WASHINGTON _ Vice President Mike Pence will postpone his trip to Israel and Egypt next week by a few days in case he is needed to break a tie vote in the U.S. Senate on the Republican tax cut bill, his office announced.
Pence is scheduled to address the Israeli Knesset on the first major U.S. visit to Israel since President Donald Trump declared on Dec. 6 that the United States will recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital.
That broke with decades of U.S. policy and international consensus that viewed the holy city's political status as one that should be in negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians, who both claim the city as their capital.
Trump's declaration prompted protests by Palestinians and other Arabs. At a summit in Turkey on Wednesday, Arab and Muslim leaders "rejected and condemned" Trump's decision, and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas suggested he might not cooperate with White House efforts to forge an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal.
Pence's office denied reports in the Israeli press that he had delayed his trip because of the Arab reaction, saying Pence may be needed to break a tie in the Senate on Trump's most important legislative goal,
Republicans hold a 52-48 majority in the chamber and are trying to vote next week before Democrat Doug Jones, who won a special election in Alabama on Tuesday, is sworn in, which will shrink the majority by one additional vote.
Adding to the uncertainty, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., was hospitalized Wednesday for side effects from his cancer treatment. Sen. Thad Cochran, R-Miss., also has missed votes this week due to medical reasons.
Alyssa Farah, Pence's press secretary, said in a statement that Pence would stay in town to preside over a tax vote because "we are so close to passing pro-growth pro-jobs tax reform for hard working families."
"The vice president will then travel to Egypt and Israel where he'll reaffirm the United States' commitment to its allies in the Middle East and to working cooperatively to defeat radicalism," she said.
