Biden welcomes Kenya’s Ruto to the White House
WASHINGTON – What was on the menu for visiting Kenyan President William Ruto’s Thursday-night state dinner: smoked short ribs and buttered lobster. What wasn’t on the menu: an invitation for the African leader to address a joint session of Congress.
That missing course has left many lawmakers fuming. They fear the absence of an honor that has been accorded to all other recent visiting heads of state could leave a bitter aftertaste.
Citing “scheduling restraints,” House Speaker Mike Johnson rejected a joint meeting of Congress with Ruto that was proposed by the House Committee on Foreign Affairs to “underscore the importance of the U.S-Kenya relationship.”
Ruto’s trip is the first state visit by a Kenyan president to the United States in two decades and the first by an African leader since 2008.
The last African leader to address Congress was Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who spoke in the House chamber in 2006.
In a letter to Johnson, Rep. Steven Horsford, chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, called the move an “affront to American diplomacy.” The letter was signed by more than 60 caucus members, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.
Horsford wrote it was “especially troubling” because other heads of state who have made official visits during the 118th Congress were invited to address Congress. The letter demanded that Ruto be “treated with the same respect.
“Failing to invite President Ruto sends a dangerous message to the world,” Horsford wrote. “About which countries the United States Congress deems worthy of addressing Congress and diminishes the importance of our nation’s relationship with the continent of Africa.”
Democratic Rep. Barbara Lee, along with other lawmakers, wrote to Johnson pointing out that “adversaries” like China, Russia and Iran are working to subvert America’s alliances, particularly in Africa.
Kenya is emerging as a vital African partner to the U.S.
Johnson’s decision helps create an opening for autocratic adversaries to make inroads in African public opinion, lawmakers warned, adding: “The people of Kenya deserve more respect.”
Asked about his decision, Johnson’s office sent a statement to USA TODAY saying logistics couldn’t be worked out.
“We offered the Kenyan embassy over 90 minutes of engagement including a one-on-one visit with Speaker Johnson, bipartisan leadership meeting with Speaker Johnson, Leader Jeffries, and Committee Chairmen and Ranking Members, and a bicameral meeting,” the statement said of the meeting that took place Wednesday.
Ruto’s visit marks 60 years of official U.S.-Kenya partnership “founded on shared values, deep cooperation, and a common vision for the future,” according to the White House.
President Joe Biden was expected to inform Congress on Thursday that he intends to designate Kenya as a major “non-NATO Ally.” It’s a designation granted by the United States to countries with close and strategic working relationships with the U.S. military and defense civilians.