--- description: As many as 50 Democrats may be missing the speech, but Republicans and invited guests have packed the house title: Netanyahu Speech to Congress Draws Big Names image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt02e96bf2bd1e39c9/698781dc55a859e2a6a861e3/netanyahu-congress.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Politics](/section/politics/) ## Politics Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Congress](/tag/congress/) ## Congress Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Israeli Prime Minister Speech Draws Big Names by [Maya Rhodan](/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 3, 2015 4:17 PM CUT  Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is greeted by members of Congress as he arrives to speak during a joint meeting of the United States Congress in the House chamber at the U.S. Capitol March 3, 2015 in Washington, DC. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is greeted by members of Congress as he arrives to speak during a joint meeting of the United States Congress in the House chamber at the U.S. Capitol March 3, 2015 in Washington, DC.Chip Somodevilla—Getty Images by [Maya Rhodan](/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 3, 2015 4:17 PM CUT Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech before Congress felt a bit like a State of the Union. Despite the partisan contention around the speech which led as many as 53 Democratic lawmakers to skip the speech, it proved popular with Republicans, former lawmakers and interested citizens, according to reporters tweeting at the event. It was a hot ticket. Speaker John Boehner’s office [said there were 10 times](https://twitter.com/AlexPappas/status/572436998729928704 "undefined") as many requests for tickets as there were seats available in the gallery. Some former lawmakers seen on Capitol Hill Tuesday include former Speaker [Newt Gingrich](https://twitter.com/cimarcos/status/572780742087979008 "undefined"), former representative and current MSNBC host [Joe Scarborough](https://twitter.com/davidshepardson/status/572782249625718784 "undefined"), former representative and current Ohio Gov. [John Kasich](https://twitter.com/IsaacDovere/status/572782947142647808 "undefined"), former Reps. [Michele Bachmann](https://twitter.com/JakeSherman/status/572782351341772801 "undefined") and [Dennis Kucinich](https://twitter.com/IsaacDovere/status/572781562909073408 "undefined") and former Sens. [Joe Lieberman](https://twitter.com/cimarcos/status/572780742087979008 "undefined") and [Norm Coleman](https://twitter.com/KellyO/status/572783435980398593 "undefined"). The event drew some big names in conservative circles. Casino magnate and Republican donor [Sheldon Adelson](https://twitter.com/toddzwillich/status/572783702671028224 "undefined"), Weekly Standard founder [William Kristol](https://twitter.com/jwpetersNYT/status/572784991907786752 "undefined"), conservative radio host [Mark Levin](https://twitter.com/jwpetersNYT/status/572782952549113856 "undefined"), Republican political consultant [Frank Luntz](https://twitter.com/daveweigel/status/572784300480970752 "undefined") and attorney [Alan Dershowitz](https://twitter.com/jwpetersNYT/status/572784991907786752 "undefined") were also spotted by reporters inside the Capitol. The speech drew interest from outside politics too. New England Patriots owner [Robert Kraft](https://twitter.com/mikememoli/status/572782842838695936 "undefined"), author and Holocaust survivor [Elie Wiesel](https://twitter.com/mviser/status/572436116604903424 "undefined") and _Entertainment Tonight_ host [Mary Hart](https://twitter.com/deirdrewalshcnn/status/572779166560464897 "undefined"). ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3730060/benjamin-netanyahu-congress-guests/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3730060/benjamin-netanyahu-congress-guests/"},"headline":"Israeli Prime Minister Speech Draws Big Names","datePublished":"2015-03-03T16:17:29.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T04:52:09.929Z","description":"As many as 50 Democrats may be missing the speech, but Republicans have packed the house","url":"https://time.com/3730060/benjamin-netanyahu-congress-guests/","keywords":["Congress","Foreign Policy","Israel","Benjamin Netanyahu"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt02e96bf2bd1e39c9/698781dc55a859e2a6a861e3/netanyahu-congress.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Maya Rhodan","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt02e96bf2bd1e39c9/698781dc55a859e2a6a861e3/netanyahu-congress.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Israeli PM Netanyahu Addresses Joint Meeting Of Congress","caption":"Israeli PM Netanyahu Addresses Joint Meeting Of Congress","creditText":"Chip Somodevilla—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/congress/","name":"Congress"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3730060/benjamin-netanyahu-congress-guests/","name":"Israeli Prime Minister Speech Draws Big Names"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Know Right Now: Netanyahu's Visit Causes Tensions Between Israel and the U.S.","description":"Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to speak before a joint session of Congress on March 3rd, and the upcoming speech is having an affect on politics worldwide.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/1r3FQru4/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2015-02-25T22:46:40.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/1r3FQru4.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/3730060/benjamin-netanyahu-congress-guests/","duration":"PT1M3S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/3730060/benjamin-netanyahu-congress-guests/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```