Fetterman has lost what's left of his Mind

[3825-87867]

https://triblive.com/news/world/fetterman-calls-out-democrats-for-unhinged-petulance-during-trump-address/

U.S. Sen. John Fetterman, D-Braddock, called out members of his own party for their protests during President Donald Trump’s address to Congress on Tuesday night.

“A sad cavalcade of self-owns and unhinged petulance. It only makes Trump look more presidential and restrained,” Fetterman wrote Wednesday afternoon on the social media platform X.

Fetterman also has voted to confirm 10 of Trump’s Cabinet-level nominees.

The Newspaper in question is a Right Wing Owned operation and has published numerous articles that have produced questionable pro articles of Trump. Since the previous owner of the Trib died in 2014 (Richard Mellon Scaife) the paper has gone very right oriented. And with the purchase of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette by the Block Family, this area has shifted its news coverage to a decidedly Right-Wing bend with questionable reporting.

In many local people's opinions there have been numerous attempts by these two papers and even the three major TV Stations to sway the very left leaning population of Allegheny County to the right and give more credence to the right wing surrounding counties by even more partisan Right-Wing Reporting.

Whether his stroke or something else(?) caused a total shift in his beliefs, he's not the person most of us voted for. His political rhetoric has changed remarkably to the right. If his mental health is in fact a problem, he should consider stepping down and Governor Shapiro may have to look into having a replacement ready, if he isn't already. Sadly, the Democrats will not take action to remove him even if they do feel privately he's become a liability possibly due to mental problems. There's no way to remove a sitting Senator without 2/3rds of the Senate voting against him or impeachment by the house, and so long as he acts this way for Republicans, they won't support replacing him and take the chance of installing a much more Democratic Senator. Yet his comments and actions may continue to hurt Democratic Actions in the Senate over the immediate future and maybe until 2008.

Talking to people who worked (and work) with and for him (they wish to remain anonymous) during his campaign, they are very concerned about the way he is acting and the views he's now espoused. Many inside the Democratic Party here in Pa. are more than confused and worried about his actions and health. A few have commented that if "some" Democrats were previously worried about Biden's "capacities" they should now also be worried about Fetterman's!

In a personal opinion, we don't need this type of representation in political power against the wishes of those who supported and voted for him.

[brush]

1. Disgusting. A DINO, replacing the vacated seat of Manchin or Sinema. He might as well...

switch parties since he's voting with the rethugs already.

[JohnSJ]

5. No. Vote him out with a replacement Democrat. But as long as

he is a registered Democrat we need the number count.

[brush]

6. That's the preferred scenario, but who can primary him and win the seat?

[JohnSJ]

7. Wouldn't Connor Lamb be the obvious choice? Believe me, I understand you frustration, most of us here feel the same way

[Homoudont]

16. Connor Lamb was my first choice

Not because I didn't like Fetterman but because I thought Fetterman was too far left and couldn't win the general. I viewed Lamb as more of a Centrist who could win a statewide election. Boy was I wrong.

Lamb is in my sisters district and she likes him a lot. She voted for him.

[PunkinPi]

41. Either Connor Lamb or Malcolm Kenyatta. nt

[OnDoutside]

82. Malcolm Kenyatta is really impressive.

Lamb isn't a massive difference

[lonely bird]

8. Agree re: primarying him

Sadly, you can bet your ass that Republicans will vote in that primary to prevent an actual Democrat getting in.

[Wednesdays]

45. What is his voting record?

Specifically, I mean.

[brush]

50. He voted for all of trump's disgusting clown car cabinet picks. That's enough for me.

[yardwork]

53. I don't think that's correct, actually.

[brush]

55. What's correct then? There was a recent post noting that he voted for most of them, in not all.

[yardwork]

57. As of March 3 he's voted for 50% of them.

That's the most "yes" votes among Democratic senators, but Fetterman has not voted for "all" of them.

https://ballotpedia.org/How_senators_voted_on_Trump_Cabinet_nominees,_2025

[brush]

59. I stand corrected then. But 50% of those disastrous picks IMO still calls for primarying him.

[Think. Again.]

3. He'll be forever known...

....as a turncoat in the face of fascism.

[SocialDemocrat61]

14. A modern day Marshal Petan?

[ButchMcMuffin]

20. I'm pretty sure he'll be remembered as

Uncle Fester

[johnnyfins]

40. Or the mountain troll

From Harry Potter

[Biophilic]

4. It has to be the stroke.

Personality changes are not unknown following stroke. This is certainly not the man so many of us routed for. Makes me sad that we lost him.

