On Thursday, it was announced that Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) was invited and agreed to meet with President-elect Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago, becoming the first known sitting Democratic senator to do so. Such news became a trending topic for X on Thursday night, with Fetterman himself sharing coverage.
In his post, which included a screenshot from a CBS News article, Fetterman reminded that he's "a Senator for all Pennsylvanians" and sees it as his "job to find common ground and deliver results for everybody." He also underscored how "nobody is my gatekeeper," further signaling his willingness to meet with Trump.
I’m not just a Senator for Democrats—I’m a Senator for all Pennsylvanians.
It’s my job to find common ground and deliver results for everybody.
And because nobody is my gatekeeper, I will meet with anyone to secure some wins, including President Trump. pic.twitter.com/H6MhmYBJXd
— U.S. Senator John Fetterman (@SenFettermanPA) January 9, 2025
As the article indicated, including with quotes from Fetterman:
Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania has accepted an invitation from President-elect Donald Trump to meet with him at his Mar-a-Lago estate, according to multiple sources familiar with the plans.
"That is the plan. Yes, we are going to have a conversation," Fetterman told CBS News about the upcoming meeting.
The trip will mark the first known time a sitting Democratic U.S. senator is meeting with Trump at his Palm Beach residence since the election.
"I think that one, he's the president, or he will be officially," Fetterman said. "And I think it's pretty reasonable that if the president would like to have a conversation — or invite someone to have a conversation — to have it. And no one is my gatekeeper."
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However, a transition official cautioned that plans could change and that the Fetterman meeting has not been finalized.
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Trump also hopes Fetterman will support some of his nominees, including Pete Hegseth for defense secretary, a source said.
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"I have no idea what's going to exactly come up. So, I mean, regardless of whatever comes up, that's going to be part of the conversation," Fetterman told CBS News.
Fetterman has already shown plenty of bipartisanship, including for the 119th Congress and for the Trump-Vance administration. As the article mentioned, there's hope that Fetterman will vote to confirm some of Trump's Cabinet nominees. Another first from the senator came when he met with Pete Hegseth, Trump's pick to serve as the Secretary of Defense. Fetterman has also indicated he looks forward to voting for Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) as Secretary of State and Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) to be ambassador to the United Nations. In Stefanik's case, Fetterman is particularly encouraged by her standing up to antisemitism, a skill which will be needed at the UN.
The senator even looks willing to confirm his old foe, Dr. Mehmet Oz, who ran against Fetterman in November 2022. When asked, Fetterman signaled he would be open to it when Trump nominated Oz for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator.
We've been covering Fetterman's views on who he might be willing to vote for as he makes such comments, and, as Matt covered, he also earlier this week appeared on "Fox News Sunday" where he mentioned others he'd confirm, including former Rep. Sean Duffy (D-WI) as Secretary of Transportation and Brooke Rollins for Secretary of Agriculture.
Fetterman's even reportedly made some quips about Greenland, in reference to Trump looking to acquire the territory during his second term.
Fetterman on his upcoming meeting with Trump at Mar-a-Lago: “I'm angling to be named the pope of Greenland.” pic.twitter.com/2p0CVG4BzA
He put out a quoted repost of Sen. Dave McCormick (R-PA) about the meet up their senators and their wives had, which again focused on bipartisan. Like
Fetterman is smart to take up Trump's offer. As he's acknowledged, Trump will be president again soon, in a matter of days now. While Trump won all seven swing states last November, Pennsylvania was the most critical one, given the 19 electoral votes it hands to the victor being the most out of the seven. Although he wasn't supporting Trump's campaign, Fetterman did warn, or try to warn, his fellow Democrats about Trump having a good chance at winning the commonwealth and the election, especially with the help from Elon Musk. Fetterman has also criticized top party leaders who were involved in forcing President Joe Biden out of the race, including Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi (D-CA).
