John Fetterman Mistakenly Calls Himself a “Lifelong Republican”

The Pennsylvania senator made an embarrassing Freudian slip while trying to defend his politics.

Senator John Fetterman seemed to forget where he stands politically over the weekend.

At the Texas Tribune Festival Saturday, the Pennsylvania Democrat was asked why he wouldn’t become an independent considering the stances and votes he has taken in defiance of the Democratic Party. 

“Because I’m a lifelong Republican,” Fetterman responded. 

“Democrat,” CBS News correspondent Major Garrett corrected him as the audience gasped and laughed. “That’s a moment right there, that’s clippable ladies and gentlemen!”

“Yeah, I’m a lifelong Democrat, though,” Fetterman said sheepishly as some in the audience jeered. 

Q: Why not become an independent? Fetterman: Because I’m a lifelong Republican.Garrett: You mean a Democrat.Fetterman: A Democrat. pic.twitter.com/HD92TVceVr— Acyn (@Acyn) September 27, 2026

Q: Why not become an independent? Fetterman: Because I’m a lifelong Republican.Garrett: You mean a Democrat.Fetterman: A Democrat. pic.twitter.com/HD92TVceVr

It was quite the revelatory gaffe for Fetterman, who has confirmed President Trump’s nominees, voted to reopen the government, and helped thwart multiple resolutions seeking to end the Iran war. The Pennsylvania senator is facing renewed calls to step down from Democrats in his home state after a Wall Street Journal article earlier this month reported that he has blown off meetings with disabled veterans, families of slain police officers, children’s hospital officials, and numerous constituents in the past two years.  

In 2028, Fetterman is up for reelection, and several Democrats will likely launch primary challenges against the incumbent senator. Several of them have not hesitated to attack Fetterman, with Representative Brendan Boyle calling him a “disgrace” and former Representative Conor Lamb, who lost to Fetterman in the 2022 Senate primary, saying that he should “just quit.”  

“John, if there is a decent bone left in your body, just quit. It’s an insult to decent people in our state for you to treat them and the office this way,” Lamb posted on X. 

Fetterman’s turn towards the right is getting him attention from all of the wrong places. He made a surprise cameo at the Republicans’ midterm convention, and he’s become a right-wing media darling at places such as Fox News, who cater to his vehement pro-Israel views. Meanwhile, his Pennsylvania constituents are being ignored. 

Trump Team Scrambles After Embarrassing Slip About Arms Sale to China

U.S. Ambassador David Perdue casually let slip that Donald Trump had offered to sell weapons to China.

Selling weapons to China is suddenly off the table. It’s unclear how it got on the table in the first place.

U.S. Ambassador David Perdue told Fox News Sunday that “President Trump continues to say: Hey, we sell arms to other people around the world,” and that “he actually asked [Chinese] President Xi [Jinping] would he like to buy some at one point.”

But hours later, the Trump administration aggressively attempted to cover its own tracks. Two U.S. officials denied any such plan while speaking with The Wall Street Journal. One........

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