Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) was once considered to be a quirky but rising star within the Democratic Party who had real prospects to be a leader -- at least so long as he generally adhered to the party's narratives and progressive agenda.
Now, the editorial board of the premier legacy media newspaper in Pennsylvania is demanding that the senator take his job "seriously" or "step away" from it entirely, The Guardian reported.
That ultimatum from the media coincides with multiple recent hit pieces that question his mental health status and dedication to his duties, which are little more than thinly veiled attacks against Fetterman over his newfound independent streak and willingness to buck the party's narratives and agenda on certain issues.
On Sunday, The Philadelphia Inquirer's Editorial Board published a scathing rebuke of Sen. Fetterman over allegations that he is "less interested" in doing the job he was elected to do than he is in enjoying the many benefits that come along with it.
"He has missed more votes than nearly every other senator in the past two years. He regularly skips committee hearings, cancels meetings, avoids the daily caucus lunches with colleagues, and rarely goes on the Senate floor," the outlet asserted, along with complaints that Fetterman refuses to hold town hall events with constituents to avoid being heckled.
The Board further noted the high rate of staff turnover in the senator's office, as well as the largely anonymously sourced allegations of concerns from current and former aides about his physical and mental health, about how "disengaged" he is at times, and how he is often absent or spends abnormal amounts of time alone, among other things.
"Being an elected official comes with public scrutiny. If Fetterman can’t handle the attention or perform his job, then in the best interest of the country and the nearly 13 million residents of Pennsylvania he represents, he should step aside," the Inquirer's Editorial Board asserted. "After all, being an elected representative is a privilege, not an entitlement. Being a U.S. senator is a serious job that requires full-time engagement."
The Board proceeded to chastise the senator for his behavior and excuses for his absences, including wanting to spend more time with his children and ailing father, and snarkily listed off many of the benefits he enjoys as a senator that most Pennsylvanians will never get to experience.
The Editors eventually let the mask slip and revealed the real underlying reason for this and other recent media attacks on Fetterman -- his openness to working with President Donald Trump and Republicans on areas of agreement and his unabashed support for Israel versus Hamas in Palestinian-occupied Gaza.
"It’s time for Fetterman to serve Pennsylvanians, or step away," the piece ultimately concluded.
The Guardian reported that Sen. Fetterman, in a Fox News-hosted bipartisan discussion and debate with colleague Sen. Dave McCormick (R-PA), pushed back against the allegations against him and said, "For me, it’s very clear, it’s just part of like this weird -- this weird smear. The more kinds of, left kind of media continues to have these kinds of an attack, and it’s just part of a smear, and that’s just not -- it’s just not accurate."
"I’m here. I’m doing that job. For me, if I miss some of those quotes -- I mean some of those votes -- I’ve made 90 percent of them and, and we all know those votes that I’ve missed were on Monday; those are travel days, and I have three young kids, and I -- those are throwaway procedural votes," he added, according to Politico. "That’s a choice that I made, and if you want to attack me for that, go ahead."
Politico observed that Fetterman also claimed that, when it comes to missed votes, his leftist colleagues Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Patty Murray (D-WA) had worse attendance records than him, but per GovTrack's statistics, that simply isn't the case.
Over the course of their decades-long careers, Sanders and Murray have missed votes approximately 13.4% and 2.6%, respectively -- the lifetime median for all senators is 2.9% -- while Fetterman's absentee rate is marked at 18.1%.
