Vice-President Joe Biden and many Members of Congress have already announced they will absent themselves from Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu's speech to Congress on March 3.
Please call your two Senators and one House Member and ask them to join this boycott of the speech.
If you are involved in a religious community or congregation, make that clear.
To make three calls, you can phone 1202-224-3121 and ask for each of the Senators from your state, and for your House Member.
" If you don't know the name of your House Member, click to http://www.house.gov/representatives/find/, plug in your zip code -- and voila!
" If you are from Washington DC (still denied representation in the Senate), call the Senate Majority and Minority Leaders -- Senators McConnell and Reid.
Urge rabbis, priests, ministers, and non-clergy leaders of your religious community or congregation, to do the same.
When you call, you might explain your request for any or all of four reasons. The speech is destructive because it --:
" Undermines the Presidency and its Constitutional responsibility for relationship with foreign governments, by a back-door invitation from Congressional leaders;
" Makes a tight alliance between right-wing Israeli politicians and the rightwing US politicians who invited him, attempting to push both US politics and Israeli politics (on the verge of an Israeli election) in a right-wing direction;
" Attempts to torpedo negotiations with Iran, so far successful with more steps still to take, that are seeking to prevent Iran from making nuclear weapons and in a step-by-step process, inviting Iran back into the community of peaceful nations;
" Prefers war over diplomacy in dealing with Iran, risking a war that would be disastrous for the American, Israeli, and Iranian peoples, and would stimulate even more murderous terrorism.
These Members of the House of Representatives have already said they will refuse to attend:
Jim McGovern (D-MA)," John Lewis (D-GA), Raul Grijalva (D-AZ)," Barbara Lee (D-CA)," Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC)," Hank Johnson (D-GA), Luis Gutierrez (D-IL), " John Yarmuth (D-KY), Chellie Pingree (D-ME), Donna Edwards (D-MD), Betty McCollum (D-MN), Keith Ellison (D-MN)", Bennie Thompson (D-MS)", Gregory Meeks (D-NY), Charlie Rangel (D-NY), G.K. Butterfield (D-NC), Earl Blumenauer (D-OR)", Jim Clyburn (D-SC)", Beto O'Rourke (D-TX)", Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX)", Jim McDermott (D-WA)
And these Senators:
Pat Leahy (D-VT)" Bernie Sanders (I-VT), " Brian Schatz (D-HI)
Veteran Israeli peace activist and former Member of Knesset Uri Avnery has written an astute analysis of the role of Sheldon Adelson, multibillionaire casino king and Big-Money political donor, in cementing the two-nation right-wing alliance. Read it here.
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