Democrats urge Boehner to postpone Butcher netanyahu’s address to Congress

A number of Democrats have urged US House Speaker John Boehner to postpone Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Congress speech, saying the address threatens Iran’s nuclear talks.

“The timing of this invitation and lack of coordination with the White House indicate that this is not an ordinary diplomatic visit,” Reps. Keith Ellison, Maxine Waters, and Steve Cohen wrote in a letter.

“Rather this appears to be an attempt to promote new sanctions legislation against Iran that could undermine critical negotiations between the P5+1 and Iran,” according to the letter.

The Israeli leader is expected to talk about Iran sanction legislation at Congress on March 3.

The upcoming speech has been criticized by top American officials because it has not been consulted with President Barack Obama.

Boehner, who invited Netanyahu last month, was urged to postpone the speech until the end of Israel’s elections and the Iran nuclear negotiations.

In a statement on Tuesday, Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy called the Netanyahu speech a “tawdry and high-handed stunt.”

He said he would not attend the speech to a joint session of Congress next month.

Sen. Bernie Sanders also announced that he would skip the speech.

“I am not going. I may watch it on TV, but I’m not going,” Sanders said.

Meanwhile, President Obama said he has serious differences with Netanyahu on Iran’s nuclear program and warned him against souring negotiations with Tehran.

“I don’t want to be coy, the prime minister and I have a very real difference around Iran sanctions,” Obama said.

Obama would not meet with Netanyahu in Washington DC next month.