Senate Republican leaders have made their first piece of proposed legislation -- literally, S.1 -- an attempt to pass into law the highly controversial “Combating BDS Act.” The bill tramples on First Amendment rights, extends US legal protections to Israeli settlements in the West Bank and harms the long-term interests of Israel.

Infringing on freedom of speech is un-American -- and does nothing to advance the true interests of Israel, the United States or the American Jewish community. Extending special US legal protections to the settlement movement only undermines the prospects for a peaceful two-state solution.

J Street is absolutely clear about our opposition to the Global BDS Movement and about our belief that this legislation is misguided and the wrong way to counter it.