US Senate committee chair Ben Cardin to preside over Netanyahu speech

The leader of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee will preside over Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's speech to Congress on Wednesday, Senate aides said, with Vice President Kamala Harris scheduled to be traveling outside Washington.

The vice president, who serves as president of the Senate, was scheduled to be in Indiana on Wednesday.

Senator Ben Cardin, the committee's Democratic chairperson, will be presiding, an aide said on Monday. An aide to Democratic Senator Patty Murray, who as president pro tempore normally would preside in the absence of Harris, said she was not attending. Aides to Murray did not immediately respond when asked why she wasn’t attending.

Netanyahu to receive a cold welcome by some

Some members of Congress are expected to skip the address. Senator Bernie Sanders, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, said Netanyahu should not be welcomed into Congress and in a statement harshly criticized his "war machine."

Netanyahu's visit to Washington to address Congress was orchestrated by the legislature's Republican leaders, who have accused President Joe Biden, a Democrat, of showing insufficient support for Israel, despite the billions of dollars in US assistance sent during its war in Gaza.

The Israeli leader was due to arrive on Monday, a day after Biden announced he would end his campaign for reelection, making Harris the leading contender to be the Democratic nominee.

Former President Donald Trump, the Republican nominee for president in the Nov. 5 election, forged a close relationship with Netanyahu during his presidency.

Israel has been criticized internationally over its campaign in Gaza.

Biden's support for Israel during its offensive has drawn criticism domestically, especially among younger voters.