[et tu]

33. my thoughts exactly

and yes, he needs to be primaried so sad because
he used to be very effective against cf45's lies.

[WinstonSmith4740]

34. You're more than likely correct

My late husband had a pretty bad stroke (well, there are no good ones), and the social worker/counselor at the hospital sat down with me and explained that one of two things was going to happen. If he had a strong personality trait, it would either intensify, or reverse itself. He was already stubborn...he became like an army mule. I think Fetterman reversed, and is rejecting what he once stood for. Personally, I'd be real interested in talking to his wife.

[Biophilic]

38. Yes, I've thought the samething about talking with his wife.

But, unfortunately, either way he has to go. I suspect he will just double down on his "beliefs" trying to get a grip on what is happening to himself.

[Emile]

9. Boy was I ever wrong about him. I really

thought he would be a great senator.

[debm55]

32. Agree, Live near Fetterrman, Should have voted for Lamb.

[live love laugh]

10. This is why Democrats can't have nice things. So many posers.

[Emile]

23. It's the reason why we couldn't get a public option

when they passed the ACA.

[Mr. Evil]

11. Whatever skeletons Putin found in his closet,

they must be absolute doozies! Has anyone asked his wife what the deal is? Or, is she onboard with his recent decision making?

[Karadeniz]

12. RECALL TIME......

[Rebl2]

35. I don't

know if you can recall senators. Thought I was told they can’t be recalled. I think if he did something illegal, he could be asked to step down, but doubt he would without a fight.

[tritsofme]

37. Senators and congressmen are not subject to recall.

[Shrek]

84. How does that work? n/t

[Escape]

13. I wonder what his wife thinks about his "change".?

Gisele seems to be a very smart positive person and is involved in various Progressive political activities.
I believe she is Brazilian born.
If his odd behavior is related to his stroke, she would certainly know.

[MotownPgh]

29. Giselle and her family came to US

illegally. I must be the only person in PA that thought the both of them were/are fake fake fake

[William Seger]

15. Anyone who thinks that Trump is "presidential" can't be trusted to show good judgement

... and anyone who "normalizes" Trump in ANY way is subverting our democracy.

[Hornedfrog2000]

17. Makes you wonder what they have on Fetterman...

Just saying, anytime there is an abrupt 180non politicians it makes me wonder how they got to them. Anyone supporting trump is either a sociopath, being blackmailed, bribed, or all of the above.
They usually vote with their party most of the time, and then when puty pulls the strings you vote how he says to vote.

[AllyCat]

42. Welcome to DU! I'm really starting to think Putin's talons are way deeper in this

than anyone thought. Every time we are close to some massive piece of legislation or approval that hinges on every vote, along comes someone we thought was on our side to turn it around and out of grasp (Manchin, Sinema, et al). Enter the current state of Fetterman.

It's so disheartening.

I really thought we had this election for all elected branches. And somehow, it went the complete opposite.

[Trueblue Texan]

56. This is EXACTLY what was going through my mind...

It seems to me a good rule of thumb is to suspect anyone with a sudden, hard turn to the right to be compromised. Or maybe he's worried someone in his family will be deported if he doesn't cooperate.

[Hornedfrog2000]

75. Yup

I always think about linsey graham. I think trump gets info via russian hackers on what dirt they hacked on people. Invite them for a round of golf and inform them you have X dirt on them. They come out of the round of golf saying, John McCain who?

[LetMyPeopleVote]

79. Welcome to DU

[Mr. Sparkle]

18. He is the new Joe Manchin, Kyrsten sinema

i see him been a lobbyists favorite in the future.

[TheBlackAdder]

25. Or Joe LIEberman

[mdbl]

19. He should have sat next to Marjorie Taylor Greene

Since he thinks the repuglicans are so civil.

[tonekat]

22. It was hard to buy him as a Dem

He's shown his true colors, now he's an enemy.

[Vinca]

24. The worshipping of Dear Leader is nauseating. Next thing you know he'll wear a suit for him.

[Celerity]

26. 🎱 says Fetty in a suit with Dump would be further proof that he is now on the MAGA leash.

[DownriverDem]

27. What happened

to him? Why is he shifting his support to trump?

