{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://lawler.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=1099", "U.S. REPS. LAWLER AND TORRES SUCCESSFULLY PASS BILL TO CREATE SPECIAL ENVOY FOR ABRAHAM ACCORDS THROUGH BOTH CHAMBERS OF CONGRESS; HEADING TO PRESIDENT BIDEN'S DESK", "2023-12-14", "2023", "2023-12", "Republican", "House", "NY", "Michael Lawler", "L000599", "lawler.house.gov", "lawler", "https://lawler.house.gov/news/documentquery.aspx?DocumentTypeID=27", "scraper", "Today, a bill to create a new position at the State Department, a Special Presidential Envoy for the Abraham Accords, passed in the House of Representatives. The bill was introduced by U.S. Representatives Mike Lawler (NY-17) and Ritchie Torres (NY-15) and passed Congress through the National Defense Authorization Act of 2024 (NDAA).\n\nOnce signed by President Biden, the legislation will require the State Department to establish an ambassador-level Special Presidential Envoy for the Abraham Accords \u2013 the landmark U.S.-sanctioned 2020 and 2021 normalization agreements between Israel and Bahrain, UAE, Morocco, and Sudan. The Special Envoy would be responsible for coordinating on behalf of the U.S. government with regional ambassadors, nongovernmental organizations, and other stakeholders to strengthen and expand the Accords.\n\n\u201cToday, the House passed the NDAA by a broad bipartisan vote. This year\u2019s NDAA included policy Rep. Torres and I championed to establish the position of Special Presidential Envoy for the Abraham Accords, Negev Forum, and Related Integration and Normalization Fora and Agreements at the State Department. This is a momentous step towards long-term peace in the Middle East,\u201d said Rep. Mike Lawler (NY-17). \u201cIt underscores the United States\u2019 commitment to strengthening and expanding this historic set of agreements that marked the first normalization of relations between Israel and Arab-majority countries in two decades. In establishing this diplomatic envoy, we also increase the prospects of bringing additional partners into the Accords, including Saudi Arabia. This feat is something Rep. Torres and I have been working on all year to achieve. H.R.3099, the Special Envoy for the Abraham Accords Act, was my first bill to pass the House. That bill passed the House 413 to 13. With today\u2019s vote, language establishing a Special Presidential Envoy is on its way to the White House, where President Biden is expected to sign it into law.\u201d\n\n\u201cBuilding a bridge between Israel and the Arab world is neither a Democratic value nor a Republican value -- it is an American value. The Abraham Accords are an affirmation of Arab-Israeli peace and must be protected and strengthened,\u201d said Rep. Ritchie Torres (NY-15). \u201cToday, with the full passage of this bill in the House, we are bending the long arc of the Middle East in its proper direction \u2013 toward peace and prosperity for Jewish people, Christians, and Muslims. And especially at this moment of increased uncertainty about Israel\u2019s future as the war with Hamas rages it, it is more important than ever that we fight to protect Israel\u2019s global standing and partnerships. The U.S.-Israel relationship is sacrosanct, and today\u2019s vote is further proof of that.\u201d\n\nNew York's 17th Congressional District is just north of New York City and contains all or parts of Rockland, Putnam, Dutchess, and Westchester Counties.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:14:16Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://lawler.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=1099"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.9602140635251999, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}