John Fetterman Tells Democrats To ‘Chill Out’ About Trump’s Return To Office

By Eleonore Christiansen on December 22, 2024

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Sen. John Fetterman (D-Penn.) downplayed the drama that Donald Trump’s second term as president could cause, telling his fellow Democrats there is no need to “freak out” before the Republican has even returned to office.

During a Sunday interview on ABC’s “This Week,” the legislator told host Jonathan Karl that he thinks many of his peers’ handwringing about Trump has been counterproductive.

“I’ve been warning people, like, ‘You got to chill out,’ you know? Like the constant, you know, freak out, it’s not helpful,” Fetterman said. “Pack a lunch, pace yourself, because he hasn’t even taken office yet.”

Asked for his thoughts on if the president-elect has the potential to be successful in his second term, the senator said that he thinks “rooting against” Trump would be the wrong thing for any leader to do.

“If you’re rooting against the president, you are rooting against the nation,” he said. “I’m not ever going to be where I want a president to fail.”

“So, country first. I know that’s become maybe like a cliché, but it happens to be true,” Fetterman added.

The politician also called Trump a “singular political talent,” commending his ability to rally his base.

@JonKarl he hopes President-elect Donald Trump is successful in his second term and that he’s not "rooting against him."

"If you’re rooting against the president, you are rooting against the nation." https://t.co/Bk0B9r5VUr pic.twitter.com/qgGYklnOmv

— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) December 22, 2024

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John Fetterman tells @JonKarl he hopes President-elect Donald Trump is successful in his second term and that he’s not "rooting against him.""If you’re rooting against the president, you are rooting against the nation." https://t.co/Bk0B9r5VUr pic.twitter.com/qgGYklnOmv— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) December 22, 2024nnn","options":{"_hide_media":{"label":"Hide photos, videos, and cards","value":false},"_maxwidth":{"label":"Adjust width","placeholder":"220-550, in px","value":""},"_theme":{"value":"","values":{"dark":"Use dark theme"}}},"provider_name":"Twitter","thumbnail_height":720,"thumbnail_url":"https://pbs.twimg.com/amplify_video_thumb/1870872496188080128/img/24C_gsIKVsJq-r1z.jpg:large","thumbnail_width":1280,"title":"This Week on Twitter / 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Pennsylvania Democrat Sen. John Fetterman tells @JonKarl he hopes President-elect Donald Trump is successful in his second term and that he’s not “rooting against him.”

“If you’re rooting against the president, you are rooting against the nation.” https://t.co/Bk0B9r5VUr pic.twitter.com/qgGYklnOmv

— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) December 22, 2024

“He had the energy and almost a sense of fearlessness to just say all those kinds of things,” Fetterman said, adding, “You literally were shot in your head and had the presence of mind to respond, you know, ‘Fight, fight, fight!’ I mean, that’s a political talent.”

He also took issue with Democrats who have called Trump a fascist, telling Karl that it’s “not a word that I would use” before explaining further.

“You put a lot of Democrats, especially in my state, that I know, and I happen to love people that are going to vote for Trump, and they are not fascists,” he said.

“Fascism, that’s not a word that regular people, you know, use, you know?” he added.

When it comes to Trump, Fetterman has demonstrated a willingness to break rank with his own party.

Earlier this month, he became the first Senate Democrat to join the president-elect’s social media platform, Truth Social.

In his first post, he described both Trump’s New York hush money case and Hunter Biden’s criminal convictions as “bullshit” while going on to say pardons would be “appropriate” in both instances.

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“Weaponizing the judiciary for blatant, partisan gain diminishes the collective faith in our institutions and sows further division,” he wrote in the post.

During his Sunday interview on ABC, Fetterman also said he wasn’t outright opposed to the idea of voting to confirm Trump’s controversial Cabinet nominees Pete Hegseth and Kash Patel.

“Nobody can accuse me of just saying I had a closed mind, or I just said no because Trump picked this person, or whatever,” he said.

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