Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Sunday he felt an obligation to hear Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speak to Congress last week — but not to shake the prime minister’s hand.

“I went to this speech because the relationship between Israel and America is ironclad and I wanted to show that,” Schumer (D-N.Y.) said, when asked why he did not shake Netanyahu’s hand in an interview with Robert Costa on CBS “Face the Nation.” “But at the same time, as everyone knows, I have serious disagreements with the way Benjamin Netanyahu has conducted these policies.”

Netanyahu’s address to Congress on Wednesday was warmly received by many of those in attendance, but was met with serious backlash — with dozens of Democrats not attending the speech due to issues with Netanyahu’s handling of the war in Gaza. And even among those that attended, some Democrats issued statements condemning Netanyahu’s remarks.

Former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who did not attend the address, called Netanyahu’s speech “by far the worst presentation of any foreign dignitary invited and honored with the privilege of addressing the Congress of the United States” in a post on X. When Schumer was asked about Pelosi’s words, and whether he regretted Netanyahu’s invitation to address Congress, Schumer said the Israel-U.S. relationship should not be dependent on any one leader.

“As I’ve said, I wanted to show our ironclad commitment to Israel that transcends any one prime minister or any one president,” Schumer said. “No matter how much you might disagree with that prime minister.”

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