Defiant House poised to further restrict Hamas aid

WASHINGTON – Defying the Bush administration, the House of Representatives is set to pass legislation Tuesday that would ban direct U.S. economic assistance to the Palestinian government and restrict money to private aid groups that operate in Gaza and the West Bank.

The measure is intended to isolate Hamas, which won parliamentary elections in the Palestinian Authority last January. The United States considers Hamas a terrorist organization. The House measure has widespread bipartisan support.

The White House objects to the bill on the ground that it wants to retain flexibility in Middle East diplomacy. The measure has also split the Israeli lobby in Washington.

The House vote is scheduled for the day that Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is to meet with President Bush during a three-day Washington visit and one day before Olmert is to address a joint session of Congress.

The Bush administration has already stopped direct U.S. aid to the Palestinian government. In a statement earlier this month, the White House said that the House legislation was unnecessary. It said the bill “constrains the executive’s flexibility to use sanctions, if appropriate, as tools to address rapidly changing circumstances.”