The Pro-Israel Lobby, the United States, and the Iran Nuclear Deal: The Pro-Israel Lobby’s Influence on U.S. Foreign Policy

Abstract

The pro-Israel lobby has been in the spotlight in recent political controversies, but does the pro-Israel lobby actually influence foreign policy decisions? Using factors pulled from literature about the influence of ethnic minority interest groups on foreign policy, I evaluate the influence of the pro-Israel lobby on foreign policy. Ultimately, I find that the pro-Israel lobby wields both monetary and political power to influence foreign policy making in the United States. I then continue with my analysis by evaluating whether the pro-Israel lobby was involved in the decision to leave the Iran Nuclear Deal. While the pro-Israel lobby was unable to prevent President Obama from dropping economic sanctions against Iran, it was able to convince President Trump to leave the deal.