Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman now enjoys higher favorability among Republicans than any Democrat in recent memory, and Senate Majority Leader John Thune says the GOP conference would welcome him with open arms if he decides to jump ship.
A new poll from The New York Times, the Philadelphia Inquirer, and Siena College reveals the stunning collapse of Fetterman’s standing within his own party. The Democrat sits at a brutal -41 approval rating among Democrats while soaring to +52 favorability with Republicans. The numbers represent a complete political realignment for a senator elected just a few years ago as a progressive champion.
Thune confirmed that Republican leadership has discussed the possibility of Fetterman switching parties.
“Yes, we would welcome him,” Thune said when asked about Fetterman potentially joining the GOP conference, as per reports. “I haven’t talked to him recently. I have had conversations with him in the past, as have many of my colleagues, about the challenges he faces in his caucus. There are many of us who I think would welcome the opportunity to have him join the Republican conference but you know ultimately that’s a decision that’s left up that’s up to him.”
The Senate Majority Leader didn’t mince words about why Fetterman might be looking for the exit.
“This is a party that’s moving further and further, more radically, and to the more extreme Left on a lot of issues,” Thune added. “And I think people like John Fetterman, who have views that probably reflect a more moderate or at least historically moderate Democrat.”
Fetterman himself has laid out exactly what would push him to leave. Appearing on Fox News’ “Hannity,” he declared that if anti-Israel hostility officially becomes part of the Democratic Party platform, he’s gone. The senator warned that “rank antisemitism” is being allowed to flourish on the far-Left and on college campuses. He remains the only Senate Democrat to vote against every Iran war-powers resolution this year.
The hoodie-wearing senator has been on a scorched-earth campaign against his party’s hard-Left wing for months. Last week, he slammed “AI doomsdaying” and aligned himself with President Donald Trump’s aggressive stance on artificial intelligence and data centers to counter China. Fetterman publicly rejected “political pandering and hyperbole over data centers,” taking direct aim at Sen. Bernie Sanders, who wants a stop on AI development. Fetterman blasted that position as a “China First” policy.
His feud with Sanders has turned personal. In July, Fetterman ripped into the Vermont senator over his support for former Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner. “I would really call Bernie Sanders to apologize for pushing this kind of predator,” Fetterman said. “Maybe he should consider sitting a few out and stop pushing these kinds of communists.”
Fetterman has previously made waves by backing Republicans in carving out the filibuster to end a government shutdown. He’s also noted that Left-leaning networks like MS NOW stopped booking him once he began speaking out against his party’s consensus, while conservative outlets welcomed his style.
