Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed a joint meeting of Congress last Wednesday where he thanked US lawmakers for additional providing military assistance to Israel and vowed to free the remaining hostages held by Hamas in Gaza.
Netanyahu arrived in Washington on Monday, July 22, but was not met at the airport by either President Joe Biden or Vice President Kamala Harris. Even Secretary of State Antony Blinken was noticeably absent.
The Israeli leader’s visit was met with violent demonstrations in the nation’s capital by pro-Hamas protesters carrying Palestinian and Hamas flags and fighting with police.
Congressional leaders invited Netanyahu to address Congress in May as a show of unity with Israel. However, many Democrat lawmakers objected to the invitation and accused Republicans of using Netanyahu’s speech for political purposes.
About half of the Democrat congressional caucus boycotted last Wednesday’s speech, including roughly 100 House members and 28 senators.
As vice president, Kamala Harris typically presides over joint sessions of Congress but she too skipped Netanyahu’s address to attend a campaign event in Indiana.
Republican Senator JD Vance and Republican Rep. Thomas Massie also did not attend. Vance, the Republican vice presidential nominee was campaigning and Massie boycotted the speech saying he refused to be a “prop” for the Israeli prime minister.
In his speech, the Israeli prime minister called for the United States and Israel to stand together in the face of Iran’s “axis of terror.” He also criticized the pro-Hamas protests that have occurred in the US in recent months, calling the protesters “useful idiots” of the Iranian regime and is proxies.
Outside of the Capitol, the pro-Hamas protesters clashed with Capitol Police officers, who were forced to use pepper spray after the protests grew violent.
Inside the House chamber, Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib, the only member of the Squad who did not boycott the speech, sat wearing a keffiyeh around her shoulders and holding a sign that read, “War Criminal.”