the years to enable this moment of receptivity to Palestinian voices.
I welcome Rep. Castro’s voice to this debate. What we need is a DEBATE! Let’s be done with the too expensive rubber stamp “Approved By Israel”.
Biden will have 2 years to save the Congress from complete Republican control. If he begins, at least, to reach out to the progressive wing of the Democratic wing of the Party, he has a chance of reversing what has been (with the exception of only two occasions in the last 78 years) our history of seeing the opposition party to that of the president make gains in the Congress in the mid terms. The Dems are hanging by a thread in the House and, at best, will have a 50-50 tie in the Senate (more likely, it will be a 51-49 or 52-48 deficit). If they don’t start to reconnect with the Democratic base by adopting some of the more popular policies of the progressive wing, Biden will have a presidency in name only for his last two years in office. This, in turn, will open the door for another Republican president, with control of both houses of Congress, in 2024. Heaven forbid!!
One of the ways he can do this, as the article makes clear, is to adopt a more compassionate foreign policy, respectful of international law and human rights, including those of the Palestinian people. Using his power as president to install Castro as HFAC head – as well as selecting cabinet members, particularly Secretary of State, who embody this progressive approach to international relations – will go a long way towards energizing the progressive base and maximize the Party’s chances of holding on to power.
Here the rubber is on the road. Wonder what percent of those who believe in Palestinian rights will pick up their phone and use this opportunity to rattle the party cage?.