Sen. John Fetterman (D-Penn.) lamented what he sees as a socialist shift taking root in the Democratic Party while making one of his regular appearances on Fox News Friday.
Fetterman's Remarks on Fox News
Host Jesse Watters teed up an interview with Fetterman, using clips of the May Day demonstrations across the country earlier that day, and calling the protests a "commie clown show". Watters asked Fetterman, "How big of a threat do you think this communist movement is?"
The senator said it was "very sad to see" the handful of sickle and hammer flags and "Communist Manifestos" Fox News cherry-picked for the segment. After claiming the grassroots protests were "funded by billionaires" – an accusation that there is little evidence for – Fetterman said Senate candidate Graham Platner securing the Democratic nomination was evidence of a "communist takeover" happening in Maine.
Evidence of Socialist Shift
He also cited pro-Palestinian sentiment and outrage over Immigration and Customs Enforcement's brutality as proof his party was turning into "an orgy of socialism."
Fetterman has routinely broken ranks with fellow Democrats on major issues, voicing support for the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, voting to advance Sen. Markwayne Mullin's nomination for Homeland Security Secretary, and casting the decisive "no" vote against efforts to block a potential military invasion of Cuba. He has argued that Trump's White House ballroom is a must-have, said airport operations have been "enhanced" by the presence of ICE officers, and called it "insane" for a majority of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents to have negative views of Israel.
Relationship with Party
Asked about his relationship with the rest of his party during a Fox News appearance in late April, Fetterman laughed and threw his hands up before calling things "cordial." "I'm not necessarily the most popular guy, which is strange to me because it's like, I am a Democrat and, you know, I'm the guy that flipped that seat," he said.
