Kevin McCarthy Defends Netanyahu from Biden’s Attacks

Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) defended Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday, following harsh criticism from President Joe Biden over reforms to Israel’s judiciary.

McCarthy tweeted his support: “Prime Minister Netanyahu is an Israeli patriot, statesman, and most importantly, a great friend of the USA. Free societies have vigorous and open debate. Israel is no exception. I support @netanyahu, and America’s support for Israel’s strong, vibrant democracy is unwavering.”

Prime Minister Netanyahu is an Israeli patriot, statesman, and most importantly, a great friend of the USA.

Free societies have vigorous and open debate. Israel is no exception.

I support @netanyahu, and America’s support for Israel’s strong, vibrant democracy is unwavering.

— Kevin McCarthy (@SpeakerMcCarthy) March 30, 2023

Earlier this week, as Breitbart News reported, Biden said he would not invite Netanyahu to the White House:

Biden framed his refusal as a response to Netanyahu’s proposed judicial reforms, which aim to increase the power of the legislature, such as allowing it to approve judges (as the Senate does in the United States).

Netanyahu paused his reforms on Monday to allow more time for negotiation with the left-wing opposition. In response, Ambassador [Tom] Nides said that Biden would extend a long-awaited invitation to Netanyahu to visit.

…

But Biden later told reporters that there would be no such invitation: “No. Not in the near term.”

Negotiations between the Israeli government and the opposition parties are ongoing.

Other Republicans have also condemned Biden’s comments. Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, a presidential contender in 2024, said that Biden should not interfere in Israel’s domestic affairs.

Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of the new biography, Rhoda: ‘Comrade Kadalie, You Are Out of Order’. He is also the author of the recent e-book, Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.