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THE TOP
Inside the Netanyahu speech
Welcome to The Readback, our weekend digest featuring the best of Punchbowl News this week — a quick roundup of all our scoops, analysis and Capitol Hill insight you won’t find anywhere else. We’ve also included a few of our favorite outside reads from the week.
Now let’s get to it:
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to Congress dominated the Hill this week. Netanyahu’s speech came at a critical juncture in the U.S.-Israel relationship. Nearly a year after Hamas launched a terrorist attack on Israel, increasing numbers of Americans and Democratic lawmakers have broken from their long-standing support for Israel to condemn the nation’s war in Gaza.
We were in the House chamber during the speech to catch a glimpse of how members reacted to Netanyahu’s message.
Inside the room: From our vantage point in the press gallery, we were perched directly behind Netanyahu. So we couldn’t see the prime minister, but we had the perfect view of the members of Congress in attendance — that’s what really matters here at Punchbowl News!
The storyline of the speech was Rep. Rashida Tlaib’s (D-Mich.) silent protest. Tlaib, a Palestinian-American who has been sharply critical of Israel’s war in Gaza, was one of a select few of the Netanyahu antagonists who attended the speech. Around half of House Democrats and Senate Democrats decided to boycott it due to their opposition to Israel’s actions in Gaza.
Tlaib sat silently for the first 15 or so minutes of Netanyahu’s speech, listening as the Israeli leader defended his nation’s war against Hamas, minimized Palestinian civilian casualties and dinged President Joe Biden’s administration for holding up arms transfers.
And then Tlaib, clad in a keffiyeh and wearing a Palestinian flag pin, pulled out a double-sided circular sign that read “War Criminal” and “Guilty of Genocide.”
As Tlaib held up the sign, GOP Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (Fla.) bolted across the chamber to sit in the empty seat next to her. The two, locked in an intense conversation, were soon joined by Democratic Rep. Greg Landsman (Ohio). Landsman told us later he tried to play peacemaker but left because the two were engaged in a respectful chat. The hubbub was all too much for Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-Mass.), a strong Israel supporter, who ended up vacating his seat next to Tlaib.
Floor staff repeatedly got up to speak to Tlaib, presumably to tell her not to hold up the sign. The speech ended with two open seats on either side of Tlaib, symbolizing the lonely protest. Although Tlaib may have been alone in the chamber, the absence of roughly 125 Hill Democrats showed that more and more in the party are embracing sharp criticisms of Israel.
Outside the chamber: Thousands of anti-Israel protesters were expected outside the Capitol on Wednesday, leading to an aggressive security response by law enforcement. Capitol Police were joined by out-of-town police departments to make sure Netanyahu’s speech went off smoothly. There was also a large fence erected around the Capitol.
The heavy police presence led to an eerie silence on the Hill. When lawmakers gathered for a vote series hours before the speech, the absence of tourists or everyday Washingtonians milling about outside the House entrance was startling. Some staffers decided to work from home on the day of the speech due to fears about a disruptive demonstration.
Things were calm on the Hill. But Union Station was another matter. While the fenced security perimeter — reminiscent of the response following the Jan. 6 attack — kept demonstrators away from the Capitol grounds, many gathered in Columbus Circle. There they ripped down American flags, sprayed pro-Hamas graffiti on the Christopher Columbus statue and assaulted Park Police.
Political leaders in both parties condemned the ugly scenes outside Union Station. And a group of House Republicans led by Speaker Mike Johnson even returned to the flagpoles later that night to raise up the American flag.
What I’m reading: This smart Atlantic article on the meme battle playing out in the 2024 presidential election — and how the online Democratic base is reengaged.
— Max Cohen
You can find The Readback in your inbox every Saturday at 8 a.m. And don’t hesitate to reach out to readback@punchbowl.news with feedback. Enjoy The Readback.
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The Hill’s rare moment of harmony
We saw something unusual in the Capitol this week: unity.
Democrats and Republicans have linked arms to demand answers about how a would-be assassin came within inches of killing former President Donald Trump, one of the biggest Secret Service security failures in decades.
In a rare display of bipartisanship, the House voted unanimously to set up a task force to investigate the shooting. Zero lawmakers opposed the resolution, while a whopping 416 members voted for it. I had to double check the C-SPAN feed because that level of agreement is just unheard of around here — especially for this session of Congress, which has been especially contentious and chaotic!
The push for accountability has also made some unlikely bedfellows. House Oversight Committee Chair Jamie Comer (R-Ky.) and ranking member Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), who have been at loggerheads over the House GOP’s impeachment probe into President Joe Biden, even did a joint appearance on Fox News.
