Fetterman Continues to Surprise: 'I'm Not a Progressive'—That Label Left Me

Anyone who paid attention to now-Sen. John Fetterman’s (D-PA) campaign against Republican Dr. Mehmet Oz gleaned from his stilted campaign appearances and debates that he was a far leftist progressive who would continue to infect our politics with woke statements and identity politics.

Many of us have been forced to admit that he’s been a complete surprise with some of his comments. Granted, he showed up for his first day of work in the Senate in workout clothes and is still odd, but he hasn’t been spouting the extreme leftist talking points like fellow Democrats Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) on a routine basis.

Would you ever have expected headlines like these? I certainly didn’t:

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Surprise:

John Fetterman 2.0 Takes Bulldozer to Alma Mater Harvard During Yeshiva University Commencement Address

Fetterman Dunks on AOC Over Her Latest Freakout, Takes Bonus Jab at Biden

'I Am Not Woke': Fetterman Continues to Surprise, Blasts Squatters and Violent Crime

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Don’t get me wrong, he’s not suddenly a Republican, and he’s still staunchly anti-Trump even though the alternative in Biden is a path to our doom, but he does say some things that make you think, “Hmmm; that’s fair.” Appearing on CNN Wednesday, he said it’s not that he’s changed—the left has:

Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., responded to progressive critics suggesting he wasn't exactly who people thought he would be while he was campaigning. He added that the progressive "label" left him. 

"I'm not a progressive, I just identified myself as a regular Democrat," Fetterman said, talking to CNN's Dana Bash. "Now, eight years ago, I was a progressive, but the situation's changed and I‘ve been very clear that I didn‘t leave that label. That label leaved [left] me and I think it’s much more important to be focusing on Donald Trump instead of those kinds of purity tests and those kinds of issues."

Unlike so many of his fellow Democrats, he actually believes in border security and Israel’s right to defend itself:

Bash also asked Fetterman to respond to Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., who told CNN on Tuesday that President Biden was using the "same tools as Donald Trump" to address border security. 

"She's entitled to her own opinion, but it does also seem like some of the harshest words for the president in this situation seems to be more coming from very safe, and blue, very kinds of places. Now in Pennsylvania, border security is an important issue and we do all believe that we should have a secure border, and I never thought it was unreasonable for any Democrat to want to make our border more secure," he said. 

Fetterman has said that the progressives in his party, in addition to the right, are hoping he "dies" over his stance on Israel and border security.

Let’s be real: the guy is still a conundrum, and after one Dana Bash question, there was a full 12 seconds of silence from the Pennsylvania Senator. Weird. I can't pretend to know what's going through his mind at any given moment. Nevertheless, count me as surprised by his statements and actions since he won his election. At this point, I would take him over Chuck Schumer, AOC, and the Squad any day of the week.