U.S. one step closer to nominating Israeli ambassador after Senate committee advances Lew
Lew is an Orthodox Jew and was the treasury secretary in the Obama administration. He has faced some criticism for his role in the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.
WASHINGTON − The United States is one step closer to confirming an ambassador to Israel.
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted Wednesday morning to move the nomination out of committee for Jack Lew to serve as the U.S. Ambassador to Israel. The nomination now heads to the Senate floor for a full vote.
The committee voted to advance Lew 12-9 along party lines. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., was the only Republican to vote alongside Democrats in favor of Lew's nomination.
It clears a key hurdle for Lew -- treasury secretary in the Obama administration and an Orthodox Jew -- to be confirmed by the full Senate.
Senate Republicans grilled Lew last week when he testified before the committee during a hearing interrupted several times by protesters exemplifying how high tensions are with the ambassadorship on the line amid a war in the Middle East.
"I will work to strengthen Israel's security," Lew said during his testimony last week. "Israel is our closest partner in the region and its security is paramount."
The United States currently does not have a designated ambassador after Thomas Nides left the position over the summer. President Joe Biden nominated Lew for the role in September.
Democrats have pushed to confirm Lew as soon as possible as war rages on between Israel and Hamas, but Lew hasn't faced a seamless path to ambassadorship.
Senate Republicans have signaled that Lew is not the right fit for the job, citing his past record as Treasury Secretary in former President Barack Obama's administration and as Director of the Office of Management and Budget in former President Bill Clinton's administration.
Republicans are pointing to Lew's role in supporting the Obama administration's negotiations during the Iran nuclear deal and claim Lew was not transparent and misled the committee regarding transferring money to the Iran regime as Treasury secretary.
"We need this thing filled. The problem I have is it needs to be filled with the right person," Sen. James Risch, R-Idaho, said during the nomination hearing last week. Risch serves as the top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
It is unclear when the upper chamber will take up Lew's nomination on the Senate floor, but Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., urged his colleagues last week to approve Lew "without any partisan delays."
"Mr. Lew has proven himself a strong public servant, a ferocious ally of Israel, so delaying him would be egregious at a time like this. We must move him quickly and I hope we will," Schumer said.
More: No U.S. ambassador to Israel? Senate Republicans grill Biden's top pick Jack Lew