Vice President Mike Pence will postpone his visit to Israel to boost the slim Republican majority in the Senate in the final stages of consolidating President Trump’s Tax Reform, according to a statement issued by the Knesset. Pence was scheduled to address the Knesset on Monday next week, but his visit is now expected to take place on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Part of the Vice President’s job is to serve as the president of the US Senate and cast his vote in case of a tie. Tuesday’s victory of Alabama Democrat Doug Jones in a special Senate election has cut down the Republican majority in that house to 51-49. Should one of the five or six Republican senators decide to vote against the new Tax Bill, President Trump’s signature bill for his first year in office, Pence should be on hand to cast the deciding vote.
Should two Republicans opt to vote against the bill, then Pence might as well have kept his Knesset appointment…
In addition to speaking at the Knesset, meeting Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Rivlin, and visiting Yad VaShem, Pence is also going to light a Hanukkah candle at the Kotel.
The folks in Ramallah, meanwhile, declared the US Vice President persona non grata, because of the president’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. So no laying a wreath on Chairman Arafat’s grave for now.