INSIDE WASHINGTON
Did U. S. Raise Ante
In Loan-Promise Game?
Orthodox Union Presses
For Fuel Economy Moves
I
If the Union of Orthodox
Jewish Congregations of
America has its way, Ameri-
can Jews will take the lead
in giving up their gas-
guzzlers as the nation begins
to deal with yet another
energy crisis.
Actually, the OU an-
nounced its six-point energy
proposal last November,
when Americans were still
basking in the luxury of
plentiful, relatively inex-
pensive oil.
But the current crisis in
the Persian Gulf has led the
big Orthodox group to step
up its efforts, according to
William E. Rapfogel, direc-
tor of the OU's Institute for
Public Affairs.
"We think it's very impor-
tant to increase corporate
fuel economy standards,
which were weakened under
sraeli Foreign Minister
David Levy got part of
what he came for in
Washington last week. But
after a meeting with Secre-
tary of State James Baker
that one insider described as
"more productive than ex-
pected," the administration
continued to cling to its
major card — the $400 mill-
ion in housing loan guar-
antees, voted by Congress
but held up by the ad-
ministration as a bargaining
chip in its dealings with
Israel.
Reportedly, the two
leaders made progress in
resolving the issue of the
bottled-up housing loans.
But in a private meeting
with a select group of Con-
gressmen, Levy expressed
frustration over the issue.
Levy told the legislators
that he had offered Baker
assurances that none of the
loan money would be used to
settle Soviet Jews in the ter-
ritories — but that now, the
administration was upping
the ante and seeking more in
David Levy:
Expressed frustration.
return for putting its final
seal of approval on the deal.
Push To Forgive Israel
Debt Causes Backlash
If the Levy-Baker meeting
produced warm feelings
among Israel's supporters
here, the prospect of the up-
coming visit by finance min-
ister Yitzhak Modai is pro-
ducing a chillier reaction.
Modai angered many pro-
Israel activists on Capitol
ly, with sensitivity; Modai
just gave some good am-
munition to the people who
will be opposed to this."
Debt forgiveness must be
approved by Congress.
Despite earlier reports sug-
gesting that a cancellation of
Egypt's debt was almost cer-
tain, congressional sources
indicate that legislators are
already taking a second look
at the administration pro-
posal.
Mr. Modai's agenda will
reportedly include both the
debt issue and the unresolv-
ed question of Israel's $400
million in housing loan
guarantees.
Rep. Yates Blocking
Wiesenthal Project
Yitzhak Modai:
Coming on too strong?
Hill with his recent com-
ments insisting that the
United States was honor-
bound to forgive Israel's
military debt, since it was in
the process of letting Egypt
off the hook for more than $7
billion as a way of saying
"thanks" for Hosni Muba-
rak's help in the Saudi
deserts.
Congressional observers
consider the prospect of
canceling Israel's debt a •
longshot in the face of the
current budget crisis. Mr.
Modai's comments may have
increased those odds.
"It's an incredibly sen-
sitive area," said an aide to a
Democratic legislator. "This
is an issue you discuss quiet-
It was smooth sailing in
Congress for the measure to
provide $5 million to the
Simon Wiesenthal Center
for a major holocaust edu-
cation project. Smooth sail-
ing, that is, until Rep.
Sidney Yates (D-Ill.) stepped
into the picture.
The bills authorizing the
money passed both houses of
Congress earlier this year
with barely a peep of protest.
But the Wiesenthal Center
still needed an appropria-
tions bill to actually allocate
the money, which would be
used for the group's
"Museum of Tolerance" in
Los Angeles, and in par-
ticular for a Holocaust edu-
cation project associated
with the museum.
And that's where Rep.
Yates stepped in.
As chairman of a crucial
appropriations subcom-
mittee, Mr. Yates has the
ability to bottle up the
money bill. Mr. Yates, the
"dean" of the Jewish delega-
tion on Capitol Hill, makes
no secret that he intends to
do just that.
A spokesperson for Rep.
Yates confirmed that the
veteran legislator is staun-
chly opposed to the Wiesen-
thal Center grant — and
that he would stick to his
guns, despite considerable
input from Wiesenthal
Center supporters in his Il-
linois district, as well as col-
leagues in Congress.
"His position is simple,"
the Yates aide said. "He's
against it; he believes that
the Holocaust Museum here
in Washington should be the
national museum."
In a letter to Samuel
Belzberg, a top Wiesenthal
Center supporter, Yates was
more explicit. He insisted
that "the U.S. Holocaust
Memorial Council was the
only agency designated na-
tionally to commemorate the
Holocaust, and while the
Center was a most active
organization engaged in a
number of important ac-
tivities on the West Coast, I
believed direct federal ap-
propriations should be made
only to the Council."
The dispute is just the
most visible sign of a
longstanding feud over fed-
eral funding between the
Wiesenthal Center and some
supporters of the U.S. Holo-
caust Memorial Museum,
the massive facility now
under construction.
the Reagan administration,"
Mr. Rapfogel said. "It's
obscene that the United
States has permitted auto
manufacturers to produce
gas-guzzlers. It puts us in a
horrifying position. And
when we're behind the eight-
ball that way, we come out
as losers — as Americans,
and as Jews concerned about
Middle East policy."
Mr. Rapfogel's group is
pressing for tightened fuel
economy standards, and for
more research and develop-
ment into energy-saving
technologies.
Mr.Rapfogel also urged the
government to avoid the po-
litically attractive option of
tapping the strategic pet-
roleum reserve — a step
some have suggested as a
quick fix for the steep in-
crease in gas prices.
Jewish Groups Back
1990 Civil Rights Bill
The Civil Rights Act of
1990, one of the hottest
issues on Capitol Hill, is ap-
parently generating some
heat in the Jewish grass
roots, as well.
According to represent-
atives of several Jewish
groups, local activists across
the country have been
galvanized by the legisla-
tion, which seeks to overturn
a series of recent Supreme
Court decisions that made it
harder for employees to pro-
ve discrimination cases
against their employers. The
bill is now awaiting a House-
Senate conference — and a
possible presidential veto.
"We've taken the lead in
putting together a coalition
of organizations represent-
ing a number of different
communities in support of
this bill," said Jeff Wein-
traub, assistant area direc-
tor of the American Jewish
Committee's regional office
in Chicago. "This includes a
number of African-American
organizations, several
Asian-American organiza-
tions, women's and civil
rights groups."
The Jewish groups bring a
special quality to this mix,
Mr. Weintraub said. "We
have traditionally been
opposed to quotas. What
we're putting into the coali-
tion here in Chicago is added
credibility for the idea that
this is definitely not a quota
bill."
Opponents of the bill have
asserted that it would lead to
an informal system of quotas
as employers strive to avoid
costly legal action.
Will Superpowers Look
Next At Israel's Puzzle?
Officially, Israeli diplo-
mats and their American
supporters remain confident
that the Persian Gulf crisis
will ultimately strengthen
U.S.-Israeli ties.
But unofficially, there is
barely contained panic about
the surprising
breakthroughs in interna-
tional cooperation ham-
mered out by President
George Bush — and in par-
ticular, about the prospect
that the newly allied super-
powers may turn their sights
next to the Arab-Israeli con-
flict.
Last week's summit in
Helsinki only added to
Israeli worries about a "new
international order," a
phrase now in vogue at the
State Department.
"The Israelis have good
reason to worry," said a
leading pro-Israel activist.
Israel's supporters in Con-
gress likewise see some
dangers. CI
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
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