Fetterman’s GOP convention video caught even some of his staffers off guard

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Even some of Democratic Sen. John Fetterman’s staffers were caught off guard when they saw him appearing in a video at the Republican midterm convention , according to two sources.

But they weren’t exactly surprised.

Fetterman has a long history of breaking with his own party, voting for some of Trump’s nominees and backing the president’s military actions in the Middle East. But more than that, the sources said, he is unusually close with the Senate colleague he introduced at the convention: GOP Sen. Dave McCormick.

One source involved in the convention programming said McCormick was key to securing Fetterman’s participation; another insisted it wasn’t a challenge to get the Pennsylvania Democrat on board. His decision to participate, though, infuriated Democrats, who accused him of subverting his own party’s efforts to win in November and giving Republicans a gratuitous win.

The convention, after all, was meant to rile up the Trump base and attract media attention; it was designed by some of the same Trump political team members who had him flipping burgers at McDonald’s during the 2024 campaign. Some Republicans briefed on the planning said officials had even hoped Fetterman might show up in person, raising the shock value.

Just four years ago, Fetterman and McCormick nearly faced each other in their state’s heated 2022 Senate battle . Instead, McCormick lost that year’s primary, only to have a successful comeback bid two years later. Now, former staffers describe Fetterman as intensely loyal to his Republican counterpart, saying that he often remarked to staffers that he saw McCormick, who is officially the state’s junior senator, as a “mentor.”

It’s a relationship that had been a regular source of tension for some former Fetterman staffers, some who said they had concerns Fetterman was too accommodating to Pennsylvania’s junior senator.

“He has literally never said no to McCormick,” one former staffer told CNN, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss the dynamics of the relationship. “It’s the most bizarre dynamic I have ever seen.”

Another person close to Fetterman called McCormick Fetterman’s “emotional support Republican,” adding that they feared Fetterman’s friendship with McCormick was at times clouding his political judgement.

CNN has reached out to Fetterman’s and McCormick’s offices to request comment.

Fetterman and McCormick have forged a strong alliance in the Senate, a rarity in the Senate for lawmakers who hail from the same state and opposite parties. Pennsylvania – a quintessential political battleground – is one of just three states in the Senate with split delegations, alongside Maine and Wisconsin.

In the last year, Fetterman and McCormick have issued nearly a dozen joint press releases or referred to each other in statements while introducing joint bills ranging from battling opioid addiction to taming the invasive lantern fly. They’ve sent joint letters to university presidents demanding answers on antisemitism, and they have boasted of bridge and infrastructure projects for the state – notably, sharing political kudos, rather than battling over who deserved credit for the moves.

“They disagree on most ideological questions, but they have found a lot of common ground on Pennsylvania-centric issues,” McCormick adviser and CNN contributor Brad Todd told CNN Thursday. “They agree that Israel has the right to exist and Pennsylvanians have a right to make a good living and they are willing to work together on those things.”

Even more unexpected, the two men have teamed up to fundraise: Earlier this summer, they launched a joint fundraising committee, drawing the ire of some Democrats who blasted the move.

Some of Fetterman’s fellow Pennsylvania Democrats saw the move as something of a political mutiny, given their party’s steep financial needs this midterm cycle, including in a handful of key races in their home state.

Many felt a similar sentiment at Fetterman’s involvement in the GOP convention on Wednesday night.

Rep. Madeleine Dean, a Democrat who represents part of the Philadelphia suburbs, said her constituents – some of whom knocked doors for Fetterman – are “absolutely livid” at him now.

“I am gravely disappointed with John and that stunt. What I wish he was doing was back home in Pennsylvania, making sure, like I am, that Pennsylvania will see more Democratic members of the House who uphold the values that he originally ran on,” she said at a press conference in Texas on Thursday, which Democrats organized as counterprogramming to the GOP convention.

