The Cry Being Heard Around Washington: ‘I Need a Netanyahu Ticket’

WASHINGTON — For Senator Lindsey Graham, the only ticket more in demand than a seat inside the House chamber for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to Congress on Tuesday morning would be “if it was Garth Brooks — maybe.”

“I’m having to tell people who supported me for decades I can’t find a ticket,” said Mr. Graham, Republican of South Carolina, referring to the country music star. “If I had 100 tickets, I’d be the most popular guy in town.”

But, alas, Mr. Graham — like almost every member of Congress — has just one ticket to dole out to a constituent, lobbyist or donor eager to hear Mr. Netanyahu make his case for opposing the Obama administration’s nuclear talks with Iran. And demand is fast outpacing supply for what lawmaker after lawmaker called “the hottest ticket in town.”

How hot? “The tickets are hotter than fresh latkes,” said Senator Charles E. Schumer, Democrat of New York.

“Of course, from a South Dakota standpoint, we don’t have a really large Jewish community,” he said. “In fact, I always tell people that when I want to get advice on those issues, I talk to my Jewish community — I talk to the Rosenthals and the Adelsteins.”

But Mr. Thune seems to be an exception.

And all the lobbying and appeals for tickets, some aides said, already had them thinking of the next big joint meeting of Congress, which might require divine intervention to score a seat — Pope Francis’ address in September.

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The New York Times