Even talk of a Netanyahu visit stirs firestorm of controversy (2024)

The bitter conflict has been an ongoing headache forPresident Bidenand other Democratic leaders, who are attempting a delicate balance between supporting America’s closest Middle Eastern ally in a time of war while denouncing elements of Netanyahu’smilitary strategy, which has resulted in thousands of civilian deaths in Gaza.

The dynamics mirror those that accompanied Netanyahu’s last joint address to Congress, in 2015. The Israeli leader,at the invitationof former Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio),used the lofty stage to attack then-PresidentObamaover his nascent nuclear deal with Iran —an extraordinary rebuke by a foreign leader on a sitting president’s home turf that was widely denounced by Obama’s Democratic allies.

Nine years later, some of those same Democrats arevoicing concerns that Netanyahu would again use the platform to advance his own political agenda, even if it means going after the Biden administration.

“I boycotted his last visit. I certainly will not attend this one,” said Rep.Jan Schakowsky(D-Ill.), a Jewish Democrat who characterized Netanyahu as “a menace.”

The pushback comes three days after the International Criminal Court (ICC), an international body based in The Hague,charged Netanyahuand his defense minister with war crimes for their military operations in Gaza following Hamas’s Oct. 7 terrorist attacks. Among the charges, the ICC has accused the Israeli leaders of directly targeting civilians and using starvation as a weapon of war — allegations that have only fueled the liberal opposition to Netanyahu’s potential visit.

“He appears hell-bent on wiping out the population of Gaza,” said Rep.Hank Johnson(D-Ga.). “I don’t see what would necessitate … a joint address to the Congress by a man who has been charged internationally for committing crimes against humanity.”

Other liberals are piling on, including members of the Congressional Black Caucus who are furious that Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) ispushing for Netanyahuto address Congress but declined that honor for the president of Kenya, William Ruto, who is visiting Washington this week.

The thorny issue of Israeli-Palestinian relations has long divided Democrats, pitting Israel’s staunchest defenders — who argue the importance of maintaining a strong Jewish state in a hostile region of the world — against liberals critical of Israel’s human rights record.

While Netanyahu’s address to Congress appears likely to happen, the event is not set in stone. Johnson drafted a formal letter inviting the Israeli leader to Capitol Hill and sent it to Senate Majority LeaderChuck Schumerweeks ago, but the New York Democrathas yet to sign on.

Republicans who have rushed to the defense of Israel’s conduct during the war with Hamas, meanwhile, are eager to have Netanyahu appear in the Capitol to make his case. And House Democratic leaders, despite their reservations with Netanyahu and his far-right government, are also welcoming the Israeli leader.

Read the full report at TheHill.com.

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• The Center for Strategic and International Studies will host a virtual discussion on “Where Does the U.S. Go from Here — Gaza: The Human Toll,” withDavid Satterfield, senior State Department adviser on the Middle East, tomorrow at 9 a.m.

• The White House tomorrow will host Kenya’s President William Ruto and first lady Rachel Ruto at the White House to mark the 60th anniversary of U.S.-Kenya diplomatic relations.

• Defense SecretaryLloyd Austin will deliver the commencement address at the U.S. Naval Academy’s 2024 commencement ceremony at 10 a.m. Friday.

• Foreign Policy and the International Community of the Red Cross will have an online conversation on “Principles of Humanity Under Pressure: The Geneva Conventions at 75 and the future of international humanitarian law,” with retired ArmyGen. Stanley McChrystal, at 10 a.m.

• Atlantic Council will hold a talk on “Oil gas and war: The effect of sanctions on the Russian energy industry,” at 10 a.m.

• Barbara Leaf, assistant secretary of the State Department’s Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, will testify before a House Foreign Affairs subcommittee on the FY-25 budget request for Near Eastern Affairs at 10:30 a.m.

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