Patrick Leahy to skip Benjamin Netanyahuâs speech
The partisan divide over Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahuâs March address to Congress deepened further on Tuesday, with the Senateâs most-senior lawmaker announcing that he will not attend the speech. In a highly critical statement on Tuesday morning, Democratic Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont called the speech arranged by House Speaker John Boehner âa tawdry and highhanded stunt that has embarrassed not only Israel but the Congress itself.â Leahy joins Vermontâs other senator, independent Bernie Sanders, in skipping the speech, as well as a number of House Democrats who have been critical of the address, which comes as President Barack Obama tries to reach a nuclear deal with Iran â an effort opposed by Netanyahu. Story Continued Below The seven-term Leahy said that by unilaterally scheduling the speech without the White Houseâs input, House Republican leaders âdemolished the potential constructive value of this joint meeting.â Leahyâs comments carry extra weight because until the GOP took the Senate in January, Leahy was in the presidential line of succession as Senate president pro tempore. âIt has long been an unwritten rule and practice through the decades that when it comes to American foreign policy, we speak and act thoughtfully, with one voice when we can, with the national interests of the United States as our uppermost consideration and with caution about the unintended consequences of unilateral actions like this,â Leahy said. âThey have diminished that valuable precedent.â Sanders became the first senator to announce he would skip Netanyahuâs March 3 address, joining several House Democrats that will also not attend the speech. âIâm not going. I may watch it on TV,â Sanders said on Monday. A separate group of House Democrats is urging a delay in the speech, which comes in the middle of campaign season in Israel.