WASHINGTON — While members of the Massachusetts congressional delegation expressed irritation Friday about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plans to address Congress next month, none has vowed to skip his speech.
Most said they plan to attend, while several said they were undecided.
House Speaker John Boehner invited Netanyahu without consulting the White House, a deviation from protocol that has angered Democrats and thrust sensitive Middle East diplomacy more directly into Washington’s partisan battles.
Massachusetts representatives accused Boehner of putting Democratic lawmakers in a bind, caught between their desire to support a crucial international ally and their reluctance to join Boehner and the prime minister in tweaking President Obama.
“The speaker’s really put the House in a terrible position,” said Representative Katherine Clark, a Melrose Democrat, who pledged support for Israel but said she’s not sure if she’ll attend.
Democrats consider Boehner’s invitation an attempt to undermine the Obama administration’s negotiations with Iran on its nuclear power ambitions. Republicans — and some Democrats — are pushing for increased sanctions on Iran, while Obama has warned he would veto any sanctions before the current diplomatic efforts have concluded.
The speech was scheduled for March 3 so Netanyahu could attend the American Israel Public Affairs Committee’s policy conference in Washington. But the date has added political significance, coming two weeks before Israeli elections, where Netanyahu faces a close race.
Vice President Joe Biden will not attend the speech, his office said Friday, because he is traveling. House minority leader Nancy Pelosi on Thursday said House Democrats will not officially protest the speech, but she gave Democratic lawmakers political cover if they choose not to attend.
“When these heads of state come, people are here doing their work, they’re trying to pass legislation, they’re meeting with their constituents, and the rest,” she told reporters. “It’s not a high priority for them.”
At least seven House Democrats had said they will bypass the address as of Friday evening, according to media reports, but there did not appear to be any broader boycott movement among lawmakers. Reaction in the Massachusetts delegation was mixed.
“It would be discourteous not to attend,” said Representative Stephen Lynch, a South Boston Democrat, who confirmed he will be in the House chamber if Netanyahu appears as planned. “It’s a sign of respect for us, not only to Netanyahu, but to the Israeli people that we show up.”
Democratic Representatives Bill Keating of Bourne and Richard Neal of Springfield said they were frustrated with the scheduling but also would attend so as not to further politicize the situation. Representative Joe Kennedy, a Brookline Democrat, and Senator Edward Markey also plan to go.
But Niki Tsongas, a Lowell Democrat, said she had not decided whether to attend.
“Israel is one of our strongest allies and I hate to see the upcoming elections politicized in this manner,” Tsongas said.
Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat, declined an interview request. Her office did not respond directly when asked if she would attend, but it sent a statement expressing Warren’s disappointment with Boehner’s invitation. Representatives Michael Capuano of Somerville and Seth Moulton of Salem also voiced frustration at Boehner’s move but did not respond to direct questions about whether they would avoid the speech.
Boehner defended his invitation this week, saying Americans needed to hear from Netanyahu directly about the growing threat of radical Islamic terrorism.
Some leaders in the Massachusetts Jewish community urged lawmakers to attend and warned against any boycott.
“It doesn’t make sense to do this at a time when we’re all horrified by the enemies of Israel and the free world,” said May Long, founder of the Massachusetts-based Christians and Jews United for Israel. If the delegation boycotts, she said, “we won’t sit back on that.”
Others took a more neutral tone.
“We’re not going to advise the members whether to go, and we’re not going to protest whether or not they go,” said Jeremy Burton, executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Boston. “The entire brouhaha over the prime minister’s planned speech to Congress is a distraction from the substantive issues which brought it about.”
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee, a pro-Israel lobbying group, said only that it encourages members to attend.
Some congressional Democrats have proposed a middle ground: rescheduling the speech until after the Israeli elections. Representative James McGovern, a Worcester Democrat, signed onto a letter requesting the delay but said he wants to see the speech pushed back further until the Iran talks end. He has not decided whether to attend.
This speech, he said, puts any thoughtful discussion of Iran’s nuclear capabilities in jeopardy.
“The circumstances behind the invitation to the prime minister to address a joint session of Congress were so political and partisan,” McGovern said. “His visit will be remembered for that and not anything he says about Iran.”
Related:
• Biden to miss Netanyahu speech to Congress
• Opinion: Should Benjamin Netanyahu address Congress?
• Michael A. Cohen: Benjamin Netanyahu goes too far
Sylvan Lane can be reached at sylvan.lane@globe.com. Jessica Meyers can be reached at jessica.meyers@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @jessicameyers.