Biden Boycotts Israel: State Dept. Stops NASA Scientist from Attending Conference

The Biden administration canceled the travel authorization of a government scientist on Tuesday who was to have traveled to Israel to participate in a conference in Israel, the latest sign of a creeping U.S. boycott.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) scientist Dr. Amber Straughn tweeted that she was supposed to have traveled to Israel, but that the State Department canceled her travel authorization.

A little sad today…was supposed to be traveling to Israel for some technical and public talks. But my travel authorization was revoked yesterday I’m hoping I’ll be able to visit in the future!

— Dr. Amber Straughn (she/her/hers) (@astraughnomer) March 28, 2023

Both Ha’aretz and the Times of Israel confirmed the canceled visit. The Times of Israel elaborated:

An astrophysicist with the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration has been forced to pull out of a conference in Israel amid tensions with the Biden administration over the judicial overhaul being pushed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government.

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According to a report today in the Haaretz daily, Straughn told organizers of the Israel Physical Society’s annual meeting that she was instructed by the State Department to cancel her appearance. Straughn had been set to be a keynote speaker.

Earlier this week, President Joe Biden reneged on a promise by U.S. Ambassador to Israel Tom Nides that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would be invited to the White House after pausing judicial reforms.

The Biden administration has intervened in Israel’s domestic politics for reasons that are unclear. The White House says it is helping to protect Israel’s democracy. Critics say that Biden is attempting to oust Netanyahu.

Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of the new biography, Rhoda: ‘Comrade Kadalie, You Are Out of Order’. He is also the author of the recent e-book, Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.