I’ll admit, I did not have that one on my bingo card. (Although, Raskin couldn’t quite help himself during their media interview and lightly ribbed Comer over his flailing Biden impeachment effort. So their beef isn’t totally squashed yet.)
And they’ve already gotten some results. Former Security Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned in the wake of her disastrous appearance in front of the Oversight panel on Monday, leading to cheers on both sides of the aisle.
We’ll see if the harmony lasts as the high-profile investigations plow ahead.
What I’m watching: Love Island USA. Lots, and lots, of Love Island USA. But in some ways, the show has mirrored what’s happening in the Democratic Party right now: One person has been dumped from the Island, but a new one has entered the villa!
— Melanie Zanona
Dems warm up to Harris
Between last week’s Readback and this one, we got a new likely Democratic nominee for president. What a decade this month has been, right?
We wanted to see how Hill Democrats, who have been divided for weeks over President Joe Biden’s electoral viability, were feeling about Vice President Kamala Harris.
Max, Andrew and I looked into how battleground Democrats view Harris, after many of them led the charge urging Biden to step aside from his reelection bid.
This story required a lot of attention to detail in keeping track of which Democrats have and have not yet endorsed Harris. Our list was shrinking by the hour with so many members coming out for Harris at once.
Overall, we found that Harris has so far been pretty popular among vulnerable Democrats. Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-Va.), the battleground leadership representative for House Democrats, said she thinks Harris will “generate a lot of enthusiasm” and will have “positive effects” down the ballot. Nice!
But as always, there’s still some holdouts not totally on the Harris train.
For example, Reps. Angie Craig (D-Minn.) and Emilia Sykes (D-Ohio) both raised concerns about the short amount of time Harris has to distinguish herself from Biden.
Later this week, I relayed those concerns to House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, asking what he thought of the reluctant Frontliners. Here’s what he told us:
“Vice President Harris has a vision that is designed to lower costs for the everyday American, grow the middle class, end price gouging, defend democracy and protect reproductive freedom. Those are issues that are going to excite Democrats, but also, in my view, help move independent and swing voters in our direction.”
Some frontliners still want to try and give themselves a little independence from the top of the ticket. On Friday, six vulnerable House Democrats joined Republicans to condemn Harris’ job performance overseeing the southern border.
I’d say, though, the majority of the party has been pretty impressed so far with Harris. There’s a new sense of enthusiasm and renewed morale after weeks of internal infighting. We’ll see if they can keep it up through November!
What I’m listening to: This week I’m listening to the album of the summer: Charli XCX’s Brat. But, PSA: Please stop having members attempt to be brat.
– Mica Soellner
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Sitting down with tax writers
Over the last few months, we launched a series of Q&A’s with tax writers on the big 2025 tax fight ahead.
We know what a huge deal the ramp up to next year is for tax and want to bring readers good info on what key members are thinking about and prioritizing.
It’s also a fun project as a reporter because it gives me the chance to spend some extra time with tax-focused lawmakers, often sitting down in their D.C. offices to chat.
I’ve learned more about specific focus areas — sometimes more than we can fit in the Q&A’s each week. For one, our latest installment was an interview with Senate Finance Committee member Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), which focused on how he’s pitching energy-related tax and trade policies for a package next year.
Another tidbit? Cassidy is also trying to wedge in flood insurance reform — a big issue he often touts and that hits home for Louisiana. That’ll be far easier said than done in an already massive tax bill, but it’s an interesting push from a senator who’s known for being engaged in policy details.
Here’s Cassidy’s pitch:
“If you are in Louisiana, as one example, and you live in a parish where you’re working in a refinery producing the gasoline and the diesel that goes across our country and you can’t afford your flood insurance, you can’t work there. And so it impacts not only your livelihood but the ability of that facility to produce the goods that power the rest of the nation…
“This is a way that the federal government in the past has supported middle-income families, lower-income families. I think we should continue to do so.”
The other fun part of sitting down with members in their offices is getting a better sense of them. Like Rep. Mike Kelly’s (R-Pa.) office has lots of football paraphernalia. And when I sat down with Rep. David Schweikert (R-Ariz.) this week for an upcoming installment, his daughter Olivia popped in to say hello.
If you’re a tax writer and you’re interested in getting in on the series, reach out! I’d love to talk 2025: laura@punchbowl.news.
What I’m listening to: Training camp has arrived! It is once again getting close to the absolute best time of year: football season. So the PHLY Eagles Podcast is my daily morning listen again to hear how Jalen Hurts and co. are looking on the field. Go Birds!!!!
– Laura Weiss
Editorial photos provided by Getty Images. Political ads courtesy of AdImpact.
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