Congress Immediately Jets Off To Foreign Countries For Annual Month-Long Break From Work

The House of Representatives recess began on July 23 and many lawmakers are spending their first days of what the congressional calendars deem their “district work period” abroad instead of returning to those they represent.

These representatives scattered to Israel, Mexico, Ireland, Belgium and the United Kingdom, with some meeting foreign leaders and others speaking at summits on trips as official U.S. delegates or of their own accord.

House Speaker Mike Johnson from Louisiana was scheduled to visit a settlement in the West Bank on Monday, according to Axios. Tagging along with the Speaker were New York Reps. Claudia Tenney and Michael McCaul as well as Texas Rep. Nathaniel Moran. (RELATED: Netanyahu Reportedly Weighing Full-Scale Occupation Of Gaza Strip)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shared that he met with the representatives as well as with U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, and Israeli Chairman of the Yesha Council and head of the Binyamin Council, Israel Ganz.

The private trip was organized by Heather Johnston, founder of the conservative pro-Israeli advocacy group U.S. Israel Education Association, three Israeli officials told Axios.

“I thanked [the representatives] for their unwavering support and moral clarity in standing with Israel against its enemies, and for their vital voices in the efforts to bring all the hostages home and defeat the murderous terrorist organization Hamas,” Israeli Minister of Defense Israel Katz said. “Israel is not only fighting for its survival – we are on the frontlines of the free world’s battle against radical Islamic ideologies.”

I met today with a distinguished delegation led by U.S. Speaker of the House @SpeakerJohnson, along with @RepNateMoran, @RepTenney, @RepCloudTX & @RepMcCaul.

I thanked them for their unwavering support and moral clarity in standing with Israel against its enemies, and for their… pic.twitter.com/xDOVgtK4lW

— ישראל כ”ץ Israel Katz (@Israel_katz) August 3, 2025

Johnson and his group are not the only congressmen across the pond. A bipartisan congressional delegation left shortly after the beginning of recess to meet with officials in Ireland, Belgium and the UK regarding free speech in Europe, according to a Judiciary Committee press release.

The delegation consisted of Republican Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee Jim Jordan from Ohio, Democratic Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Committee Jamie Raskin from Maryland, and Reps. Scott Fitzgerald from Wisconsin, Kevin Kiley from California and Steve Cohen from Tennessee.

“It’s critical that we stay aligned with our European allies on protecting free speech,” Kiley said. “Unfortunately, Europe has veered off course — and to be frank, the United States did too in recent years under the Biden administration. But thanks to the work of the Judiciary Committee, we’ve made real progress, and we’re here to help ensure that progress extends beyond our borders.”

Closer to home, a group of Democratic lawmakers made their way to Mexico City over the weekend for the second annual Pan-American Conference. General Coordinator David Adler of the openly anti-capitalist and anti-American organization Progressive International one of the event’s organizer’s.

In attendance were Reps. Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib of Minnesota, Delia Ramirez of Illinois, Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, Summer Lee of Pennsylvania and Jesús Gilberto García of Illinois.

The daughter of an illegal immigrant, Ramirez declared herself to be a “proud Guatemalan before I’m an American” in a speech in Spanish at the Pan-American Conference. (RELATED: ROOKE: Anchor Baby Congresswoman Admits To Treason)

The congressional recess concludes on Sept. 2, when these lawmakers will need to put away their passports and return to serving the people they have been elected to represent.