Joze M. Pelayo conducts research in foreign policy and
development in Washington, DC, with a focus on the
Middle East, democracy and human rights. He is a recent
graduate of the University of Oregon’s (UO) International
Studies & Development Master’s program and has worked
in Venezuela, Palestine, Israel, Lebanon, and Russia.
Pelayo worked with civil society organizations focused on
Syrian refugees in Lebanon in 2015 under the UO Sandra
Morgen Public Impact Fellowship and in Palestine for
the Hebron Rehabilitation Committee in 2016 under the
Conni-Slape Fellowship. The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and
do not necessarily represent the views of any organization the author is associated with.
As U.S. support for Israel threatens to become further polarized across the political
spectrum, the special relationship likely will become more of a party-based policy
approach than broad bipartisan support — which will truly alter the dynamics of the
relationship.