The case of Pennsylvania Democrat Sen. John Fetterman has been the subject of endless fascination because he’s turned out to be so different from what numerous pundits — and many of his own voters — thought he would be. No, he’s not suddenly on the conservative team, and no, most of his policies aren’t things we’d endorse, and yes, he is still firmly a Democrat at his core.
But all too often lately, he sounds like the only Dem in D.C. who hasn’t lost their mind. Not only has he not performed as the far-left extremist many expected, but he’s also taken to occasionally siding with the GOP on crucial issues while heavily criticizing his comrades.
Breaking: Senate voting to end the war in Iran has failed, 49-50
After John Fetterman’s (D) ‘No’ Vote Blocks It
— Nancy Pelosi Stock Tracker ♟ (@pelositracker) May 13, 2026
It’s interesting to me that he’s calling out the dangerous zaniness of the Marxist wing of his party because if even he sees it, you know it must be bad — really bad.
Speaking on The Reason Interview With Nick Gillespie in a video posted Wednesday, Fetterman said it’s not that he has changed so much — it’s that the party around him has morphed into something unrecognizable and has become “increasingly anti-American.”
He wasn’t afraid of naming names, and boy, did he:
“I think the extremism is driving it without a doubt,” Fetterman said in a Reason interview. “Look at the primaries, you know, all across in the Senate and in the House and look at the kinds of people that have already been elected.
“Like, for example, the mayor in Seattle. She’s an absolute socialist, if not more, how people [go] ‘Hey, I’m leaving’ and she’s like, ‘bye’ and just describe that kind of thing.”
Fetterman was referring to Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson, who last month laughed off the idea of millionaires leaving the state based on her support for a progressive tax.
INSANE. Seattle’s Socialist Mayor responds to exodus of wealth from Washington state by saying “BYE” … then laughing. We’re doomed. pic.twitter.com/gP8CbPkqEl
— Brandi Kruse (@BrandiKruse) April 29, 2026
But the frankly unusual senator who is regularly decked out in a hoodie didn’t just have words for Katie Wilson, he also brought some truth about New York City democratic socialist Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who Fetterman notes is “driving people away” with his war against the wealthy, his antisemitism, and his hatred of business:
“Then, of course, New York. That’s its own situation, too. And I thought [Florida Gov. Ron] DeSantis had a great line saying, you know, ‘Mamdani is my favorite real estate agent now.’ And it’s driving people away. People can move, and they can just vote, you know, with their feet,” Fetterman said.
“That explains why Florida continues to flourish. But a lot of these states, like New York and other blue states, we’ve read that $2 trillion dollars have migrated out of these states too.”
MORE: Sen. John Fetterman Just Said What Democrats Don’t Want to Hear About Themselves
Bankrupt Ideas, Boiling Rage: The New Democrat Reality VIP
Fetterman keeps insisting he’s a committed Democrat, but he must be thinking of a whole different era, because he sure doesn’t sound like he belongs in the ranks of the modern, way-out-there party of today.
And he certainly doesn’t sound like a fan of Graham Platner, the Democrat oyster farmer with a Nazi tattoo that the Left has fallen in love with as he attempts to unseat Republican Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME):
“I mean, in Maine, for example, Graham Platner, he’s an avowed communist. He described himself as a communist. Antifa, that’s not a slur from me. That’s not a GOP kind of hit. That’s his own words, how he described that,” Fetterman said.
Maine Democrat Senate Candidate Graham Platner, who said violence with a gun is necessary to achieve change:
“I do 100% believe that a political revolution is entirely necessary.” pic.twitter.com/FQd8K2MOtY
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) May 11, 2026
Fetterman continues to be an enigma. When he was running against Dr. Mehmet Oz in 2022 for the Senate seat, he famously suffered a massive stroke, and in the aftermath, he seemed frankly incapable of holding office as he dealt with cognitive and physical issues. Now, he sees so much — and is actually able to vocalize his thoughts, which wasn’t always the case — yet he appears incapable of realizing that he’s simply on the wrong side of history by keeping his party registration.
I fully expected him to be yet another wacko, far-left, pugilistic Democrat extremist, and have been frankly stunned as he’s turned out to be the only one left in his party who seemingly has a functioning brain. No, that doesn’t make him the new GOP hero, but I’ll take him and what he says any day over the America-bashing Schumer, Jeffries, Pelosi, Raskin, Schiff et al.
If you’re not going to join the right side, John, how about you at least go independent? By siding with that poisonous team, you are aiding and abetting them, despite your spot-on criticism of their antics.
Walk away.
Watch the full interview here:
Editor’s Note: The Democrat Party has never been less popular as voters reject its globalist agenda.
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