Democratic Sen. John Fetterman snapped after a reporter pressed him on the growing speculation that he could switch parties.
The Pennsylvania senator faced a barrage of questions from reporters about his alleged lack of interest in his job and his increasingly cozy ties to MAGA stars as he walked through the Capitol on Tuesday.
Fetterman, 57, ignored the questions until a reporter appeared to hit a nerve by asking, “The way the Democratic Party is going right now, is there a chance you could become a Republican, sir?”
Shaking his head, the senator exploded, shouting, “I’m not going to be a Republican!”
“Why can’t you guys just wait till the midterm? You know, and if I turn a Republican, and then I’ll be a liar then. Like, my name is not on the ballot,” he continued. “Like, chill and wait for the midterm here. I’ve always been a Democrat. It’s like, no matter how many times I say that, I’m still getting asked just getting into the elevator.”
It’s not hard to see why Fetterman keeps getting asked the question, especially after he appeared in a video at the Republican midterm convention to introduce Pennsylvania’s other senator, Republican Dave McCormick.
Calling himself a “common-sense Democrat,” Fetterman, standing in front of a steel mill, appeared to take a swing at the left wing of his party, saying, “I’m always going to reject extremes of socialism,” and vowed to work “with President Donald Trump to fight and defend the steel way of life.”
Fetterman, who is not up for reelection until 2028, has also launched a fundraising effort with McCormick and has repeatedly appeared on Fox News, where he has blasted liberal Democratic candidates.
While he has largely toed the party line in Senate votes, he has occasionally sided with Republicans, including on a series of war powers resolutions brought by Democrats to rein in Trump over his war with Iran, as well as on government spending bills.
Still, Fetterman has repeatedly insisted that he has no plans to leave the Democratic Party, telling the Washington Examiner before his outburst on Tuesday, “I know Democrats are frustrated with me, but I will remain one, and that’s where I’m at.”
Meanwhile, Fetterman has faced mounting scrutiny over his alleged disinterest in serving Pennsylvanians, particularly after the Wall Street Journal, citing interviews with multiple former staffers, reported earlier this month that he has expressed ‘disdain’ for the basic duties of his job
In one incident, according to the Journal, Fetterman canceled a meeting with three paralyzed military veterans who had traveled to Washington, D.C., to see him because he wanted to be interviewed on Fox News instead.
