Fetterman's Increasing Democratic Divide

On June 21, 2025, nearly every single Democrat condemned the US attack on Iranian nuclear facilities. Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania did not, doubling down on rhetoric saying that Trump’s decision to strike Iranian nuclear facilities were justified, and that Iran should not have a nuclear weapon, with no negotiation. When many Democrats were supporting protests against ICE raids in Los Angeles, John Fetterman condemned the protests and said that the stuff happening in LA should not happen. Fetterman has increasingly grown divided within the Democratic Party, not just from this year, but ever since he has been elected Senator. From dress code, to foreign policy, he has been a polarizing figure who has even contributed to Republican gains, while bucking the Democratic Party. 

John Fetterman’s rifts within the Democratic Party don’t even start from anything related to policy. It actually relates to the Senate dress code. Senator Fetterman is commonly known for being against wearing suits and ties, and wanting to wear hoodies in the chamber. This polarized many in the Democratic caucus, so much that Senator Dick Durbin, the #2 Democrat in the Senate, made a motion to actually revert the dress code to the previous one (as leader Chuck Schumer changed the dress code to accommodate Fetterman), in spite of Fetterman’s objections. Eventually, after negotiations, Fetterman agreed to keep the dress code. Yet, the rift between the Democrats does not stop there.

He has repeatedly bucked the party on Senate votes for posts such as Cabinet secretaries, and is sometimes the sole Democratic Senator to vote for such a cabinet secretary. He was one of 3 Democrats to vote in favor of Lee Zeldin as EPA secretary. He was one of 2 Democrats to vote for Scott Turner as the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.  He was the only Democrat to vote in favor of Pam Bondi as Attorney General. It’s made him look like a Senate wildcard, and it has made him a possible crucial vote for pieces of legislation that is critical to Trump’s agenda. 

Yet, on foreign policy, Fetterman has arguably the biggest divide within the Democratic Party. On Saturday, when the United States struck Iran with missiles and bunker buster bombs, Fetterman was one of the only Democrats to publicly support Trump for the strike, and said that most Democrats wanting negotiations don’t get the message, as negotiating with such a regime is a very bad idea. Moreover, in an interview with Bill Maher, he publicly stated opposition to the war in Gaza was a bad idea, saying “Our party, the Democratic Party, has lost that argument,” he said. “They’ve taken side with the regime that doesn’t have the kind of values and live the kind of ways that we want here in our country.” Along with that, he also said Israel “absolutely did the right thing” by bombing Iran’s nuclear facilities, calling it a “once-in-a-generation opportunity” to do so, tying into his argument on how the Democrats are losing the message and his unequivocal support for Israel. 

Even in domestic policy, he has publicly criticized the party and has bashed it over the handling of the LA protests turned riots. In a tweet on June 9, he said “My party loses the moral high ground when we refuse to condemn setting cars on fire, destroying buildings, and assaulting law enforcement,” with an image of a man waving the Mexican flag while a car is burning. This has led to many Democrats calling out the Senator, while Republicans, such as Senator Katie Britt, agreeing with Senator Fetterman.