OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman is cautioning fellow Democrats not to underestimate Elon Musk’s support for former President Trump in the Keystone State.
With 19 Electoral College votes at stake in Pennsylvania on November 5, the state is classified as a toss-up by Fox News’ Power Rankings. As both Trump and Vice President Harris fiercely compete for Pennsylvania—where the winner is likely to take the White House—Fetterman, known for his straightforward style, told the New York Post in an interview that “Musk is a concern.”
“Not even just that he has endorsed [Trump], but the fact that now he’s becoming an active participant and showing up and doing rallies and things like that,” Fetterman said, going on to say that the very successful Tesla and SpaceX CEO is someone who can pull in the kinds of voters Harris needs to win.
“I mean, [Musk] is incredibly successful, and, you know, I think some people would see him as, like, a Tony Stark,” said Fetterman, referencing the popular Marvel Comics character. “Democrats, you know, kind of make light of it, or they make fun of him jumping up and down and things like that. And I would just say that they are doing that at our peril.”
Musk, the world’s richest man, has identified himself as a centrist and has previously voted for Democrats. However, he has recently stated in various social media posts that the Democratic Party has moved too far left, embracing what he terms the “woke mind virus.”
Earlier this month, he appeared at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, alongside Trump, where he told the crowd of Trump supporters that this is the “most important election of our lifetime.”
Musk also announced on X that he would be participating in a series of town hall events in the battleground state throughout the weekend, Fox News noted. Additionally, the billionaire has backed his beliefs with action, donating $75 million to a pro-Trump super PAC focused on voter turnout.
Fetterman, who has occasionally clashed with the progressive wing of his party, told the Post that while he is not in a panic about 2024, the election in Pennsylvania is “going to be ridiculously close.”
“Trump has a connection that’s undeniable. And anyone that spends any time across Pennsylvania can see that kind of devotion, and that’s why it’s going to be very close,” Fetterman said, adding: “Pennsylvania picks the president.”
Fetterman has consistently supported President Biden, even as other Democrats sought to push the president out of the 2024 race following his widely criticized debate performance against Trump in June. He insists that Biden would have been competitive against Trump had he not chosen to withdraw. “I’d like to remind everybody that Biden is the only person that’s ever beaten Trump,” Fetterman said.
He described the effort to push Biden off the top of the ticket as “a total blowtorch.”
“You had the Democratic side, you have the ongoing, right-wing media, and then the celebrities got involved in it as well, too. And then the New York Times became the ‘he’s got to go’ outlet throughout all that as well,” said the senator.
Fetterman also said he’s behind Harris and that she will win the state. “Harris could not have run a better campaign than she has so far right now,” he said.
Last month, Fetterman said Trump has a “special place” in the Keystone State that only deepened after the assassination attempt against him in July.
“Trump has created a special kind of a hold … and he’s remade the party and he has a special kind of place in Pennsylvania,” Fetterman told a crowd at The Atlantic Festival. “And I think that only deepened after that first assassination attempt.”
