Fetterman threads the needle with threat to abandon Democrats
Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) expressed a warning that he might leave the Democratic Party due to its perceived declining support for Israel, but he clarified that his threat was largely symbolic and dependent on specific party platform changes. Fetterman has faced questions about his alignment with the party amid divisions over Israel and other issues, including some House Democrats voting to cut aid to israel. He emphasized that unless Israel’s support is officially opposed as part of the party platform, he remains committed to Democrats.
Fetterman also addressed concerns about his cross-party fundraising efforts with Republican Sen. Dave McCormick, denying any sinister motives and insisting they are about shared issues rather than party loyalty. While his policy views sometimes align with Republicans-such as voting with Trump more frequently enough than most Democrats-he remains a democrat, citing the political landscape and his 2022 victory as reasons to stay.
He indicated that his party’s internal divisions over Israel and progressives’ influence could threaten his position but declined to specify how close he is to crossing a red line. Fetterman has not announced plans for his 2028 re-election but highlighted his role in helping Democrats maintain majority control. He also criticized party figures supporting insurgent candidates, asserting that centrist efforts made Democrats’ recent victories possible.
The warning from Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) that he could leave the Democratic Party over its fading support for Israel comes with a large asterisk.
It was a threat that prompted the centrist Democrat to spend much of Thursday clarifying to reporters in the halls of the Capitol.
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Roughly half of House Democrats voting to cut off U.S. aid to Israel and insurgent progressives with anti-Israel sentiments ousting incumbents are not part of his calculation. Fetterman considers the events largely “symbolic.”
“If you actually [make] it part of our platform, then that’s different,” Fetterman said. “When they just make it official. That they add that to the platform and say, ‘We will never support aid for Israel, it doesn’t deserve to exist,’ and makes it very clear.”
The party’s grappling with immense divisions over what was once ironclad support for the longtime U.S. ally has included a rise in antisemitism. But without a more unified stance, Democrats remain without an official position on continuing billions of dollars in annual military aid, let alone declaring Israel lacking the right to exist.
That is good news for the Democrats who fear Fetterman is on the cusp of becoming a Republican. He’s stirred fresh fury over his cross-party joint fundraising effort with Sen. Dave McCormick (R-PA). Fetterman rejected the notion it was part of a “sinister” plot and downplayed its significance beyond offering donors the ability to “support our views and the common issues that we agree on.” He also denied it meant anything for his potential 2028 reelection plans or switching parties.
There might be natural commonalities with his home state Republican colleague, and he’s no stranger to railing against his party, particularly on illegal immigration and Israel. But Fetterman’s policy overlap with Republicans largely ends there.
He voted in line with President Donald Trump last year 28% of the time, the most of any Senate Democrat, according to a VoteHub analysis. Still, more than half of Pennsylvania voters want him to abandon Democrats, and his job approval ratings are inversed among the parties: 77% of Republicans approve compared to just 19% of Democrats. Those figures suggest he’d have difficulty prevailing in a Democratic primary.
As a Republican, Fetterman would be far from Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), who’s voted in line with Trump’s stated position 88% of the time, the lowest among GOP senators. Just this week, as one of Washington’s staunchest Israel defenders, Fetterman called it a “betrayal” for Vice President JD Vance to allege Israel is paying online influencers to criticize and undermine administration talks toward an Iran peace deal.
By comparison, former West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, the Democrat-turned-independent, voted with Trump roughly half the time during the president’s first term. He’s urged Fetterman to follow in his footsteps and “set yourself free” by becoming an independent.
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Just how close does Fetterman feel the party is to crossing his red line? He declined to offer specifics.
“That’s why I’m still a Democrat,” Fetterman said.
The first-term senator, who’s yet to state his 2028 reelection plans, cited his 2022 battleground victory as the reason Democrats have a shot this November at retaking the majority. The party needs to flip four seats.
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Fetterman also lambasted those in the party who’ve propped up progressive insurgents like disgraced former Maine Senate nominee Graham Platner, suggesting it’s centrists like himself that have made a majority possible, even if the map doesn’t favor the Democrats.
“I made the math possible for a majority in ‘26,” he said. “The people that pushed that garbage now just made that now more unlikely. They need to own that.”
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