On Saturday, Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) appeared unbothered by declining support from Democratic voters as he reiterated his strong backing for Israel during an interview on CNN.
Fetterman joined the CNN show “Smerconish” to express unwavering support for Donald Trump and his military actions in Iran. He aligned with a Wall Street Journal column by lawyer David Boies, which urged Democrats to refrain from urging Trump to end “the mission” prematurely.
During the interview, Fetterman told host Michael Smerconish that the conflict involves every nation that consumes oil. He said, “I don’t want to hear any more, like, ‘Well, that’s not our war.’ Well, do you use oil? You know, do you, do you like peace? Yeah, well then it makes it your war now, too.”
Fetterman pointed out that the war resulted in Iran closing the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial passage for a fifth of the world’s oil, threatening a global energy crisis. However, he did not mention that it was open before Trump initiated the conflict.
A strong supporter of Israel, Fetterman has experienced a significant decline in approval from Democratic voters. He was the sole Democratic senator to oppose a War Powers Resolution intended to limit Trump’s unpopular military engagement.
Despite widespread criticism from Democratic voters regarding his stance on Israel and the war in Iran, and a recent Punchbowl News report indicating no support from Pennsylvania House Democrats for his reelection, Fetterman remained resolute when asked if backing Israel was a “hill” he was willing to “die on.”
“Oh, yeah,” Fetterman affirmed. “I mean, you know, the only Democrat to stand with Israel.”
He added, “Yeah, it’s a ‘die.’ You know, like, I could never be just sitting quiet or saying things that I don’t happen to believe to. Like, I know what polls say, consistingly [sic], as long as this goes on, Israel becomes more and more toxic, but I’m always going to lean in more.”
The State Department has openly acknowledged that U.S. military aggressions against Iran were launched “at the request of” Israel, a claim Secretary of State Marco Rubio himself made at the time before awkwardly walking it back.
Fetterman has continued to support Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, despite the International Criminal Court accusing him of war crimes in the Gaza genocide — a term Fetterman has refused to accept despite its use by numerous humanitarian organizations.
“And so, yes, thank you for asking,” he told Smerconish about his question. “Yes, it is a die, a hill, because a lot more things are more important than my standing in the Democratic Party. This is such a profound, profound situation.”
Fetterman continued, “If we walk away from this, just because Trump might be perceived as losing it, but America would definitely would lose, and Israel, especially, and the region, as well, too.”
