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Mike Johnson criticizes Bernie Sanders for refusing to attend Benjamin Netanyahu address

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Mike Johnson criticizes Bernie Sanders for refusing to attend Benjamin Netanyahu address

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WASHINGTON – House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., accused Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., of “parroting the talking points of Hamas” for refusing to attend an address by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“If that’s the side he wants to choose, so be it,” Johnson told “Fox News Sunday.”

“Our Democrat colleagues have to make a choice: Are they going to stand with our most important ally in the Middle East at the most desperate time as has traditionally been the case in Washington…. or are they going to take this new side and stand with Hamas and the Ayatollah?”

Sanders has not expressed support for the terrorist group or Iranian leaders. Progressives, including Sanders, have criticized Netanyahu’s bombing campaign in the Gaza Strip for months as international human rights organizations raise alarms about a humanitarian crisis as a result of the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.

The four congressional leaders – including Johnson and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.; Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y. – invited Netanyahu on Friday to deliver an address to a joint session of Congress.

Sanders publicly confirmed that he would not attend the speech over the humanitarian concerns in Gaza.

“Benjamin Netanyahu is a war criminal. He should not be invited to address a joint meeting of Congress. I certainly will not attend,” Sanders said in a statement. “Israel, of course, had the right to defend itself against the horrific Hamas terrorist attack of October 7th, but it did not, and does not, have the right to go to war against the entire Palestinian people.”

A date has not yet been set for Netanyahu’s address, though it is expected to happen sometime this summer. It will be Netanyahu’s fourth time addressing a joint session of Congress.

Schumer has also been critical of Netanyahu’s approach to Israel’s war against Hamas even as he maintains support for Israel overall. In March, he called for new elections to be held in Israel to replace Netanyahu and “to allow for a healthy and open decision-making process about the future of Israel.”

The war has created a rift in the Democratic Party, as Congress’ progressive members become increasingly frustrated with the Biden administration and with congressional leadership’s support for Netanyahu’s campaign in the Gaza Strip. which has exceeded 35,000 people according to the Hamas-run health ministry.

Israel began attacking Hamas in Gaza after an Oct. 7 attack in Israel, in which around 1,200 Israelis were killed and around 240 hostages were taken.

Congress approved a $95 billion foreign aid bill earlier this year that included $26 billion for Israel and humanitarian aid, including in Gaza.

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