Privately, several Democrats are already eying primary runs against Fetterman in 2028. Rep. Chris Deluzio, a progressive Democrat who represents the Pittsburgh suburbs, has been particularly critical, along with Rep. Brendan Boyle and former Rep. Susan Wild, who have also not ruled out a run.

But behind the scenes there is also a feeling among some Democrats that there need not be any recourse for Fetterman. Democratic leaders would rather keep him the fold than alienate him – especially when he still largely votes with Democrats. Fetterman has made clear he isn’t looking to change parties. And he still has a relationship with Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, whom he dined with right before the August recess in a one-on-one meeting, according to a source familiar with the dinner.

In recent days, Fetterman has attracted more scrutiny. A Wall Street Journal story published earlier this month reported Fetterman was consistently pushing off meetings and needing to be coaxed into performing routine duties of the job. As backlash mounted online, McCormick swiftly defended Fetterman, dismissing the allegations as “the latest example of outrageously disloyal staff and forces on the left using anonymous leaks to cancel my friend John Fetterman.”

“They hate that he is an independent thinker who refuses to fall into line so they want to silence him. He and I will continue to work together to deliver for Pennsylvania by saving jobs at U.S. Steel, passing a new law to make housing more affordable,” McCormick said on X.

On Wednesday night, Fetterman returned the favor, appearing by video in front of a steel factory, introducing McCormick who was slated to speak at the convention as a “friend” and despite their party differences “the kind of senator who gets the job done.”

Todd, the McCormick adviser, attributed the rare partnership between the two Keystone State senators to the state’s own politics – since almost every other state’s delegation share a political party. “We just don’t have many split delegations now, so therefore people have decided this is weird,” Todd said.

贾斯汀·沙利文/盖蒂图片社

据两位消息人士透露，甚至连民主党参议员约翰·费特曼的一些工作人员都感到措手不及，因为他们看到他出现在共和党中期选举大会的视频中。

但他们并没有感到特别惊讶。

费特曼长期以来一直与本党立场相左，他曾投票支持特朗普的一些提名人选，并支持总统在中东的军事行动。但消息人士称，更重要的是，他与他在党代会上介绍的参议院同事——共和党参议员戴夫·麦考密克——关系异常密切。

一位参与大会筹备工作的消息人士称，麦考密克是促成费特曼参会的关键人物；另一位消息人士则坚称，说服这位宾夕法尼亚州民主党人参加大会并非难事。然而，费特曼的参会决定激怒了民主党人，他们指责他破坏了本党在11月大选中的胜利努力，并让共和党人白白获胜。

毕竟，这次大会的目的就是为了煽动特朗普的支持者，吸引媒体关注；它的策划者正是当年安排特朗普在2024年竞选期间去麦当劳打工的同一批政治团队成员。一些了解策划情况的共和党人士透露，官员们甚至希望费特曼能够亲自到场，以增加大会的震撼效果。

仅仅四年前，费特曼和麦考密克几乎在2022年该州激烈的参议员竞选中正面交锋。然而，麦考密克在那年的党内初选中落败，但两年后成功卷土重来。如今，费特曼的前任幕僚们形容他非常忠于这位共和党对手，并表示费特曼经常对工作人员说，他把麦考密克——这位名义上的州参议员——视为自己的“导师”。

这种关系一直是费特曼一些前幕僚经常感到紧张的原因，他们中的一些人表示，他们担心费特曼对宾夕法尼亚州的年轻参议员过于迁就。

一位前员工匿名告诉CNN：“他（麦考密克）从来没有拒绝过麦考密克。这是我见过的最奇怪的关系。”

费特曼的另一位亲信称麦考密克是费特曼的“情感支持共和党人”，并补充说，他们担心费特曼与麦考密克的友谊有时会蒙蔽他的政治判断。

CNN已联系费特曼和麦考密克的办公室，请求置评。

费特曼和麦考密克在参议院结成了牢固的联盟，这在参议院实属罕见，因为两位议员来自同一州，但分属不同的党派。宾夕法尼亚州——一个典型的政治战场——是参议院中仅有的三个代表团分裂的州之一，另外两个是缅因州和威斯康星州。

