Fox Host Apologizes to John Fetterman, Says He's Now 'My Favorite Senator'

What's New

Fox News host Jesse Watters put Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman on his "nice list," calling the Democrat his "favorite."

Why It Matters

On Christmas Day, Watters and other commentators on The Five listed their naughty and nice list. Watters put Sean "Diddy" Combs on his naughty list, but praised Fetterman for changing how Watters thought about the lawmaker.

"Because John Fetterman and I didn't get off to a good start, I thought he was brain-dead and I thought the people of Pennsylvania deserved better, but he turned out to be my favorite senator," Watters said. "And he is making more sense than Republicans and Democrats, so he is on my nice list, with a little apology note."

Newsweek reached out to Fetterman's office for comment.

What To Know

Fetterman has been a lone Democrat by voicing his support for some of President-elect Donald Trump's Cabinet nominations.

The senator has been a vocal critic of the Democratic Party's election strategy and has supported picks including New York Representative Elise Stefanik for United Nations ambassador for her "strong and unapologetic pro-Israel position," as well as the "strong choice" of Florida Senator Marco Rubio as secretary of state.

On November 19, Fetterman even managed to be positive about his former opponent in the Pennsylvania Senate race, Dr. Mehmet Oz, who Trump nominated to run the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

More recently, Fetterman was the first Democratic lawmaker to meet with Trump's pick to lead the Department of Defense, Pete Hegseth.

Fetterman has faced criticism after saying he was "not rooting against" Trump, adding that the president-elect had "political talent that's undeniable," in an interview with ABC.

On Fox News specifically, Fetterman criticized President Joe Biden for pausing a shipment of arms to Israel. The senator is a vocal supporter of Israel's actions in Gaza, and has said he doesn't agree that the U.S. should withhold arms from Israel or impose any conditions on its ally.

What People Are Saying

Jessica Tarlov, co-host on The Five, in response to Watters: "Love it."

Fetterman to CNN earlier in December about Cabinet nominees: "If this is the individual that could have this incredibly important role, I think it's responsible for me to be a senator from Pennsylvania to have a conversation and to establish some type of relationship with that individual (...) I'm not just the senator for Pennsylvania or for my voters or for Democrats. It's for all of us. We have received a lot of support calls into our office saying, 'Hey, will you have a conversation?'"

What's Next

Fetterman along with other senators will vote to confirm Trump's nominations for his administration in the New Year