Speaker Johnson warns those who protest Netanyahu address will be arrested

Lawmakers who stage a protest during Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address risk being detained by the House sergeant-at-arms, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) told members ahead of the speech later this week. 

In a “Dear Colleague” letter sent to lawmakers Tuesday, Johnson reminded them of the House rules of decorum and warned leaders will be operating under a “zero-tolerance policy for disturbances in the building.” Johnson said if lawmakers disrupt Netanyahu’s joint address, it could lead to prosecution and possibly arrest. 

“If any disturbance does occur, the Sergeant at Arms and Capitol Police will remove the offending visitor(s) from the gallery and subject them to arrest,” Johnson wrote in the letter. “As Members, it is incumbent upon us all to likewise model respect and proper decorum as representatives of the American people and our institution, and as ambassadors of the United States on the world stage.”

Johnson said if a member does cause a disturbance, the sergeant-at-arms will “request that such action be ceased immediately” —  a request the speaker said “will be heeded.” 

The warning comes as Capitol Police begin implementing additional security measures ahead of Netanyahu’s address, including increased police presence around the Capitol complex as well as barriers and fencing. 

Netanyahu is scheduled to address Congress in a joint session Wednesday, an event that many Democratic lawmakers have vowed to boycott. Republicans have especially pointed to Vice President Kamala Harris’s expected absence from the speech, especially as she becomes the next likely Democratic presidential nominee. 

House Republican leaders have decried Harris’s absence, calling it “disgraceful” to one of the country’s closest allies. 

“Kamala Harris couldn’t even find the time to go greet Prime Minister Netanyahu yesterday when he arrived in the United States,” House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) told reporters Tuesday. “It’s disgraceful. Why should we not come and show support for our greatest ally in the Middle East while they’re at war, from terrorist organizations funded by Iran? These are the kinds of questions that they’re gonna have to answer.”

The speech could stir anger among some Democrats because it’s reminiscent of when Republicans invited Netanyahu to address Congress in 2015 before informing the Obama administration of its plans. In that speech, Netanyahu slammed former President Barack Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran in an address that angered many Democratic lawmakers.

The speech also comes as Democrats have remained largely split on providing foreign aid to Israel amid its war with Hamas, with some liberals instead calling for a ceasefire. However, those divisions have seemed to escape the spotlight recently amid the assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden dropping out of the 2024 race.