Fetterman Shuts Down Party-Switching Speculation: ‘I’m Not Going to Be a Republican’

Sen. John Fetterman may be increasingly at odds with fellow Democrats, but he wants one thing understood: He is not planning to become a Republican.

The Pennsylvania senator pushed back when host Monica Alba asked whether more than 100 Democrats voting to reduce aid to Israel represented a “red line” that could drive him out of the party.

“No, that’s not my red line, but it’s not something I’m surprised at overall,” Fetterman replied, acknowledging the continuing divide among Democrats over support for Israel.

His answer came after he warned earlier this month that the Democratic Party could eventually lose him if it formally transformed itself into an anti-Israel party.

“If our party ever becomes, and just makes it official, the anti-Israel party, that’s when I would leave because that’s been a moral clarity for me,” Fetterman said during the Hill Nation Summit in Washington, D.C.

Even then, however, Fetterman stressed that he had “no plans” to abandon the Democratic Party.

His repeated criticism of his own party—particularly its growing support for socialist and anti-Israel candidates—has nevertheless fueled speculation that he could eventually cross the aisle.

Some Republicans have made it clear that the door would be open.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., told Fox News last week that Fetterman would be welcomed into the Republican conference.

“Yes, we would welcome him,” Thune said.

Thune added that although he had not spoken with Fetterman recently, he and other Republican senators had previously discussed the difficulties Fetterman has faced within the Democratic caucus.

“There are many of us who I think would welcome the opportunity to have him join the Republican conference,” Thune said.

Fetterman, however, is drawing a distinction between leaving the Democratic Party and joining the GOP. While he has identified an official Democratic break with Israel as something that could force him out, he made it “very clear” that becoming a Republican is not part of his plan.