The battle for the future of the Democratic Party is intensifying as the country approaches the midterm elections.
On one side, the so-called ‘moderate’ center-left Democrats who still love capitalism, secure borders, and law and order, and on the other, a rising tide of hard-left socialists who despise those principles.
Add aged “independent” Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont to the latter.
Sanders sharply criticized Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania during a weekend appearance on NBC’s Meet the Press, intensifying a public disagreement that has highlighted divisions between the Democratic Party’s left-wing and more moderate wings.
During the interview, host Kristen Welker asked Sanders about Fetterman’s criticism of Sanders’ endorsement of former Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner.
Sanders responded by calling Fetterman “way out of touch with the people of America,” though polls show Americans overwhelmingly rejected Platner’s Nazi associations via his tattoos.
He also questioned Fetterman’s standing among Democratic voters in Pennsylvania and argued that the two senators have significant disagreements on issues including U.S. policy toward Israel, according to WGAL.
“My response to Fetterman is, the last time I saw it, he was reflecting the views of about 19 percent of the Democrats in the state of Pennsylvania,” Sanders said.
Sanders did not cite a specific poll or survey to support his claim.
During the interview, however, he argued that Fetterman has become increasingly out of step with many Democratic voters in Pennsylvania.
Sanders also broadened his criticism beyond disagreements over U.S. policy toward Israel, contending that Fetterman has diverged from the Democratic base on a range of issues.
“Fetterman does his thing, I think on Israel and many other issues, is way out of touch with the people of America,” he claimed.
Sanders did not specify which additional issues he was referring to during the interview.
However, his comments suggested that he believes Fetterman’s positions differ from those of many Democratic voters on a broader range of policy matters.
The exchange marks the latest development in an increasingly public divide between Fetterman and his party’s hard-left faction.
Fetterman initially drew strong support from many leftist activists and leaders during his rise in Pennsylvania politics, but disagreements over several issues since have strained those relationships in recent years.
But he says it’s not him who has changed, it’s his party.
That said, the latest dispute between the two senators began after Sanders endorsed Platner in Maine’s U.S. Senate race.
Platner later withdrew from the campaign after several women made credible allegations of sexual misconduct against him.
Public reports described the allegations as serious but did not provide additional details.
Welker asked Sanders whether he regretted endorsing Platner during their interview, leading the Vermont senator to sidestep the question.
He said it was an exercise in “Monday-morning quarterbacking” and noting that Platner had been running what he described as a strong campaign before the allegations emerged.
Fetterman has also continued to defend his position.
In recent public remarks, he has questioned whether some members of the Democratic Party still want him as part of the caucus, underscoring the growing tensions between the Pennsylvania senator and the party’s far-left wing.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer publicly urged Fetterman to remain a Democrat last week, calling the Pennsylvania senator ‘a very good member of Congress’ as renewed questions swirl about Fetterman’s future within the party.
Schumer told reporters that Democrats remain a “big-tent party” capable of accommodating differing viewpoints, seeking to dismiss months of speculation that Fetterman could eventually leave the Democratic Party after repeatedly breaking with fellow Democrats on issues including Israel and immigration.
The comments came only days after Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) acknowledged that he and several Republican senators have discussed Fetterman’s frustrations inside the Democratic caucus and said Republicans would welcome the opportunity to have him join their conference if he chose to do so.
