Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., a very prominent lawmaker , fiercely criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Wednesday’s address to Congress , calling him a “war criminal,” and accusing him of having no regard for U.S. law.
This man should not be addressing Congress. He is a war criminal. And he certainly has no regard for US law, which is explicitly designed to prevent US weapons from facilitating human rights abuses.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) June 19, 2024
His invitation should be revoked. It should’ve never been sent in the 1st place. https://t.co/mSrQl6jLEZ
House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican, and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat, along with Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell and House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries, signed the letter extending the invitation to Netanyahu. They said the offer was intended to “highlight America’s solidarity with Israel.”
At least 21 lawmakers are skipping the Israeli leader’s speech in protest of his military campaign in Gaza . VP Kamala Harris and JD Vance won’t be there, either.
When Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses Congress on Wednesday, Vice President Kamala Harris won’t be there. Neither will Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), the Senate pro tem, who is third in line to the presidency.
“Prime Minister Netanyahu has created a humanitarian catastrophe,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) told CNN last month. “I’m not going.”
“No, Netanyahu should not be welcomed into the U.S. Congress,” Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said Monday on social media. “On the contrary, his policies in Gaza and the West Bank and his refusal to support a two-state solution should be roundly condemned.”
“As I stated last month, I will not be attending his address,” Sanders added.
Since Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, Israel’s air and ground assault has killed more than 39,000 people in Gaza, most of whom are women and children , Palestinian health authorities reported this month. Netanyahu, meanwhile, has rebuffed repeated calls for a ceasefire.
Democrats have been pressing President Joe Biden to reevaluate U.S. support for Israel as the humanitarian crisis drags on in Gaza, where more than 2.3 million people have been driven from their homes. In recent months, the president has been more critical of Netanyahu, and in May, the administration paused the shipment of some weapons. But Netanyahu has brushed aside calls from Biden administration officials to change course.
When Netanyahu speaks in the House chamber on Thursday, the vice president would normally be sitting behind him at the dais. But Harris will be in Indianapolis at a campaign event. Her event was scheduled before she was suddenly vaulted this week into being the likely Democratic presidential nominee, but the timing is awfully convenient.
It’s not just progressive firebrands planning to boycott. Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, just returned from a trip to Israel where he met with the families of hostages and those who lost loved ones on Oct. 7.
In a fiery speech on the Senate floor on Tuesday, Van Hollen ran through many reasons why he’ll be skipping Netanyahu’s address. One reason is that the Israeli families he just met told him that they haven’t heard from Netanyahu or any member of his government in the months since the Hamas attack.
“I say to Prime Minister Netanyahu: Before you come to speak to members of Congress, go meet with the families I saw whose loved ones were murdered on Oct. 7,” fumed the Maryland senator.
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