AIPAC

Everyone in Washington agrees AIPAC has had a profound influence on Middle East policy set on Capitol Hill. From AIPAC.org: "For more than half a century, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee has worked to help make Israel more secure by ensuring that American support remains strong. From a small pro-Israel public affairs boutique in the 1950s, AIPAC has grown into a 100,000-member national grassroots movement described by The New York Times as 'the most important organization affecting America's relationship with Israel.'" AIPAC's policies are generally in line with the more hawkish end of the Israeli political spectrum. Former AIPAC officials have been embroiled in an espionage scandal involving former defence analyst Lawrence "Larry" Franklin.