EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to deliver remarks Wednesday at a joint session of Congress, but dozens of Democrats are skipping the speech, including several notable Californians. 

This trip had been planned for a while with hopes of getting the U.S. to help end a war that is now nine months long. Before departing for Washington, Netanyahu said that he will “seek to anchor the bipartisan support that is so important for Israel.”

But the death toll has been steep, with tens of thousands killed, and that has led some House Democrats to dub the Israeli leader a war criminal. Although House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi will meet with Israeli citizens whose families have suffered in the wake of the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attack and kidnappings, she will not be present for the speech itself. Same goes for Rep. Judy Chu of Monterey Park.

“Prime Minister Netanyahu has purposefully undermined prospects for peace and taken a battering ram to Israel’s democracy,” the Democrat said in a statement. “For those reasons, I have decided not to attend his address to a joint session of Congress today.” 

And the Californian politician who is on track to become the Democratic presidential nominee, Kamala Harris, also will be absent, although the reasoning is a bit different. Usually a Vice President would preside over such an affair, but Harris’ team said she has a previously scheduled conflict. Harris will meet with the Prime Minister tomorrow. 

With concerns about protests running high, House Speaker Mike Johnson has cautioned he will have anyone causing a disturbance during the remarks arrested. 

Last night, at a discussion of the election, many local Jews expressed their dismay at the boycott of Wednesday’s speech.

“How can we have a discussion and move towards peace, if people aren’t even there to hear?” said one member of the Wilshire Boulevard Temple.

Netanyahu’s remarks are scheduled to begin at 11 a.m.