On July 24, roughly two weeks after Donald Trump's sentencing in Manhattan, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is schedule to travel to Washington and address a joint session of Congress. The invitation was set up by House Speaker Mike Johnson and (eventually) Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. He is expected to provide an update on the war in Gaza and thank the United States for it's continuing support of his country. But not everyone is happy about it. Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, during an interview with CNN, described the invitation as a "mistake," saying the decision was "wrong" and that she thinks having him speak is a "sad" situation. She added that the invitation would absolutely not have been made if she were still the Speaker. So we at least know where she stands on the matter. (NY Post)

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi argued Friday that it was a mistake for Congressional leaders to extend an invitation to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to address lawmakers next month.

“I think this is wrong,” Pelosi (D-Calif.) told CNN of the 74-year-old Israeli leader’s expected address to a joint meeting of Congress on July 24.

“I feel it’s very sad that he has been invited,” the 84-year-old added.

Pelosi, who led House Democrats for two decades before stepping aside in January 2023, went on to say that she would “absolutely not” have invited Netanyahu had she still been in charge.

Pelosi attempted to defend her position by pointing out that she is at least being consistent. She noted that she similarly objected to John Boehner's invitation to Netanyahu in 2015. I suppose that does show that she is consistent, but it only serves to prove that she's been consistently wrong. Pelosi went on to claim that the invitation might be meaningless because we have no way of knowing if Bibi Netanyahu will still be in power by the third week in July. She claimed that some members of Netanyahu's own cabinet have been talking about removing him.

That's technically true, but that's always the case in Israeli politics. They have a spirited and frequently divided democratic government just like we do in the United States. (Not to mention the fact that we talk about removing our own leaders frequently as well.) But at the moment, most of Israel's political leaders appear to recognize that they are in the middle of a war for their survival and any talk of political upheaval should probably remain on the shelf until after Hamas has been dealt with and the hostages have been returned, both living and dead.

This is hardly the first time that the former Speaker has sent clear signals that she is no fan of Israel and her attitude dates back much, much further than October 7 of last year. Only a week before the Hamas terror attacks, she was in Washington declaring her ongoing support for the Palestinians and a two-state solution while criticizing Israel's enforcement actions in the West Bank settlements. In April of 2022, Pelosi visited Israel herself and delivered a speech where she said that the Biden administration's commitment to Israel is "ironclad," but couldn't resist reiterating Biden's "support for Palestinian statehood" and "freedom." (Reminiscent of the chants to "Free, free Palestine," no?) As far as invitations go, Pelosi had no problem joining with Chuck Schumer in October of 2022 to invite former Israeli President Isaac Herzog to address Congress. So perhaps it's only Netanyahu and his party that Pelosi dislikes so much.

Nancy Pelosi has spent decades walking a tightrope between maintaining her supporters from J-Street and promoting the cause of the Palestinians. That is perhaps understandable for a typical politician because both sides make significant contributions to political campaigns. But Israel is at war now and Bibi Netanyahu is the leader that the Israeli people selected to lead them through this mess. He deserves our unfettered support, so everyone needs to pick a side. Pelosi needs to either get off the fence or get off the stage. She still seems fairly sharp (at least when compared to Joe Biden), but she's been occupying her perch for far too long already. Go home and make some room for fresh blood in Washinton, Madam.