[AllyCat]

43. That's the discussion.

So many theories, but no one really knows.

[JohnSJ]

28. I don't buy the excuses some are making for Fetterman that "this is the result of his stroke". I think this is who he

is. He has always tended toward libertarian, and just because he had a "populous" message during the campaigned, I think a lot of progressives got duped.

Connor Lamb was a known. Not only was he clear where he stood, he had a record to show it.

That is the danger of people who run as populists. They promise the world, but rarely deliver.

History is loaded with these characters:

Huey Long, Mussolini, hitler, trump, etc. etc. etc.

[BlueTsunami2018]

30. I'm seeing a lot of the same sentiment among rank and file Dems.

That they looked silly, foolish and weak.

Everyone castigated Jeffries for advising against it but I’m not so sure he was wrong. They would have been better off simply not attending.

Democrats aren’t good at this sort of thing. They’re just not. They’re not great at campaigning either. They have a hard time getting our policy positions across because complex issues require complex explanations. It’s easy to simply lie and put on a show.

Democrats are good at governing, the thing that actually matters in all of this. But you can’t govern if you can’t win.

They really need to figure some way to remedy this. It shouldn’t take a generational figure like Obama to win or a Republican to fuck things up so bad that there’s no other choice when the People agree with nearly all of our positions.

[LisaM]

36. Then that's partly on the voters.

I absolutely don't understand the mentality of someone who helped elect Obama and then sat out the midterms so that Obama didn't have the tools he needed to accomplish policy. It makes zero sense to me. Heck, there was a special election in Georgia within weeks of the 2008 election and Obama voters there stayed home for that,even knowing the implications of the Republicans won.

Even if people have some predisposition towards what they perceive as a charismatic candidate, it seems strange to me that they then sabotage him or her.

[MichMan]

76. Turn out in midterms is never as strong as for a presidential race

That's just how it has always been.

[halobeam]

86. Turnout to vote at all, is total disgrace here.

We need to dig in on why, and fix that. There are more of them than in either party. That's what is broken, a huge part of it anyway.

[yardwork]

52. The problem is the lack of a unified message.

This kind of thing has to be worked out privately, in advance.

We're seeing the worst possible outcome: individual protests at the SOTU that even many of us saw as weak and ineffectual, followed by public criticism and censure votes from Democrats. NOT a winning strategy. The whole thing makes us look like we're in shambles.

Democrats turning on one another instead of working together to develop a counter to an existential crisis. This is the worst possible time for Democrats to be arguing among themselves, publicly.

Schumer and Jeffries need to step down as party leaders and cede power to people who know how to lead.

[crimycarny]

62. I agree

I read the article, and I agree with some of what Fetterman said, particularly the part about Democrats becoming the "metaphorical car alarm that everyone ignores." I'm sorry, but he is right. Democrats need to find a better way of fighting back from a position of strength versus petulance.

Jasmine Crockett knows how to do it. I'm not sure how to articulate the difference, but she comes off as a person in a position of power, like a mom telling a child throwing a temper tantrum to "go to your room." Most Democrats come off as the opposite. Trump is telling them to "go to their room," and Democrats are whining about Trump "being mean" all while walking toward their room. I don't know if that makes sense.

All of that being said, Fetterman should have kept his complaints quiet and taken those complaints to the leaders of the Democratic Party and not the press. Don't air your dirty laundry, as they say.

I agree Fetterman needs to be primaried as he's too erratic.

[Joinfortmill]

31. A Trojan Horse or the aftermath of his stroke.

[Rebl2]

39. What

did fetterman do before he became a senator. Was he in politics at all?

[rpannier]

44. Lt Governor of PA

Mayor before that

[Irish_Dem]

46. Lost or sold.

[Wednesdays]

47. What is Fetterman's voting record?

Details, please. Has he changed his voting pattern in the last few months?

[Fil1957]

48. This from a guy

who dresses like a sloppy teenager and won't even wear pants at most official functions.

[Martin68]

49. Sad. Looks like the Vance syndrome.

[Initech]

51. What's absolutely fucking wild to me...

Is that Al Green was immediately removed and CENSURED for disrespecting Trump. Meanwhile, when Marge Shit For Brains heckled Biden for three years straight - one year going full mental patient - she wasn't punished. It's like MAGA is the only one with power anymore because of that stupid fucking news network.

