09/11/2026
ON JOHN FETTERMAN’S OBSCENE POLITICAL SELF INTEREST.
There is a profound difference between principled independence and political betrayal.
Last night, Senator John Fetterman crossed that line when he appeared in a prerecorded video at the Republican Party’s midterm convention, praised Republican Senator Dave McCormick, spoke glowingly of Donald Trump, and expressed his willingness to work with him without guardrails.
This was not simply an act of bipartisanship. There is nothing inherently wrong with Democrats and Republicans working together when it serves Pennsylvania. Governing requires finding common ground when possible. But there is a fundamental distinction between working across the aisle and lending your credibility to the political operation of the very party working to defeat Democrats, destroy social safety nets, gut unions, and make life harder.
When John Fetterman asked Pennsylvanians to elect him to the United States Senate, he made a promise. Democrats entrusted him with a Democratic Senate seat because they believed he would stand with them, represent their values, and fight for the priorities of the people who put him there.
That trust carries an obligation.
A Senator may disagree with his party. He may vote independently. He may challenge his own leadership. That is part of representative government. But appearing at a Republican midterm convention, praising Republican leadership and Donald Trump, and offering himself as a willing partner to a MAGA Republican administration goes well beyond independence.
It raises a very simple question: What happened to the promise John Fetterman made when he asked Pennsylvania Democrats for their trust and their vote?
Last night was not simply a political disagreement. It was a deliberate choice to exploit the work we did to deliver this seat to him, and to lend his name and credibility to a Republican political event held on a massive political stage at a critical moment in the midterm election.
For those of us who worked to elect John Fetterman, believed in that promise, and entrusted him with a Democratic U.S. Senate seat, that choice is beyond disappointing.
The hand has been played. What was once presented as independence now looks exactly like what it actually is: it is a betrayal of the trust placed in him, driven not by principle, but by obscene political self interest.
Michelle McFall
(Photo credit: wtae)