过去一年，费特曼和麦考密克联合发布了近十份新闻稿，并在提出一系列联合法案时互相提及对方，这些法案涵盖了从打击阿片类药物成瘾到控制入侵性斑灯蛾等诸多领域。他们还联名致信大学校长，要求就反犹主义问题作出解释；此外，他们还共同宣传了州内的一些桥梁和基础设施建设项目——值得注意的是，他们共享政治功劳，而不是争夺谁应该获得这些项目的赞誉。

“他们在大多数意识形态问题上存在分歧，但在以宾夕法尼亚州为中心的问题上，他们找到了很多共同点，”麦考密克的顾问兼CNN撰稿人布拉德·托德周四告诉CNN。“他们都认为以色列有生存的权利，宾夕法尼亚州居民也有权过上体面的生活，他们愿意在这些问题上共同努力。”

更出人意料的是，两人联手筹款：今年夏天早些时候，他们成立了一个联合筹款委员会，此举激怒了一些民主党人，他们猛烈抨击了这一举动。

费特曼的一些宾夕法尼亚州民主党同僚认为此举某种程度上是一种政治叛乱，因为该党在本届中期选举周期中面临着巨大的财政需求，包括在其家乡州的一些关键竞选中。

许多人对费特曼周三晚上参与共和党大会一事也有类似的感受。

代表费城郊区部分地区的民主党众议员玛德琳·迪恩表示，她的选民——其中一些人曾为费特曼挨家挨户敲门拉票——现在对他“非常愤怒”。

“我对约翰和他的那番作秀感到非常失望。我希望他能回到宾夕法尼亚州的家乡，像我一样，确保宾夕法尼亚州能有更多秉持他最初竞选时所倡导价值观的民主党众议员，”她在周四于德克萨斯州举行的新闻发布会上说道。这场新闻发布会是民主党人为了对抗共和党全国代表大会而组织的。

私下里，几位民主党人已经开始考虑在 2028 年的党内初选中挑战费特曼。代表匹兹堡郊区的进步派民主党众议员克里斯·德卢齐奥尤其对费特曼持批评态度，众议员布伦丹·博伊尔和前众议员苏珊·怀尔德也未排除参选的可能性。

但私下里，一些民主党人也觉得没必要对费特曼采取任何行动。民主党领导人宁愿留住他，也不愿疏远他——尤其是在他仍然基本与民主党人保持一致的情况下。费特曼已经明确表示他无意更换党派。而且，据一位知情人士透露，他仍然与少数党领袖查克·舒默保持着联系，在八月休会前，两人还曾单独共进晚餐。

近来，费特曼受到了更多关注。《华尔街日报》本月早些时候发表的一篇报道称，费特曼经常推诿会议，甚至需要别人哄着才肯履行日常工作职责。随着网络上的负面舆论不断升温，麦考密克迅速出面维护费特曼，驳斥这些指控是“左翼内部一些极其不忠的员工和势力利用匿名泄密来封杀我的朋友约翰·费特曼的最新例证”。

“他们憎恨他独立思考、不愿墨守成规，所以想让他噤声。我和他将继续携手合作，为宾夕法尼亚州谋福祉，例如保住美国钢铁公司的就业岗位，并通过一项新法律使住房更加经济实惠，”麦考密克在X频道上说道。

周三晚上，费特曼投桃报李，通过视频出现在一家钢铁厂前，介绍原定在大会上发言的麦考密克，称他为“朋友”，并表示尽管两人党派不同，但麦考密克是“那种能把事情做好的参议员”。

麦考密克的顾问托德将这两位宾夕法尼亚州参议员之间罕见的合作关系归因于该州自身的政治环境——因为几乎所有其他州的代表团都属于同一个政党。“我们现在很少有分裂的代表团，所以人们觉得这种情况很奇怪，”托德说道。