U.S. Speaker of the House John Boehner might have violated some protocols as the White House questioned him about inviting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to speak before the Congress regarding Iran without first consulting President Barack Obama.

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Boehner has announced the invitation on Wednesday, just a day after the president mentioned in his State of the Union address that Iran sanctions being developed via legislations by the Congress will be vetoed by him. This move of Boehner has further set a diplomatic showdown between the president and the Republican-run Congress.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest said in a statement that leaders of other countries should contact the leader of the country they plan to visit before traveling in the country. The takeoff done by Boehner is definitely a departure from the standard protocol that the White House strictly implements.

Earnest adds, "We'll need to hear from them about what their plans are and what he plans to say in his remarks to Congress before we have a decision to make about any meeting," in reference to the Israeli officials before they give judgment to Boehner's actions.

However, when Boehner was asked about inviting Netanyahu without the approval of Obama being a "poke in the eye" of the president, the speaker said that the Congress can make decision on its own to he does not believe he has poked anyone's eye.

Republicans have been developing many legislations regarding Iran and they have been trying to amass support from the Democrats in order to override the veto power of the president. One of the bills possibly being passed includes tightening sanctions over Iran in case a final nuclear agreement will be reached by June this year.

According to a Republican source, Boehner and Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell have been discussing the invitation of Netanyahu since last year. The source noted that Boehner confirmed the interest of Netanyahu of speaking before the Congress with Israeli Ambassador Ron Dermer just this January 8. Dermer said the Prime Minister was good to go and so the dates were set.

According to an Israeli official close to Netanyahu, although the Prime Minister's relationship with the president has always been stressful, he still looks forward to having a possible meeting with the U.S. president when he is to come to Washington by February 11 this year. 

TagsUnited States House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner, Prime Minister, Netanyahu, Israel, Iran, Sanctions, President Barack Obama