Rep. Dennis Ross, a Florida Republican who just returned from a recent trip to Israel, says he's "embarrassed" many members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) are not attending Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's address to Congress Tuesday.
The congressman said the CBC members should be the most supportive of Netanyahu because of what he described as the "common bond" of oppression shared by Jewish and black people.
"It's all political, and of those who should be supportive of any should be the Congressional Black Caucus," Ross told Newsmax TV's Steve Malzberg Show on Monday. "When you look at the oppression, when you look at the culture of enduring faith the Jewish people have had since the beginning of time and you look at the oppression that the blacks have suffered not only here in this country but elsewhere around the world, there's a common bond there."
Ross added that "they should be there at the ready" to support Netanyahu, saying the speech was not just about a nuclear deal with Iran but about world peace.
"They should be there at the ready to support Prime Minister Netanyahu. He's not only there to talk to Congress about the dreadful deal that our president's trying to negotiate, but he's also there to talk to the American people about the significance of Israel and American relations as it goes to world peace. This is something where we've got to stop this oppression that's becoming worldwide of radical Islamic extremists."
Ross called the CBC "a very good delegation of Americans" but said their lack of attendance "embarrassed" him.
"It sends a poor message from a very good delegation of Americans that I'm embarrassed about, and I would rather have them there to join me in solidifying our position on behalf of American-Israeli relations."