Just a couple hours before Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed Congress on Wednesday, roughly 100 Democrats crammed into a small room in the basement of the Capitol for a different show of devotion to Israel: a listening session with the family members of Israeli hostages held by Hamas.
Democrats were divided on whether they should attend Netanyahu’s address, which was, as expected, a full-throated defense of Israel’s military actions resulting in the deaths of about 40,000 Palestinians since the war in Gaza began. But as controversial as Netanyahu has become, many Democrats still wanted to signal their support for Israel — and the meeting with hostage families was meant to do just that.
Rep. Jim Clyburn came up with the idea, first suggesting the meeting to colleagues on the House floor. He then worked with the pro-Israel group J Street to get speakers from the Hostage Family Forum to speak to members.