Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to meet with former President Donald Trump, currently the GOP nominee for the 2024 presidential elections, on Friday.
Trump previously wrote on his Truth Social account that he would meet with “Bibi” on Wednesday — then edited the post to reflect a change, stating the meeting would be on Thursday.
A couple of hours later, the former president changed the meeting time again, writing, that “at the request of Bibi Netanyahu, we have switched this meeting to Friday, July 26,” which also happens to be the birthday of Netanyahu’s oldest son, Yair, who is living in Miami.
The Israeli prime minister is scheduled to meet with President Joe Biden at 1 pm on Thursday, according to the Prime Minister’s Office.
Netanyahu is scheduled to address a joint session of the Congress at 2 pm Eastern Time on Wednesday.
Harris Skipping Netanyahu Address to Congress
Vice President Kamala Harris, who is now the presumed Democratic presidential nominee in the upcoming elections following the bombshell announcement by President Joe Biden earlier in the week that he has decided not to run for reelection, will not attend Netanyahu’s historic fourth address to Congress.
Harris said she cannot preside over Netanyahu’s address — as she is supposed to do as vice president — due to a scheduled campaign event outside the Washington DC area.
Senate President Pro Tempore Patty Murray (D-WA) would be next in line to preside over the session, given the absence of the vice president. However, Murray has declined and is planning to boycott the event altogether, along with a number of other Congressional Democrats.
Instead, outgoing Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD) will do the honors.
Blinken to Referee Bibi-Biden Meeting
The meeting with Biden was originally set for Tuesday; however, Biden was diagnosed with COVID-19 last Friday and immediately flew to his beach house in Rehoboth Delaware to self-isolate, while postponing his meetings.
After recuperating and receiving 10 doses of the anti-viral Paxlovid, the president is now testing negative for the virus, according to White House physician Dr. Kevin O’Connor.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken will reportedly attend Biden’s meeting with Netanyahu, slated to be a “bilateral” discussion, according to multiple reports.
The White House said in a brief statement that Biden “will hold a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel” on Thursday, and then “the president and the prime minister are to meet with the families of Americans held hostage by Hamas.”
Netanyahu to Meet with Harris, Time Unclear
Harris is also expected to meet with Netanyahu, but no day or time has been announced.
During her meeting with Israel’s head of state, Harris plans to reaffirm her commitment to Israel’s security and its right to defend itself.
However, Harris will also “convey her view that it is time for the war to end in a way where Israel is secure, all hostages are released, the suffering of Palestinian civilians in Gaza ends, and the Palestinian people can enjoy their right to dignity, freedom, and self-determination,” according to a Harris aide who spoke with the Politico news outlet.
Harris has called for the US to be “more forceful at seeking a long-term peace and two-state solution,” a source told the news outlet.
The vice president apparently does not realize those two goals are mutually exclusive.
