Sponsors (8)
The bill shifts foreign‑assistance power from the President to Congress to increase oversight and deliberation, at the cost of limiting executive flexibility to respond quickly to crises and potentially weakening U.S. support for long‑term regional stability.
Taxpayers and the American public: Congress gains greater control over decisions about U.S. assistance to the Middle East by narrowing a longstanding presidential foreign‑policy delegation, encouraging more deliberate, case‑by‑case congressional review of new aid commitments.
Taxpayers: The President's ability to rapidly provide diplomatic or economic assistance to Middle Eastern partners could be constrained, slowing U.S. responses to crises that require quick executive action.
Taxpayers and middle‑class families: Reducing automatic executive authority to support economic programs in the region may weaken U.S. capacity to promote long‑term regional stability, potentially increasing future risks and costs to U.S. interests.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Repeals the 1957 joint resolution (22 U.S.C. 1961 et seq.) that authorized U.S. economic cooperation with Middle Eastern nations.
Official title: To repeal the joint resolution entitled "A joint resolution to promote peace and stability in the Middle East".
Introduced April 22, 2026 by Tom Barrett · Last progress April 22, 2026
Repeals the 1957 joint resolution (Public Law 85–7, codified at 22 U.S.C. 1961 et seq.) that authorized the President to cooperate with and assist nations in the Middle East in developing economic strength to maintain national independence. The bill removes that specific statutory authorization from the United States Code. The change eliminates a Cold War–era legal basis for certain kinds of U.S. economic cooperation with Middle Eastern countries; it does not itself create new programs or appropriate funds, but it narrows the set of explicit statutory authorities available to the Executive for this particular purpose.