Netanyahu speaks to Congress for the first time since the attack on Israel on October 7

WASHINGTON — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is scheduled to address Congress on Wednesday afternoon, his first speech since the Hamas terrorist attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people and led to the hostage crisis in Gaza, where about 100 hostages are believed to still be held.

Netanyahu’s speech at 2 p.m. Eastern time comes at a critical time: The U.S. is in the midst of a chaotic election year and the Biden administration continues to push negotiators for a ceasefire agreement that could end the war in Gaza, where the death toll has exceeded an estimated 30,000 people, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry.

“In my speech, I will emphasize the importance of bipartisan support for Israel. I will address our friends on both sides of the map and tell them that regardless of who is elected as the leader of the American people after the presidential election, Israel is the United States’ most important ally in the Middle East, an irreplaceable ally,” Netanyahu said before leaving for the United States, according to his office.

He added: “I think it is of utmost importance in this time of war and uncertainty that our enemies know that the United States and Israel stand together – today, tomorrow and forever.”

Netanyahu was originally invited by Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana to speak to Congress as protests and demonstrations were building on college campuses this spring.

Vice President Kamala Harris, who as president of the Senate would normally preside over such an event, will not attend. Several other prominent Democrats will also not attend. Instead, Senator Ben Cardin, Democrat of Maryland, an Orthodox Jew and chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, will speak.

Harris is scheduled to be in Indianapolis on Wednesday, where she will begin her campaign following President Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the presidential race.

Johnson said on Tuesday that it was “inexcusable” for Harris to remain silent during Netanyahu’s speech and that she should be “held to account” for it.

Harris and Biden are expected to meet with Netanyahu separately this week during his visit to Washington. Biden and Netanyahu are also expected to meet with relatives of the American hostages still being held in Gaza at the White House on Thursday, a source familiar with the matter said. On Friday morning, Netanyahu is scheduled to meet with former President Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago, his residence in Palm Beach, Florida.

Trump’s vice presidential candidate, Senator JD Vance (R-Ohio), will also miss Netanyahu’s speech because “he has responsibilities as the Republican vice presidential candidate,” Jason Miller, a senior adviser to the Trump campaign, said in a statement.

While Netanyahu will likely receive a warm welcome from Republican lawmakers, he will likely receive a more cautious reception from Democrats, some of whom have already announced that they will boycott his speech.

More than two dozen Democrats in the House and Senate have announced they will not attend the session, including former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), her spokesman Ian Krager said in a new statement Wednesday. “This morning, she will attend a meeting with Israeli citizens whose families suffered from the terrorist attacks and kidnappings by Hamas on October 7,” he said.

Other Democrats who are staying away from the speech include Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin of Illinois and Representative James Clyburn of South Carolina. Progressives such as Representative Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, a member of the Squad, and Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts are also staying away from the speech, as are several Jewish members of Congress, including Senators Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Brian Schatz of Hawaii. Those who have chosen to boycott are outraged by Israel’s handling of the war in Gaza and the humanitarian crisis there.

“Hamas’s attack on October 7 was unprovoked and cowardly, and the continued hostage-taking is unconscionable,” Durbin said in a statement. “However, Israel’s conduct of the war in Gaza under the leadership of Prime Minister Netanyahu, with 39,000 Palestinians killed and 90,000 injured, is a brutal strategy that goes beyond any acceptable level of self-defense. … I will stand with Israel, but I will not stand up at tomorrow’s joint session and cheer for its current prime minister.”

Senator Patty Murray (D-Wash.), the Senate speaker pro tempore and another candidate to lead a joint session of Congress, will also not attend. “Securing a permanent, mutual ceasefire is of paramount importance right now, and I will continue to push for it to be achieved as soon as possible,” Murray said in a statement. “I hope Prime Minister Netanyahu will use the opportunity to explain how he intends to achieve a ceasefire – and lasting peace in the region.”

The chairwoman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, Democrat Pramila Jayapal of Washington, who is also not attending the conference, said Tuesday that she does not believe Netanyahu is interested in peace in the Middle East.

“He certainly had no interest in bringing the hostages’ families home,” Jayapal said. “I think he may be promoting Donald Trump, but it’s at the expense of Israel’s security, at the expense of Palestinian security, at the expense of peace in the broader Middle East, and certainly at the expense of bringing home the families of the hostages held there, including the eight American hostages who are still there.”

Democratic Rep. Maxwell Frost of Florida, the first Gen Z congressman, will also boycott the speech. “I detest (Netanyahu’s) leadership. I think what’s going on in Gaza is terrible,” Frost said Tuesday. “He is against a two-state solution, which we as a country support – that’s our country’s policy. I don’t think he should have been invited at all.”

Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky is the first Republican lawmaker to announce a boycott of the speech. He said on X: “The purpose of Netanyahu’s speech to Congress is to strengthen his political standing in Israel and to suppress international opposition to his war.”

“I don’t want to be a prop, so I won’t participate,” he said.

The two highest-ranking lawmakers from each party – Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) and Johnson – are all attending a meeting with Netanyahu ahead of his speech.

Florida Democratic Rep. Jared Moskowitz, who is attending the conference and is an ardent supporter of Israel, said he wanted to hear from Netanyahu how he plans to bring the hostages home and what to do about Iran.

Netanyahu last addressed Congress in March 2015, and this speech, his fourth as prime minister, is expected to draw “a large number of protesters,” according to the U.S. Capitol Police, which has beefed up security measures in anticipation of protests, including erecting the same fence around the Capitol that was used after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack. The department has also sworn in more than 200 New York police officers to help monitor events in Washington this week, according to Deputy Commissioner Kaz Daughtry, who shared a video of X’s swearing-in.

Ahead of the speech, more than 200 protesters from Jewish Voice for Peace were arrested after demonstrating in one of the House office buildings on Tuesday and shouting pro-Palestinian slogans, Capitol Police said.

More than two dozen former senior officials who served in Israel’s security apparatus – such as the Mossad and Shin Bet – as well as in Israeli companies have also expressed opposition to Netanyahu’s speech to Congress. In a letter to congressional leaders obtained by NBC News on Tuesday, they said they were “gravely concerned” about the “damage” Netanyahu’s visit would cause to shared U.S.-Israeli goals. Signatories of the letter include former Mossad director Tamir Pardo, former Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon and former Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Dan Halutz, among others, some of whom worked under Netanyahu’s leadership.

The Biden administration continues to work behind the scenes to reach a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. Secretary of State Antony Blinken seemed to express some optimism late last week when he said negotiators were “moving toward the finish line.”