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With so much discussion of the powerful pro-Israel lobby's impacts on American foreign policy in the Middle East, little attention is paid to the pro-Arab groups in Washington, DC. While appreciating the strength of the former, this paper attempts to outline how the latter try to shape American policy on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. From research conducted with assistance from the American Political Science Association's Centennial Center, I look at pro-Arab political action in three overlapping settings. First, I contrast pro-Arab efforts with those of the pro-Israel lobby, particularly the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. I ask, why are pro-Arab groups weak compared to the pro-Israel lobby? Second, I look at pro-Palestinian efforts within the larger pro-Arab lobbying background. In particular, I am interested in contrasting similarities and differences between the pro-Palestinian and pro-Arab organizational missions. Third, I examine the interaction between the pro-Arab networks and American policy. From interviews conducted with leaders of pro-Arab organizations in Washington DC, this paper inspects the efforts to influence American foreign policy toward the two-state solution in the post-Cold War world and during the war on terrorism. I find that while pro-Arab lobbying pales in comparison to those of the pro-Israel lobby, the end of the Cold-War, the current war on terrorism, and clear American and international support for the two-state solution as manifested by public opinion polls, policymakers' statements, and United Nations Security Council Resolutions 1397 and 1515, provide the pro-Arab lobby with a crucial opportunity to realize its vision of Palestinian statehood. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

American Responses to Israeli Foreign Policy InitiativesThe origin of the US-Israeli relationship can be found in President Harry S. Truman's support for the new state of Israel on May 14, 1948. While support to Israel has varied during presidential administrations from Dwight D. Eisenhower to George W. Bush, strategic interests have steadily defined the nation's responses to Israel. Important works in the literature delve deeply and in detail to describe the US-Israeli relationship (Quandt 2005, Spiegel 1985; Oren 2007, 2002). The literature, however, does not rely on empirical studies to try to explain what causes positive or negative US responses to Israeli foreign policy initiatives. Empirical research measuring US responses to Israeli foreign policy initiatives can lead to understanding of US foreign policy in the Middle East and Israel; and such knowledge serves the public interest. In order to measure US reaction to Israel, this empirical study conducts a content analysis on US statements published in the New York Times following four Israeli military initiatives: the 1967 Six-Day War, the 1976 Raid on Entebbe, the 1981 Raid on Osirak, and the 2006 Lebanon War. The research reveals that the US reacts more positively to Israeli reactive than to anticipatory and preemptive self-defensive actions. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]