Israel’s Secret Scheme to Skirt US Laws and Influence American Politics

 

Leaked documents have revealed that Israeli government officials, along with Zionist lobby groups, actively sought legal advice to circumvent U.S. regulations under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) in their efforts to influence American elections and push anti-constitutional legislation.

According to a joint investigation by The Guardian, Lee Fang, and Jack Poulson, Israel consulted with legal experts, including former Democratic National Committee counsel Joseph E. Sandler and FARA specialist Joshua I. Rosenstein. They advised creating a U.S.-based nonprofit to avoid registering as foreign agents. Liat Glazer, a legal adviser to Israel’s Strategic Affairs Ministry, emphasized that while the nonprofit would not operate officially from Israel, it would still receive oversight through “informal coordination mechanisms.”

In a scheme aimed at avoiding U.S. regulations under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), a legal adviser to Israel’s Strategic Affairs Ministry, Liat Glazer, emphasized that the proposed U.S.-based nonprofit would not be officially operated from Israel. However, despite the formal separation, the nonprofit would still receive oversight and management from Israeli officials through “informal coordination mechanisms,” ensuring that Israel’s influence efforts in the U.S. could continue without triggering the requirements for foreign agent registration.

Israeli concerns about the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) intensified after Donald Trump took office in 2016, as the act was increasingly enforced during the Russiagate investigation. Officials in Tel Aviv recognized that FARA’s application was extending beyond adversaries to include U.S. allies. This concern was heightened when Thomas Barrack, a close associate of Trump and head of his inaugural committee, was accused of acting as a foreign agent for the United Arab Emirates, although he was eventually cleared of those charges.

While the influence of the pro-Israel lobby, like AIPAC, in swaying U.S. elected officials is widely recognized and often openly touted, the Israeli government’s covert operations in the U.S. remain far more clandestine.   (more...)

Israel’s Secret Scheme to Skirt US Laws and Influence American Politics