WASHINGTON (AP) — It was nine years ago when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last spoke to the U.S. Congress, but about 60 Democratic lawmakers skipped his speech, seeing it as an insult to President Barack Obama, who was negotiating the Iran nuclear deal at the time.
Netanyahu is due to address the US Congress on July 24, and the number of absentees is expected to be even higher, as his administration is currently at war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
clock: Netanyahu faces doubts from Israeli military leaders over Gaza war
Democratic lawmakers are wrestling with whether to attend, many torn between their longstanding support for Israel and their anguish over the way it has conducted its military operations in Gaza. More than 37,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks since the Oct. 7 Hamas offensive that sparked the war, according to the Health Ministry in Hamas-controlled areas. The ministry does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its figures.
While some Democrats said they were attending out of respect for Israel, there was a larger group that did not want to take part, creating an unusually tense atmosphere at what is normally a ritual show of bipartisan support for a U.S. ally.
“I hope he becomes a statesman and does the right thing for Israel. We all love Israel,” former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said of Netanyahu recently on CNN. “We need to help Israel and we need to make sure he doesn’t get in the way for too long.”
She added: “I think it will lead to more of the discontent that we’ve seen among ourselves.”
Tensions between Netanyahu and Democratic President Joe Biden are also seeping through to the public, with Netanyahu last week accusing the Biden administration of withholding U.S. arms supplies to Israel and repeating the allegation to his cabinet on Sunday. After the prime minister first made the accusation, White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said, “We have no idea what he’s talking about. We have no idea.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) invited Netanyahu after consulting with the White House, said a person familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive issue, and said there were no immediate plans for the two leaders to meet during Netanyahu’s visit to Washington.
In a statement, Netanyahu said he was “deeply moved” by the invitation to address Congress and the opportunity to “tell the American people and representatives of the world the truth of our just war against those who seek to destroy us.”
Republicans first floated the idea of inviting Netanyahu in March after Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, the highest-ranking Jewish official in the United States, delivered a sharply critical speech on the Senate floor about the prime minister. Schumer called the Israeli leader an “obstacle to peace” and urged new elections in Israel while also denounced Hamas and criticized Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
read more: Netanyahu hits back at U.S. criticism after Schumer says Israel has ‘lost its way’ on Gaza
Republicans denounced the speech as an affront to Israel and its sovereignty. Johnson invited Netanyahu to come to Washington, and Schumer and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York reluctantly accepted the invitation. Pelosi, who opposed the invitation to Netanyahu in 2015 as House Democratic leader, said congressional leaders had made a mistake by extending it again this time.
Sen. Chris Van Hollen, a Democrat from Maryland who attended the 2015 speech as a member of the House of Representatives, said he saw no reason for Congress to “extend a political lifeline” to Netanyahu.
Rep. Michael McCaul, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said it was “healthy” to have members from both parties in attendance. “I think a lot of Americans, especially the younger generations, are hearing one side of the story, and I think it’s important that we hear it from the perspective of the prime minister of Israel,” McCaul (R-Texas) said.
Interviews with more than a dozen Democrats revealed widespread dissatisfaction with the upcoming speech, with many seeing it as a ploy aimed at dividing the Republican Party. Some Democrats have said they are attending to show support for Israel, not Netanyahu.
Rep. Gregory Meeks of New York, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said his position meant he had an “obligation” to attend.
“This should never have happened,” he added, “but I can’t control it, and I have to do my job.”
Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.), who chairs the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said he plans to attend and said he hopes Netanyahu’s speech will “send a message that can bolster support in this country for Israel’s causes” while also laying the foundation for peace in the region.
Other Democrats are waiting to see whether Netanyahu will still be in the prime minister’s seat when he is scheduled to address parliament.
There have been visible signs of discontent over the handling of the war by Netanyahu’s government, a coalition that includes right-wing hardliners who oppose any reconciliation with Hamas.
Former army commander and centrist politician Benny Gantz quit Netanyahu’s war cabinet this month, citing dissatisfaction with the prime minister’s war conduct. Netanyahu dissolved it on Monday. Meanwhile, a growing number of Israeli critics and protesters support a ceasefire that would allow hostages held by Hamas to return home.
read more: Israel’s centrist war cabinet chief Benny Gantz resigns over lack of post-war Gaza plan
“I side with those who want him not to be prime minister by the end of July. I think he’s been bad for Israel, bad for Palestine and bad for America,” said Rep. Seth Magaziner (D-Ore.), but added that he considered it his job to be present when a head of state addresses Congress, “even if it’s someone I have concerns about and disagree with.”
Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA), who attended the 2015 speech and called it “one of the most painful times” he has had as a member of Congress, plans to boycott the speech unless Netanyahu becomes a “champion of the ceasefire.”
Most of the Progressive Caucus, the group of lawmakers most critical of Israel’s handling of the war, are expected to skip the meeting, including its chairwoman, Rep. Pramila Jayapal of Washington, who told The Associated Press that inviting Netanyahu would be a “bad idea.”
“We should pressure the president to abide by the agreement he has put forward by withholding offensive military support,” she said.
Netanyahu’s visit is expected to spark major protests, with some lawmakers planning alternative events.
Rep. Jim Clyburn said he was in the early stages of convening “like-minded” people to brainstorm a way forward that could include a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine. The South Carolina Democrat has been a vocal critic of Netanyahu’s 2015 speech, which he and several leading members of the Congressional Black Caucus viewed as an affront to President Obama.
“I think instead of just saying, ‘I’m not going, I’m staying here,’ I’m saying, ‘I’m staying here with a purpose,'” he said. “I’m not going to listen to any of his nonsense, but I have some ideas that might be a way forward.”
Associated Press writers Kevin Freaking, Josh Boak, Mary Clare Jalonick and Stephen Groves contributed to this report.
