Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu used his joint meeting address of Congress to rally support for his ongoing battle against Hamas terrorists in Gaza by laying out his “broader Middle East vision,” which was met with mixed reactions of rousing applause and protests.
While he spoke, thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters surrounded the outside of the Capitol in response to his appearance on Capitol Hill.
During his address, there were several notable highlights of his speech:
NETANYAHU: PROTESTERS ARE ‘IRAN’S USEFUL IDIOTS”
Netanyahu called out Iran for “funding and promoting anti-Israel protests in America” and suggested that protests outside the U.S. Capitol building were likely being funded by the regime.
The prime minister took on the thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters surrounding the Capitol, calling them “Iran’s useful idiots.”
“I have a message for these protesters: when the tyrants of Tehran who hang gays from cranes and murder women for not hiding their hair, are praising and promoting and funding you — you have officially become Iran’s useful idiots,” he declared.
REP. RASHIDA TLAIB HOLDS ‘WAR CRIMINAL’ PROTEST SIGN DURING ADDRESS
Squad member Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) sat during his speech while holding a sign that said “War Criminal” on one side and “Guilty of Genocide” on the other.
One social media user gave praise to C-Span for its coverage of Tlaib’s appearance at Netanyahu’s address.
“Honestly really loving the C-SPAN camera man who, right after Netanyahu shouts ‘useful idiots,’ cuts to Rashida Tlaib,” the social media user quipped.
ISRAELI PM: PROTESTERS MIGHT AS WELL ‘HOLD UP SIGNS SAYING ‘CHICKENS FOR KFC’
“Some of these protesters — it’s amazing, absolutely amazing — some of these protesters hold up signs proclaiming ‘Gays for Gaza.’ They might as well hold up signs saying, ‘Chickens for KFC,’” Netanyahu slammed the protesters.
Some protesters around Washington, D.C. waved their transgender and Palestinian flags on Wednesday.
“They do realize that they would be executed in Gaza, right?!?” musician Chad Prather asked on social media.
Netanyahu continued to take digs about the contradictions found among protest rhetoric.
“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. They’re not only get an ‘F’ in geography. They get an ‘F’ in history,” the prime minister said before Congress.
He added, “They called Israel a colonial state. Don’t they know that the land of Israel is where Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob prayed, where Isaiah and Jeremiah preached? And where David and Solomon ruled? For nearly 4,000 years, the land of Israel has been the homeland of the Jewish people. It’s always been our home. It will always be our home.”
HE PRAISED THE NORTH CAROLINA FRAT BOYS
The prime minister shared that he learned from U.S. intelligence that “Iran is funding and promoting anti-Israel protests in America.”
“They want to disrupt America. So these protesters burn American flags even on the Fourth of July. And I wish to salute the fraternal brothers at the University of North Carolina who protected the American flag against these anti-Israel protesters,” he said.
Netanyahu’s comments referred to a campus protest in May when a group of fraternity brothers at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill defended an American flag on the campus’s quad that protesters were attempting to take down. The video of the college students protecting the flag went viral.
Pro-Palestinian demonstrators frequently have been seen taking American flags off of flag poles and replacing them with the Palestinian flag during protest events. On Wednesday outside Union Station in Washington, D.C., protesters were seen taking down the American flag while Netanyahu spoke before Congress.
SEN. JOHN FETTERMAN WORE A SUIT
Senator John Fetterman (D-PA), known for his hoodies and shorts attire, cleaned up in a black business suit for the prime minister’s address. The Pennsylvania senator has defied the progressive wing in his party over his alliance with Israel.
Numerous viral social media posts of Fetterman interacting with pro-Palestinian protesters have shown his unwavering support for the country in the wake of the Oct. 7 attacks despite harsh criticism. Fetterman appearing in a suit has been a rare occasion. He has also been known to arrive in a tuxedo hoodie, as he did to the Washington Press Club’s annual dinner in January.
NETANYAHU PRAISES TRUMP
During Netanyahu’s address, the prime minister shared his relief that former President Donald Trump survived the “dastardly” assassination attempt, saying, “There is no room for political violence in democracies.”
He continued his praise of Trump by thanking him for brokering the historic Abraham Accords, recognizing Israel’s sovereignty over the Golan Heights, and recognizing Jerusalem as their capital by moving the U.S. Embassy there.
ELON MUSK ARRIVES AS A SPECIAL GUEST OF NETANYAHU
Billionaire Elon Musk was invited as a guest of Netanyahu and sat with the Israeli prime minister’s wife, Sara Netanyahu, and other invited guests, including billionaire casino mogul Sheldon Adelson, rescued hostage Noa Argamani, and author Douglas Murray.
Elon Musk arrives at the U.S. Capitol to attend the Joint Session of Congress, as a guest of Netanyahu.
Reporter: “Whose guest are you?”
Musk: “Netenyahu.”
— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) July 24, 2024
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Numerous Democrats, including former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Democratic Whip Jim Clyburn (D-SC), Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN) and Senate President Pro Tempore Patty Murray (D-WA), decided to not appear in protest of the Israeli prime minister’s speech before Congress.
Vice President Kamala Harris, who under the Constitution serves as president of the Senate, declined to preside over the joint meeting and opted to give a keynote address at the historically Black Zeta Phi Beta sorority’s biennial convention in Indianapolis.
