Sen. John Fetterman's defense of Israel's war against Hamas has alienated some of his supporters and angered liberal Democrats.
In the last month, three of the Pennsylvania lawmakers' top communication staffers have resigned to pursue more liberal positions as Fetterman moves more to the center on key issues — the Democrat has also expressed support for increased U.S. border security.
But breaking with progressives on hot-button issues is nothing new for Fetterman, and he says his critics shouldn't be surprised.
"I'm not a progressive," Fetterman told NBC News in December.
"I just think I'm a Democrat that is very committed to choice and other things," he said. "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."
On the border, he told the news outlet that stemming the flow of migration to manageable levels was worth "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.
"To put that in reference, that is essentially the size of Pittsburgh, the second-largest city in Pennsylvania."
Sixteen former campaign staffers of Fetterman's in December urged him to back a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, telling him it wasn't too late to "change your stance and stand on the righteous side of history."
Fetterman has not backed down. Since, Joe Calvello, his long-time communications director, left to work with liberal Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, Nick Gavio, Fetterman's deputy communications director who started with his campaign, left to work with the Working Families Party, and Emma Mustion, who served in Fetterman's office as a press and digital aide, left the office to work for Sen. Bob Casey's re-election bid.
Jill Zipin, the founder and chair of Democratic Jewish Outreach Pennsylvania, a political action committee, earlier this month said Fetterman's stance isn't a surprise.
"People believe that wearing shorts and a hoodie makes you a progressive. Wearing shorts and a hoodie makes you someone who wears shorts and a hoodie," said Zipin. "Sen. Fetterman has always been an independent Democrat in his positions. Some of his positions are progressive, some of his positions are more centrist."
She added, "He knows himself and his moral compass and he doesn't change his views with the prevailing winds."
Several conservatives have praised Fetterman for his positions.
"Sen. Fetterman's comments reflect that he recognizes that some in his party seek to cloak their anti-Israel sentiment in progressive clothes, but he's not buying it. He understands that supporting Israel's security is supporting U.S. security in this very turbulent region, a position long advocated by Congress on both sides of the political aisle," Toby Dershowitz, the managing director of FDD Action, told Fox News Digital.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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