Sen. John Fetterman, D-P.A., growing closeness with President-elect Donald Trump and Senate Republicans has Democratic Party insiders very, very nervous.
Fetterman’s meeting with Trump at Mar-a-Lago last week to discuss Israel, border security, steel manufacturing — and his willingness to work to advance the agenda of the incoming Trump administration — has caused growing speculation that the Pennsylvania Democrat could soon quit his party and join Republicans.
In fact, a leading conservative activist, Scott Pressler, directly invited Fetterman to join the GOP during a recent meeting.
Take a look —
We invited Senator John Fetterman the opportunity to join the Republican Party.
Let’s see how he votes.
📍Harrisburg, PA pic.twitter.com/h5O2iooxWn
— ThePersistence (@ScottPresler) January 9, 2025
The incoming 47th president praised Fetterman’s willingness to reach across the aisle after their meeting. “He’s a commonsense person. He’s not liberal or conservative,” Trump said after the meeting.
Trump called the Pennsylvania Democrat “a fascinating man,” and said he was different from other members of his party — and it has liberal activists sounding the alarm.
“There’s no telling with any certainty what Fetterman’s motivations are,” said Norman Solomon, founder of the far-Left group RootsAction. “But clearly, he has been moving rightward.”
“I wouldn’t 100 percent rule out that maybe or slightly there is some thinking about different or future opportunities,” Democratic strategist Eddie Vale said.
“He is a senator from a 50/50 state that voted for Trump twice, so he’s trying to have a foot in both worlds,” Vale added.
Fetterman’s colleagues from across the aisle praised his common sense, bipartisan approach to working with the incoming administration rather than falling in line with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., like the rest of the Democratic senators.
“He’s not in lockstep with the progressives in his party,” Sen. John Cornyn, R-T.X., said.
Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-A.L., praised Fetterman as someone who “speaks his own mind” and “doesn’t follow the party line.”
“It’s easier to talk, carry on a conversation,” with someone who’s “open-minded,” Tuberville added.
Vice President-elect J.D. Vance, R-O.H., has worked with Fetterman on rail safety legislation, and said he was willing to take a new look at the “smart” actions the Pennsylvania Democrat had taken in recent months.
“I know from politics, my own race, that not everything people say about you is actually true,” Vance said about Fetterman’s initial rivalry with Republicans.
In his most recent break with Democrats over illegal immigration, Fetterman defended his positions from the far-Left.
“Outside of Philadelphia, they have these gigantic billboards, where it was like, ‘Fetterman = open border’ … it just turns out that it’s all bulls**t,” Fetterman told POLITICO.
“He’s accurately read the room and knows there’s a new sheriff in town,” said Christopher Nicholas, a Pennsylvania GOP consultant.
Sources say Fetterman’s next break from Democrats will be his support Trump nominee Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for Health and Human Services Secretary.
“If you’re willing to put the country first, I’m willing to work with you,” Republican strategist Ford O’Connell.
Their recent meeting came at Trump’s request, a transition official confirmed.
Don’t expect the party shift to happen overnight, however. Fetterman still said he supports universal healthcare, and faily consistently votes Democratic.
“He’s very adroit at shocking people and then coming back with a retort when they seem shocked. It’s his modus operandi,” Nicholas said.