Netanyahu in a politically unfamiliar Washington

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is no stranger to Washington, the White House or the halls of Capitol Hill. In fact, on Wednesday, he will set a record: speaking to a joint session of Congress for the fourth time over a period of more than two decades — surpassing Winston Churchill, who spoke there on three separate occasions. This will be an honor that takes its place in the annals of US political history. Netanyahu understands the inner mechanics of US politics, he knows how to manipulate the two main parties and he is quite an emotional and charismatic orator.
The last time he was invited to speak, in March 2015, he received 28 standing ovations, one less than he received in 2011.
In 2015, Netanyahu snubbed then-President Barack Obama by blasting the impending nuclear agreement with Iran as a “very bad deal,” which the White House was pushing for against Israeli objections. Back then, at least 30 US lawmakers had boycotted his speech amid rising tensions between the Obama administration and Netanyahu.
This time, the controversy is much more profound. Netanyahu has pushed ties with President Joe Biden to the brink by obstructing a ceasefire deal in Gaza, Israel’s indiscriminate use of lethal force in the battered enclave, the impeding of aid delivery to more than 2 million hapless Gazans and claims that the US administration was withholding the delivery of much-needed armaments to the Israeli army.
The rift between the two men and bipartisan squabbling in Washington, in addition to the International Criminal Court prosecutor’s request for an arrest warrant for Netanyahu, pushed defiant Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson to invite the Israeli premier to speak before Congress.
Netanyahu had asked for a month’s delay to make his planned speech. He faces political turmoil at home, as his army finds itself bogged down in Gaza while appearing unable to confront an audacious Hezbollah in the north. The families of more than 150 Israeli hostages are putting pressure on his far-right government to conclude a ceasefire deal and bring the captives home. This is anathema to him. A pause in the war will kick-start a series of investigations over how the debacle of Oct. 7 was allowed to take place, which will almost certainly end his political career.
Netanyahu’s poll numbers have fallen, while his political rivals are ready to pounce. His ultranationalist partners, who reject any hostage deal that ends the war, threaten to abandon him and bring the coalition down if he offers any concessions. Against the policy of the Biden White House, they want an open confrontation with Lebanon, even if that means igniting a regional war with Iran that will suck in the US.
Traveling to Washington must have presented itself as a much-needed respite. Netanyahu is more popular with US lawmakers than with Knesset members. As the longest-serving prime minister in Israel’s history, Netanyahu has grown an enlarged ego that is blinding him to the damage he has done to Israel’s image and standing abroad. He still believes he can navigate the corridors of Congress for the benefit of Israel and himself; the two, for him, are the same. 

Netanyahu still believes he can navigate the corridors of Congress for the benefit of Israel and himself.

Osama Al-Sharif

Before Biden announced on Sunday his intention to withdraw from the 2024 presidential race, pundits in Israel believed that Netanyahu would most likely endear himself to the Republicans, whose candidate, former President Donald Trump, had all but ensured his election for a second term.
But Biden’s sudden decision has upended the US political scene. Vice President Kamala Harris, a critic of Israel’s behavior in Gaza and the West Bank, is now the likely Democratic presidential contender. The odds of a landslide Trump victory have changed.
Now, Netanyahu, the opportunist and manipulator, must change his tone and attitude. His speech will focus on the special US-Israel alliance above bipartisan politics. He will avoid besmirching Biden and instead praise the president’s unwavering support for Israel’s war against Iran’s proxies, starting with Hamas, and summon backing for a long and inevitable confrontation with Tehran, a common enemy and a threat to the Middle East, in his view.
He will talk about the calamity of Oct. 7. He will mention the hostages, including American nationals who are suffering under Hamas’ barbarism. He will appeal to those who see Israel’s survival as the foundation of a shared Judeo-Christian culture. And, yes, he will have his standing ovations.
But these are not normal times for Israel and the US. Many Democratic lawmakers have decided to boycott his speech. Others will try to interrupt him, pointing to the genocidal war Israel is carrying out in Gaza with American weapons.
Outside the Capitol, thousands will gather, calling for the arrest of Netanyahu, the war criminal. They will include Jews, Muslims and Christians. This will not be the hospitable Washington that Netanyahu is used to visiting. Israel has become a divisive issue for Americans, from the iron-clad grip of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee over US politicians to the billions of dollars American taxpayers are forced to rain on Israel.
And the divisiveness will not go away anytime soon. Netanyahu will return to a politically embroiled Israel that is facing the fallout from the historic advisory opinion issued last week by the International Court of Justice on the illegality of its occupation of Palestinian territories, as well as its open-ended war in Gaza and beyond. Meanwhile, the new Democratic candidate will have to bring back millions of disenchanted Muslim, Arab and young voters who had shunned Biden in the primaries, largely over Israel and the Palestinians.
Netanyahu’s Washington visit will have some shining moments, but only within the sanctuary of the US Congress. Outside, he will be denounced just like he is now in Israel. Many Israelis are realizing that Netanyahu is becoming a liability for their country, which has become dependent on the support of the US. Netanyahu’s respite from his Washington visit will be short-lived.
His egotistical brand of politics is not only shaking the foundations of the Israeli state but also the quintessence of the special US-Israel rapport. This will be an unfamiliar Washington for Netanyahu and he must know there will not be a fifth visit to Congress.

• Osama Al-Sharif is a journalist and political commentator based in Amman.
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