Sen. John Fetterman bluntly warned on Thursday that he would leave the Democratic Party if it adopts an anti-Israel policy — one of his most direct threats yet amid the first-term Pennsylvanian’s intensifying battle with progressives over the direction of their party.
Fetterman attacked the progressive left, in an interview with CNN’s Manu Raju, over pushing the party to embrace policies against the Israeli government amid the crisis in Gaza and its role in the Iran war.
“That’s my red line,” Fetterman said Thursday. “If the Democratic Party becomes official anti-Israel, then that’s when I would force me out.”
More than 100 House Democrats voted to block billions in military aid to Israel on Wednesday, the most ever, underscoring the sharp shift particularly with younger voters and the liberal base. Fetterman said that House vote wouldn’t force him to leave the party, calling it merely “symbolic.” But he made clear what would cause him to bolt.
“If they make it the official platform of the party, then that’s a much different situation,” Fetterman said.
