Lara Seligman, Dov Lieber and Sabrina Siddiqui
WSJ, July 24, 2024
“Give us the tools, and we will finish the job. Give us the tools faster and we will finish the job faster.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dove into a volatile moment in U.S. presidential politics with a fiery address to Congress, defending his handling of the war in Gaza and appealing to both President Biden and Donald Trump to back Israel against its Middle East enemies.
Addressing a packed House chamber, Netanyahu displayed his penchant for intervening in U.S. politics honed over decades, delivering pointed jabs at Democrats and sometimes lavishing praise on Trump.
He thanked President Biden for supporting Israel in its nine-month war but also sought to put the White House on the defensive, calling for the U.S. to “fast track” additional weapons shipments. He also urged the U.S. to help counter a growing threat from Iran, denouncing protesters against the Gaza war outside the Capitol as “anti-Israeli” and “Iran’s useful idiots.”
“Our enemies are your enemies. Our fight is your fight. And our victory will be your victory,” Netanyahu said to a standing ovation in the jammed House chamber. “As we defend ourselves on all fronts, I know that America has our back.”
Vice President Kamala Harris, the expected Democratic presidential nominee who would normally preside over a joint session, and dozens of Democratic lawmakers skipped the speech, as did Sen. JD Vance, former President Trump’s vice-presidential nominee, who was at campaign events.
But House and Senate members who did attend applauded Netanyahu raucously, especially Republicans, giving him a standing ovation as the prime minister walked off the dais to chants of “1,400 dead, 1,400 dead,” referring to the Israeli death toll in the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas that launched the Gaza war.
Netanyahu condemned the “dastardly” attack on Trump at a Pennsylvania campaign rally this month and called for broadening the 2020 Abraham Accords brokered by Trump that established diplomatic relations between Israel and several Arab governments. He didn’t mention the Biden administration attempts to negotiate a similar agreement between Saudi Arabia and Israel that has been blocked by the continuing fighting in Gaza.
Sen. Chuck Schumer, (D., N.Y.,) who called for Netanyahu to be replaced in March over his handling of the Gaza war, grimaced during parts of the speech, and Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D., Mich.,) who has been a strident critic of the war, held up a small black circular sign that said “war criminal.”
Netanyahu used much of the first part of his speech to highlight the Gaza war, pointing out former hostages and Israeli soldiers in the audience. He told the story of Noa Argamani, standing next to Netanyahu’s wife, Sara Netanyahu, in the House chamber, who was rescued in June by Israeli special forces along with three other hostages seized on Oct. 7.
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