Sen. John Fetterman talks with reporters after the Senate luncheons in the U.S. Capitol on March 11, 2025. (CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
Fetterman addressed the repercussions that tend to come from his brand of bipartisanship when discussing his agreement with President Donald Trump’s handling of nuclear talks with Iran or the president’s push for a rare earth minerals agreement with Ukraine.
"That's part of the bipartisanship where, you know, it's getting more and more kind of, punitive to just agree with some of these things in the middle of the party right now," he said.
He also called out his own party for his colleagues’ stances on Israel and immigration, and worked in a subtle jab at Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s handling of the government funding fight earlier this year.
The number of border crossings along the southwest border in March was just over 7,000, according to the latest numbers from CBP. (Border image: Getty / Trump image: AP)
He said that while he largely did not support Republicans’ efforts to ram Trump’s agenda through Congress, there was common ground to be had with his colleagues across the aisle when it came to putting a dent in the nation’s debt, and injecting more funding into the White House’s priorities at the southern border.
In fact, the only thing he said he supported among the sea of policy changes and spending would be the over $150 billion in the colossal package that would go toward building Trump’s border wall, bolstering Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and the building of new immigration detention centers and facilities, among others.
"That's a mistake that our party made, and that's the border," he said. "I absolutely support those kinds of investments to make our border secure as well."
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Sen. John Fetterman participated in a forum moderated by Fox News’ Shannon Bream alongside his Republican counterpart, Sen. Dave McCormick. (Getty Images)
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But Fetterman’s rogue-like tendencies have led to intensified scrutiny in recent weeks for alleged erratic behavior, skipping out on votes and droves of staff leaving his office, criticism that Fetterman has rebuked.
The Philadelphia Inquirer’s editorial board argued in an opinion piece published on Sunday that if the lawmaker couldn’t handle the scrutiny, he should "step aside." In response, Fetterman couched the criticism as part of a campaign against him for his position on Israel, the border and his dances with bipartisanship.
"It's just part of a smear, and it's just not accurate," he said.
Alex Miller is a writer for Fox News Digital covering the U.S. Senate.
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https://www.foxnews.com/politics/fetterman-defies-punitive-punishment-breaking-democratic-party-during-bipartisan-discussion