Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accepted an invitation from U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA), House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) to address a joint session of Congress on July 24.
Representative Mark Pocan (D-WI), an outspoken critic of Netanyahu, has argued that Netanyahu should be questioned by Congress for his actions in Gaza. Pocan wrote to Netanyahu on X: “A number of us have great concerns about how you’ve conducted the collective punishment of millions and possible war crimes.”
Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD) said if Netanyahu does address Congress, “there will be a lot of disruption, and it will not be helpful for Israel or its supporters.”
Bash: If you were Speaker, would you have invited Netanyahu?
Pelosi: No, absolutely not. I think this is wrong.. I feel it’s very sad that he has been invited, but who knows by then.. will he still be prime minister? pic.twitter.com/4R0ZgMZhto
— Acyn (@Acyn) June 7, 2024
CNN’s Dana Bash asked former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) if — were she still Speaker today — she would have invited Netanyahu to address Congress. Pelosi replied: “No, absolutely not. I think it is wrong.” She added: “I feel it’s very sad that he has been invited, but who knows by then… will he still be prime minister?”
Netanyahu faces pressure and condemnation not only from U.S. politicians and international bodies like the International Criminal Court (ICC), which has issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and various Hamas members for war crimes. (NOTE: Netanyahu calls the ICC’s move an outrage, asserting that Israel is “waging a just war against Hamas, a genocidal terrorist organization that perpetrated the worst attack on the Jewish people since the Holocaust.”)
Yet the external rebukes of the Israeli Prime Minister’s conduct of the war may not be as impactful — or as responsible for Pelosi’s hint at Netanyahu’s imminent departure — as internal dissatisfaction widespread among Israelis for the performance of Netanyahu’s right-wing government both before and after the Hamas terrorist attacks in Israel on October 7.
If Netanyahu is no longer the Prime Minister of Israel, as Pelosi suggests might be the case, when he addresses Congress in late July, it will likely be because Israelis dumped him, not because of any determination by the ICC.