OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
During an interview on Sunday, Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., expressed disagreement with President Joe Biden’s position that the U.S. would not participate in an offensive operation against Iran, stating that he would never “capitulate to the fringe” of his party.
CNN host Jake Tapper asked Fetterman about reports saying that Biden informed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a day earlier that the U.S. would refrain from engaging in any offensive operations against Iran.
“Do you think that’s the right call or should direct U.S. military action, as some of your colleagues in the Senate are suggesting? Should that be on the table?” Tapper asked.
“I don’t agree with that. I just think we should follow and have Israel back in the situation. I don’t agree with the president. That doesn’t change anything—he‘s a fantastic president. I‘m proud to stand with him, campaign for him, and vote for him,” he responded.
Tapper prompted Fetterman to address Sen. Marco Rubio’s remarks, where the Florida Republican criticized the White House for leaking information about the Biden-Netanyahu conversation, deeming it “offensive.” Rubio also suggested that such leaks indicated Biden’s attempt to “appease the far left in his party.”
“The president is entitled to his own views and whatever he decides to do. But I would never capitulate to the fringe. I’ll never pander to that as well. In fact, that empowers Hamas and Hamas — they’re actually convinced they’re winning the [public relations] war. And they’re never going to negotiate at this point. They think that they’re going to hold onto the very end,” Fetterman said.
“And I know why they’re not willing to provide any kind of proof of life. And I don’t know why there’s not more of that conversation in the media, like what about the hostages? What’s happened to them? Where are they now? And let’s just bring them home. And then all of the harsh words should be directed at Hamas, which started this. And now continues to hold all of over 100 Israeli hostages,” he continued.
WATCH:
The Pennsylvania Democrat went on to speculate that Hamas could bring the war to an end right away by simply releasing its hostages.
According to the Times of Israel, as Iran launched a significant barrage of attack drones and missiles toward Israel on Saturday, the Israeli military was actively monitoring and readying to intercept the incoming weapons in what marked the Islamic Republic’s first-ever direct attack on Israel.
U.S. military assets in the region reportedly took part in helping to defend Israel from the incoming barrage.
Earlier Saturday, Netanyahu said Israel had for weeks “been preparing for the possibility of a direct attack from Iran.”
Netanyahu said his country’s “air defenses are deployed, we are ready for any scenario, both in attack and in defense,” according to remarks reported by Fox News Digital.
Fetterman has been making headlines in recent months by bucking the far left of his party.
In a December interview with NBC News, he spoke frankly about his political positions, noting that he’s “not a progressive,” a statement that comes after his vehement support for Israel in its war against Hamas and calls for tougher immigration and border policies.
The outlet noted further:
He’s also continually scolding Democrats for not pushing Sen. Bob Menendez out of office after he was indicted on federal charges of taking bribes and acting as a foreign agent for Egypt, which the New Jersey Democrat denies.
“I just think I’m a Democrat that is very committed to choice and other things. But with Israel, I’m going to be on the right side of that. And immigration is something near and dear to me, and I think we do have to effectively address it as well,” he said.
Earlier this month, Fetterman strongly criticized the notion of allowing squatters to occupy someone else’s property and stated to the New York Post, “I am not woke.”
“Squatters have no rights,” Fetterman said. “How can you even pretend that this is anything other than you’re just breaking the law?”