OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
A Republican lawmaker and a legal organization led by former Trump administration officials have filed a lawsuit against the Biden administration, alleging improper taxpayer funding of an organization that potentially funds terrorist activity.
According to the suit led by Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-Texas), the administration has sent nearly a half-billion dollars to the Palestinian Authority without first verifying the territorial government is not supporting terrorists, according to Fox News. The suit is being led by Jackson and America First Legal (AFL), a government watchdog group.
“Joe Biden is breaking the law by allowing our tax dollars to fund terrorism in Israel, and he must be stopped,” said Jackson, a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. “I have deep respect for my fellow plaintiffs who have been tragically and directly impacted by Pay to Slay, and I am proud to be on the same team as we hold this failed administration accountable.”
Fox News notes further: “The law, which is named for Taylor Force, a U.S. Army veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan who was murdered by Palestinian terrorists in 2016, prohibits U.S. economic assistance that benefits the Palestinian Authority unless and until the secretary of state certifies that the group has terminated funding of violent extremism. The law passed Congress with bipartisan support, and President Donald Trump signed it in 2018 as part of a consolidated appropriations bill. The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, names President Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken as defendants for allegedly violating the Taylor Force Act.”
The plaintiffs in the lawsuit include Stuart and Robbi Force, the parents of Taylor Force. Sarri Singer, who survived a 2003 suicide bombing of a bus in Jerusalem that killed 17 people, is also a plaintiff, the outlet reported.
Reed Rubenstein, the AFL’s director of oversight, said that the only relief sought by plaintiffs is to force the Biden administration to comply with federal law.
“We want to enforce accountability and transparency,” Rubenstein told Fox News Digital. “These so-called NGOs are reporting to the Palestinian ruling government. For the administration to try to separate the NGOs from the ruling regime is ludicrous.”
The State Department said in a notification to Congress in March 2021, “The department was unable to certify that the PA, the PLO, and any successor or affiliated organizations have met the requirements of the [Taylor Force Act].”
In October 2022, the State Department once again could not verify to Congress that the PA and previous organizations were not funding terrorism.
Nevertheless, Fox News reported, “in May 2021, Blinken confirmed that more than $360 million in U.S. funding would benefit the Palestinian Authority, largely through Economic Supports Funds, the complaint alleges. It adds that in June 2021, Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas authorized a payment of $42,000 to the family of a terrorist who killed two Israelis.”
Taylor Force’s parents said in a statement: “President Biden and Secretary of State Blinken are dishonoring the memory and legacy of a good man and ignoring the citizens of the United States who understand that taxpayer dollars should not be used to fund the killing of innocent civilians.”
“Our lawsuit seeks to stop President Biden from violating the Taylor Force Act and illegally subsidizing terrorism against Americans who visit or live in Israel,” said AFL president Stephen Miller in a statement.
“The Taylor Force Act is named after Taylor Force, a West Point graduate and U.S. Army veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan who was murdered by a Palestinian terrorist, and it prohibits the government from using U.S. taxpayer dollars to directly benefit the corrupt Palestinian Authority,” Miller continued.
“Nevertheless, since January 2021, the Biden Administration has used over a billion U.S. taxpayer dollars for this illegal purpose. Thank you to Dr. Ronny Jackson, Taylor’s parents Stuart and Robbi Force, and Sarri Singer, a survivor of a Palestinian suicide attack against a Jerusalem bus, for your courage in fighting back against the lawless Biden Administration,” Miller added.
