Democratic senator John Fetterman made a surprise virtual appearance at the Republican midterm convention, delivering a video address supporting Dave McCormick, a Republican senator in Pennsylvania.
Fetterman, who has increasingly broken with his party since his election in 2022, said in the video that he would always reject “extremes and socialismâ€, repeating an oft-used Republican critique of the Democratic party's increasingly popular left wing.
The video message will do little to dampen speculation that the renegade senator, who is now more popular among Republican voters in Pennsylvania than the Democrats who helped elect him, is preparing to switch political parties. Fetterman has repeatedly said that is not his plan, though he recently suggested he would be forced to formally break with the Democratic party if it ever became “the anti-Israel partyâ€.
Democrats currently hold 47 seats in the US Senate. Despite the long odds, Democrats believe discontent with the economy and Trump's low approval ratings have given them a rare opportunity to retake control of the upper chamber. A defection would jeopardize their already narrow path to a majority.
Yet if Fetterman remains a Democrat, he would hold outsized influence, effectively wielding veto power in a 51-49 majority.
In the roughly one-minute video, Fetterman, wearing his trademark black hoodie, stood outside the Mon Valley Works – a processing plant operated by US Steel in Pittsburgh. In a stunning display of support for Republican colleague in the Senate, Fetterman called McCormick his “great friendâ€, and said that he would work with him and Donald Trump “to fight and defend the steel way of lifeâ€.
“Yes, I'm a Democrat. Why am I here talking to you today? Because well, I'm a commonsense Democrat. I'm always going to stand with America,†the Pennsylvania lawmaker said in the pre-recorded message. “I'm always going to reject the extremes and socialism and that anti-American way of life. Dave McCormick is the kind of senator that gets the job done, and he's going to fight for Pennsylvania.â€
At the convention center in Dallas, attenders welcomed the senator's rightward march.
“I actually think it's really awesome that he's come around,†Tracy Smith, an attender from Maryland, said. “He's more common sense, and even though he's a Democrat, he can see both sides. You have to get along. It's like a seesaw. You know, not right or left, but in the middle. And I think he realized that, and it's actually amazing.â€
Asked if she thought Fetterman could switch to the Republican party, Smith said: “I actually do. I think he's leaning that way right here. It would be great. I think it would be awesome.â€
Eric Torrison, who traveled from Arizona to attend the convention, was also laudatory.
“There is no way on God's green Earth that I would have supported Fetterman when he ran for the Senate, and [was] aghast when he got elected,†said Eric Torrison, who lives in Arizona.
“But it's really interesting. He seems to have held to his beliefs, and not run to the left, and he seems to be, from a conservative standpoint, from a Republican standpoint, the only sensible Democrat there.â€
Fetterman's fellow Democrats were far less charitable. “John Fetterman is the laziest Benedict Arnold America has ever seen. He didn't even have it in him to get off his couch in his million-dollar penthouse to kiss Donald Trump's ring in person. He phoned it in, just as he has every day as our senator. John should do his job or resign,†Pennsylvania state representative Malcolm Kenyatta said in a statement.
Fetterman has been in the limelight after reports from current and former staff that he was avoiding constituent events, behaving erratically and cozying up to conservative media.
In the past week, the senator has attempted to defend himself after an account on X, which claims to be run by former staffers, gained traction.
