Fetterman insists he’s ‘not a progressive’ despite frequently calling himself one

News

By Victor Nava

Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) has declared that he’s “not a progressive” in an apparent attempt to rebrand himself after left-wing backlash over his stances on Israel’s war against Hamas and immigration reform. 

“I’m not a progressive,” the Pennsylvania Democrat told NBC News in an interview published Friday. “I just think I’m a Democrat that is very committed to choice and other things. But with Israel, I’m going to be on the right side of that. And immigration is something near and dear to me, and I think we do have to effectively address it as well.”

Fetterman emerged as one of the leading supporters of the Jewish state in the aftermath of Hamas’ brutal Oct. 7 attack, during which terrorists killed more than 1,200 people in Israel and kidnapped hundreds, taking them to Gaza where many are still being held hostage. 

His unabashed support of Israel’s right to “eliminate the Hamas terrorists who slaughtered innocent men, women, and children” and refusal to advocate for a cease-fire in the conflict has rankled the far-left. 

Hundreds of pro-Palestinian protesters shut down the street outside his Philadelphia office in October, demanding that Fetterman call for a cease-fire as they paraded an enormous puppet resembling the senator. 

The former Braddock, Pa., mayor has also been heckled at events and was even confronted at a bar by an individual questioning why he wouldn’t back a cease-fire.

Sixteen former Fetterman campaign staffers penned an open letter to the senator in October calling his support for Israel “a gutting betrayal.” 

Fetterman also told NBC News that while he considers himself pro-immigration, policies that might stem the flow of migrants across the southern border and into the US shouldn’t be off the table. 

“It’s a reasonable conversation — until somebody can say there’s an explanation on what we can do when 270,000 people are being encountered on the border, not including the ones, of course, that we don’t know about,” he said. “To put that in reference, that is essentially the size of Pittsburgh, the second-largest city in Pennsylvania.”

Senate Republicans are currently pushing to couple aid to Israel and Ukraine with reforms to US immigration laws, a move that Fetterman described as “not ideal” but a conversation that “we should have.” 

“Progressives better do that because we can’t leave Israel — we can’t sell them out, and we can’t sell Ukraine out, and we have to deliver on this,” Fetterman said. “I just would very much like to get a deal to deliver this critical aid.”

Fetterman’s disavowal of the progressive label stands in contrast to his frequent use of the term to describe himself on social media and on various campaign trails over the years. 

“My dude, I’m a progressive democrat,” Fetterman said in a 2020 tweet directed at former Republican Florida Gov. Jeb Bush. 

In 2016, he shared a silhouetted image of himself and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) with a caption that described the pair as “progressive champions.”

“If I’m lucky enough to be elected, I’m able to be a solid progressive backstop for [Pennsylvania], for Gov. Wolf. It provides a statewide platform to advocate for the issues I care about  – a living wage, marijuana legalization, immigration, & community policing,” he tweeted in 2017, during his campaign for lieutenant governor. 

Progressives fumed on social media after Fetterman’s declaration.

“He was ‘progressive’ when he was asking for money and votes, though,” former Ohio Democratic state Sen. Nina Turner said in a tweet. 

Former Pennsylvania Democratic congressional candidate Alexandra Hunt called it “sickening” that Fetterman is talking tough on immigration when his wife is herself an immigrant. 

“Fetterman has never been progressive but endorsing talks for tougher immigration laws when he’s married to an incredible woman who was once an illegal immigrant and who kept his campaign alive while he was recovering from a stroke is actually sickening,” Hunt tweeted. 

Fetterman’s office did not respond to The Post’s request for comment.