Hostage family members arrested as Netanyahu addresses Congress; half of Democrats skip speech
Several hostage family members wearing Yellow “Seal the Deal Now” t-shirts have been removed from the gallery during Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to a joint session of Congress and detained by law enforcement.
Roughly half of House and Senate Democrats skipped Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu‘s address to a joint session of Congress on Wednesday, according to an Axios headcount.
Why it matters: Many lawmakers, particularly progressive Israel critics, made clear they were explicitly boycotting the event in protest of Netanyahu’s prosecution of the war in Gaza.
- Among the boycotters are former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), former House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.).
- Isolationist Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) made clear he was explicitly boycotting the speech as well, saying he didn’t want to be a “prop” for Netanyahu.
By the numbers: Roughly 100 House Democrats and 28 Senate Democrats were present in the chamber for the Israeli prime minister’s speech, meaning around half of both caucuses were absent.
- Most of the lawmakers who did attend the speech are on the more moderate, pro-Israel side of the party, including many swing-district lawmakers.
By the numbers: Wednesday’s boycott was significantly larger than the 58 Democrats who skipped Netanyahu’s 2015 speech to Congress. [Continue reading…]