Yesterday, this happened:
"I’ve invited Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu to address a joint session of Congress on the grave threats of radical Islam and the threat that Iran poses…I did not consult with the White House.”
Naturally, House Democrats went ballistic:
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Thursday said Speaker John A. Boehner's decision to invite the prime minister of Israel to address Congress without consulting President Obama was "out of the ordinary" and said she was concerned about the timing of the visit, which will take place just before elections in Israel."It's hubris to say 'I rule, I'll decide,' without any sensitivity" to the upcoming Israeli elections, said Pelosi.
Boehner will easily shrug this criticism off. As he said above, “the Congress can make this decision on its own and I don’t believe I’m poking anyone in the eye.” Pelosi, of course, would disagree.
But the reason Boehner felt compelled to invite Israel’s prime minister, he said, was because the president didn’t really address the “grave threat” of an armed nuclear Iran in his annual State of the Union Address. Obviously, if Netanyahu addresses a joint session of Congress, those who are willfully ignorant to Iran's nefarious activities will be forced to listen. Maybe that's the whole point of inviting him to speak in the first place, even if the White House will pretend he isn't there.
In the meantime, grab some popcorn. Netanyahu will be in town on March 3.