Politics
Fetterman praised President Donald Trump for removing the United States from the Obama-era Iran nuclear deal, moving the U.S. Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem and pushing for an agreement between Japanese-owned Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel.
BOSTON – Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pennsylvania) continued to distance himself from his fellow Democrats on Monday, telling an audience that he has lost support from liberals for his belief that border security is important and his support for Israel.
Speaking with his fellow senator from Pennsylvania, Dave McCormick, a Republican, at an event celebrating bipartisanship, Fetterman praised President Donald Trump for removing the United States from the Obama-era Iran nuclear deal, moving the U.S. Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem and pushing for an agreement between Japanese-owned Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel. He said his party had make a “mistake” on border security.
“I’m really the only one left in the Democratic caucus talking about these kinds of things,” Fetterman said of his Iran concerns, as McCormick nodded along next to him.
The comments point to Fetterman’s growing alienation from his own party, which is a challenge for Democrats as they attempt to form a cohesive opposition to Trump and seek to regain the Senate majority in the 2026 midterm elections. Republicans are openly courting Fetterman to join their 53-seat majority, even though the senator from Pennsylvania has said repeatedly he would never join the GOP.
The two purple-state senators from opposing parties found little they disagreed on at the Edward Kennedy Institute. The discussion, moderated by Fox News’s Shannon Bream, took place in a reproduction of the U.S. Senate floor – which Fetterman rarely sets foot in because of his violation of the chamber’s dress code. (Senators not conforming to the dress code can vote from the chamber’s doorstep.)
Fetterman blamed recent coverage questioning his frequent missed votes and committee hearings on what he called “left” media that he said disagrees with his stances on immigration and Israel.
He said he misses “throwaway procedural” votes scheduled on Monday evenings to spend more time with his three children and that he has not missed as many votes as Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) and Patty Murray (D-Washington). (Murray missed votes while caring for her hospitalized husband.) Fetterman, who polls show is popular in Pennsylvania, said he receives positive feedback from liberal voters.
“I spent two days in Cambridge – one of the most liberal and progressive areas – and it’s been all uniform positive reaction walking around,” Fetterman said of the Boston suburb.
He added that McCormick asked his permission to defend him publicly from the criticism, as he was worried defense from a Republican might not help him. “He actually asked me. It’s like: ‘Is it okay to defend you? I don’t want that to create more political problems,’” Fetterman said.
McCormick, a former hedge fund CEO who unseated Democrat Bob Casey in November, praised Fetterman for showing “moral clarity” on the issue of Israel. After the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack, the nation began a punishing counterattack in Gaza, which is ongoing and has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths and widespread hunger.
Both men condemned an attack in Boulder, Colorado, on Sunday in which authorities said a man threw molotov cocktails and yelled, “Free Palestine” at a group of peaceful protesters gathered to honor the Israeli hostages. Eight were injured. “What happened yesterday in Boulder ― it’s astonishing that the kinds of rank antisemitism [are] out of control,” Fetterman said.
Fetterman linked the attack to protests that unfolded across college campuses last year, saying antisemitism is “rampant” across universities and claiming that they were not protected by free speech protections.
“I can’t imagine how people in the Jewish community feel,” Fetterman said. “They’re exhausted. … They’re living under this constant kind of criticism.”
Fetterman said Trump “did the right thing” when he withdrew from the Iran deal. At the time, Fetterman said he supported that deal. He also urged Trump to abandon negotiations with Iran and allow Israel to strike its nuclear facilities, which he argued would “transform the region.”
But McCormick and Fetterman broke on one issue – the Trump-branded One Big Beautiful Bill extending tax cuts and pouring money into building detention centers for migrants that the Senate is taking up after the House passed it last month. McCormick said he supports the legislation but wants to find more cost savings in it.
“We’re going to try to find ways to further reduce the cost of government,” McCormick said, acknowledging that both parties have piled onto the federal debt in recent decades.
Fetterman said he can’t support the bill because of its cuts to Medicaid and the food aid program called SNAP. “I don’t think I’ll ever be in a position to support cutting Medicaid,” he said.
But he made a promise about the debate going forward. “I’m not going to call people names or call people fascist or [say] ‘You want people to die,’” Fetterman said. “I refuse to engage in that kind of rhetoric.”
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