[John1956PA]

64. SOTU, February 7, 2023

[Initech]

67. One year she showed up wearing all MAGA gear. I think it was 22.

This vile woman is an absolute embarrassment to this country.

[John1956PA]

69. SOTU, March 7, 2024

[Initech]

70. This is why the assholes think the White House is their personal property.

[Littlered]

77. This is what we get

When we play nice and try to take the high road. She should have been removed as well as Joe Wilson. I guess you would have to ask Pelosi why she never acted when she should have.

[RandiFan1290]

83. We're told by 'centrists' that it would be seen as extreme

and it would scare away the 'independent' voters that voted for trump, again.

[hueymahl]

54. Ehh, I still like him

He is one of the few Democrats who still connect with moderates and right leaning independents, who we desperately need to win going forward. He may not be ideologically “pure”, but I prefer to win.

[Trueblue Texan]

58. said as if we don't all prefer to win. nt

[AZProgressive]

63. I don't think that strategy has been working out

In Europe data shows adopting right-wing policies doesn't help centre-left win votes mainly because voters prefer the original to the copy.

The theory should be leading to landslide victories because MAGA is far right that isn't happening though. Republicans nominated Romney even though they didn't like him because they felt he had the best chance of beating Obama. Trump has done better than the moderate Republican neo-cons (who are actually more popular with Dems these days) at winning Presidential elections.

[hueymahl]

71. Obama and Clinton ran as moderates

And they, both governed, mostly, as moderates. Our history running or governing as anything too far to the left has not been successful. Europe is not the same as America.

[AZProgressive]

72. The most progressive members of the House or Senate

are actually more like moderate Social Democrats. There really isn't much of a far left in this country and most of the policy positions are popular with the electorate like universal health care. Not every issue is popular with the electorate but not every issue moderates-centrists are in favor is popular either.

Obama did govern as a moderate but before that he campaigned to the left of Hillary Clinton though mainly on the Iraq war issue but Obama took positions that turned out different when he was President. Though I think he moved left on marriage equality but he previously supported that position in the 90s so he moved back to where he was. Other things like foreign policy or civil liberties he moved to the right or closer to where Bush was.

Usually the Republican screws things up and elects a Democrat but after two terms they switch back to the Republican. I think Democrats could have sustained and long term success if they deliver change much like they had with FDR & Truman or Presidents from the 60s and 70s who may have been moderates for their times but were much further than the party after Reagan.

[Aepps22]

60. Says the Guy That Fought to Wear Shorts and a Hoodie

This guy is a joke and a 🤡. Fought harder to wear athletic gear in Congress than he ever has for us. He’s clearly a grifter that used us for a higher paying gig

[crimycarny]

66. Fetterman is right

Fetterman should have kept his mouth shut and complained in private, but he's not wrong. The vast majority of the Democrats are coming off as the metaphoric car alarm that everyone ignores.

Dems need to follow Jasmine Crockett's lead. I wrote this in a comment further down, but Jasmine Crockett is able to come from a position of power. She comes off as the parent telling a child throwing a temper tantrum (Trump) to "go to your room". Whereas the majority of Dems come off as the child being told to "go to your room" by Trump and they respond "You're being mean!" all while ceding power and walking towards their room.

All of that being said, I agree with everyone that Fetterman needs to be primaried.

[Bettie]

61. I think he's setting himself up as the

Independent spoiler candidate for 2028 (if, of course, we even have elections).

He'll run as a Dem and then go independent when he doesn't win.

[cyclonefence]

65. And I sent him money!!

where do I go for a refund?

PS Richard Mellon Scaife was no moderate.

[stoned]

68. He is very dangerous

now that his brain has fallen out of his head.

[LeftInTX]

73. I wanna know what he wore on Tuesday night?

[republianmushroom]

74. DINO ?

[samsingh]

78. i'm not happy with fetterman

[William769]

80. Fucking little peon.

[Mike Nelson]

81. Odd...

... he says, "It only makes Trump look more presidential and restrained." So, Trump is "presidential and restrained" now, and this increases that image? And... the observation is coming from the guy most noticed for wearing what looks like a "gym workout" outfit to his US Senate job? He makes Zelenskyy look like Cary Grant. Sounds like someone considering a future job in the MAGA universe. Maybe he wants to be a spy?

[Martin Eden]

85. Bill Maher argued Fetterman should be the next Dem nominee for President

I have grown to loathe Bill Maher, that smug prick.