John Fetterman Changes Political Identity as He Fights Democrats on Border

Democratic Senator John Fetterman's shedding of the "progressive" label he once proudly espoused is partially due to some liberals' views on immigration and the southern border.

The senator from Pennsylvania defeated Republican challenger Dr. Mehmet Oz by a five-point margin in the 2022 election. In that election and the years leading up to it, including during his failed 2016 Senate bid, Fetterman defined himself as a progressive and backed Senator Bernie Sanders as the Democratic Party's presidential nominee that same year. He has shied away from the designation as of late.

Fetterman has recently become more outspoken about issues like the U.S.-Mexico border and the war in Gaza, saying he's no longer a progressive but "just a regular Democrat." He has sounded an alarm on the situation down south, exacerbated by a monthly record of 300,000 migrants being processed in December, according to data released by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

"There is a crisis," Fetterman told the New York Post last week, referencing the December influx of migrants. "We have a crisis at our border, and it can't be controversial that we should have a secure border."

He added: "That's larger than the population of Pittsburgh...That's [Pennsylvania's] second largest city—and that's one month."

Newsweek reached out to Fetterman via email for comment.

The first-term senator campaigned on being a progressive, yet said it's not him but others whose positions have changed, adding that President Joe Biden and his administration are aware of the need for "comprehensive" solutions.

Democratic-run cities like New York, which have been inundated with migrant arrivals for nearly two years, should be supported financially at the federal level, Fetterman said.

"I don't understand why it's it controversial to say we need a secure border," Fetterman told CNN's Jake Tapper on Friday. "I've been really clear—in fact, that was weaponized against me by Republicans in my race, that I'm very much a strong supporter of immigration. My wife's family, there's an origin story about that."

Last month, the senator received scrutiny for mentioning his wife, Gisele Barreto Fetterman, in relation to the border. Gisele, born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, came to the United States with her family as an undocumented immigrant at age 7. She was an illegal immigrant until she received her green card in 2004 and became a U.S. citizen five years later.

Gisele was widely praised for being not just a good wife but a campaign surrogate when Fetterman suffered a stroke in the months preceding his election with Oz.

"I think two things can be true at the same time: You can be very supportive of immigration, but we also need to have a secure border," the senator told Tapper. "We want to provide the American Dream for any migrant, but it seems very difficult when you have 300,000 people showing up encountered at our border to do that.

"I think we need to do a reset and work together to develop a new comprehensive solution."

As conservatives, including Donald Trump Jr., have commended Fetterman for speaking out regarding the border and the Middle East, Fetterman has experienced a dwindling of support among young liberals—more of whom sympathize with Palestine than Israel, according to a New York Times/Siena College poll of 1,680 Pennsylvania self-identified registered voters conducted between January 4 and 8.

Only 28 percent of those aged 18-34 have a favorable view of Fetterman, according to the poll. In contrast, 45 percent had an unfavorable view of the senator, with 27 percent saying they hadn't heard enough to answer.