North Shore Members Of Congress Split On Boycott Of Netanyahu Address

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Congressional representatives for Chicago's northern suburbs took different approaches to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's address Wednesday to a joint session of Congress.

Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Evanston) boycotted the speech, accusing Netanyahu of failing as an American ally and betraying the hostages seized by Palestinian militants last October.

Rep. Brad Schneider (D-Highland Park) attended the speech and spoke with Netanyahu before his speech.

Schakowsky also boycotted Netanyahu's 2015 address to Congress. In a statement, the senior chief deputy whip and eldest Jewish member of Congress said the Israeli prime minister should not have been invited to the Capitol.

"I have long believed, and it is clearer than ever now, that Benjamin Netanyahu is neither pro-democracy nor pro-peace. His sole priority is himself," Schakowsky said. "He could not care less about doing what is right for the long-term security of Israel, including ending the war in Gaza, securing the release of the remaining hostages, and taking meaningful steps towards a two-state solution."

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Schakowsky said two out of every three Israelis want Netanyahu to resign and most Americans also oppose his policies.

"Instead, he has repeatedly betrayed the hostages, their families, and all Israeli citizens while further entrenching the occupation, exacerbating and enabling the violence that has plagued Israelis and Palestinians for far too long, and failing to be a reliable partner to the United States," Schakowsky said.

“As a proud Jewish woman, I have a deep personal connection to the State of Israel, and I remain committed to ensuring its survival as a Jewish and democratic state," the 13-term representative of the 9th Congressional District said.

"For Israel to thrive as a just and secure democracy, Netanyahu and his coalition of extremist cronies must go," she said. "Rather than inviting him to the United States Capitol, we should focus on achieving a lasting peace in the Middle East, one which values the lives, dignity, and right to self-determination of Israelis and Palestinians alike.”

Rep. Brad Schneider (IL-10), a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, attended the speech and said he shared the vision for Gaza the prime minister laid out in an "important speech."

The 10th Congressional District representative said Netanyahu emphasized how Iran and militias backed by the Islamic republic pose a threat to both the U.S. and Israel.

"It is more important than ever that we stand together to ensure our mutual security and prosperity. We have no better friend and ally in the Middle East than Israel," Schneider said.

"I also appreciated that the Prime Minister shared a framework for a better future for the people of Gaza after Hamas is defeated. The Prime Minister laid out a vision for a post-war Gaza that is run by a Palestinian civilian administration that can lead to a ‘future of security, prosperity and peace,’ he said. "This is a vision I share and one I look forward to working toward as co-chair of the bipartisan Abraham Accords Caucus and its Gaza Working Group."

"In my few moments with the Prime Minister before his speech, I reiterated on behalf of the hostage families that we cannot forget the more than 120 people still in Gaza after 292 days, including eight Americans," he said.

"A deal to free the hostages, stop the fighting and surge aid into Gaza is within reach," Schneider said. "I am grateful for the Prime Minister’s remarks honoring the hostages who have been freed and calling for the release of those who are remaining."

Schneider said it was time for Netanyahu to "seal the deal" with Hamas for the remaining hostages. The first two hostages released through negotiations between Hamas and Israel were Judith and Natalie Raanan, a mother and daughter from the North Shore.

And Hersh Goldberg-Polin, the 23-year-old son of Chicago natives Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg, was attending the Supernova music festival near the Gaza border when he was taken hostage after his arm was blown off by a grenade.

After meeting with Netanyahu on Monday, they told MSNBC that securing the release of the hostages should be the first priority.

"It is too long. It's absolutely unacceptable. And I think it's at the point where it's completely shameful," Goldberg said.

"We talk, obviously, about Hersh and the hostages a lot, because that is what keeps us, literally, up every single night for almost 300 days," she said. "But there are hundreds of thousands of Gazan civilians who are in the crosshairs as well who are innocent, and you have an entire region suffering excruciatingly, and it is time to release the pressure valve and the way to do that is with the deal."

Polin said he believed Netanyahu was looking to complete a deal for the release of hostages.

"I think he understands that he needs this deal to get done for the people of Israel to be able to begin to move forward from what happened on Oct. 7," he said. "He needs this deal to cement his legacy. He can't be the guy who oversaw Oct. 7 and didn't bring home the hostages. He needs to be the guy who oversaw cover seventh and then did bring home the hostages. But we need him to do that now, today."

During his speech, Netanyahu asserted that Israel was fighting "on the front line of civilization" and criticized the widespread protests against his government's military operations in the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli military began its campaign against Hamas in response to the group's cross-border attacks of Oct. 7, which left about 1,200 dead and about 250 others taken captive. Since then, it has killed nearly 40,000 people in Gaza, according to the area's health ministry.

"Some of these protesters hold up signs proclaiming gays for Gaza. They might as well hold up signs saying ‘Chickens for KFC,’ " Netanyahu said in his speech. "These protesters chant ‘From the river to the sea.’ But many don't have a clue what river and what sea they're talking about."

The call for Palestinians to be free from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea, a common one at pro-Palestinian protests, is considered an antisemitic slogan by the Anti-Defamation League.

Last year, Schneider, the lone Democrat to join with Republicans in censuring Rep. Rashida Tlaib over her criticism of Israel, led a joint statement cosigned by dozens of members rejecting the use of the phrase. The Detroit Democrat is the first Palestinian-American woman to be elected to Congress.

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Tlaib attended Netanyahu's speech, but she brought a sign that said “guilty of genocide” on one side and “war criminal” on the other.

The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court in The Hague applied in May for arrest warrants for Netanyahu, his defense minister, Yoav Gallant, and a trio of Hamas leaders, but the court has yet to issue a ruling on it.

More than half of House Democrats and nearly half of those in the Senate skipped the address, according to a rough headcount of those in attendance by Axios.

That is far more than the 58 that snubbed the Israeli prime minister's 2015 speech.

Notable congresspeople among the boycotters include former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), former House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn (D-SC), and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY). Republican Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) also joined the boycott, saying he did not want to be a "prop" for Netanyahu.

Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin also did not attend the speech. In an address on the Senate floor ahead of the speech, Durbin said support for Israeli's right to exist is not a blank check for extremist policies.

“Nudges from Israel’s friends, including President Biden, to rethink these policies were too often brushed aside or manipulated to foment domestic political support,” Durbin said. “Tragically, it has been clear for years that neither the current Israeli nor Palestinian leadership has the vision or political will to find a lasting peace for two peoples — with tragic consequences.”