Sen. John Fetterman’s (D-PA) former chief of staff said he wasn’t surprised by the senator’s bombshell cameo at the Republican National Committee’s first-ever midterm convention, characterizing his former boss as attention-seeking.Fetterman made a virtual appearance at the convention in Dallas, sharing a video praising President Donald Trump and his GOP colleague, Sen. David McCormick (R-PA), which stoked suspicion that the freshman senator is looking to switch parties.Adam Jentleson, who worked for Fetterman from 2022 to 2024, told CNN’s New Central that Fetterman is trying to get attention rather than promote bipartisanship.
“I was not surprised,” Jentleson said. “I think that Sen. Fetterman has sort of reached a point where he’s just trying to do whatever he can do to get the most attention for the least amount of work, and that is what he’s doing here.”Jentleson also jabbed at Fetterman’s work ethic, saying the senator makes headline-worthy moves in order to avoid doing his job.“This is somebody who has sort of stopped actually doing the job of being a senator and instead is just sort of seeking opportunities to, you know, put himself front and center and do sort of high-profile maneuvers like this,” he said. “So, you know, it sort of struck me as par for the course given what he’s sort of decided to do with his seat.”Last week, the Wall Street Journal reported that other staffers similarly thought of Fetterman as lazy and alleged that he often avoids his job responsibilities.Fetterman reportedly declined to meet with three wheelchair-bound veterans who had traveled to his office, telling staffers that he was sick after the veterans arrived. He later told staffers that he had actually skipped the meeting to appear on Fox News to discuss the war in Iran, according to the Wall Street Journal.Jentleson said the support aligns with what he saw of Fetterman while working for him.“They struck me as very accurate,” Jentleson said. “The article described things that all happened since I left. But they were consistent with the behavior that I saw when I was there and that sort of disturbed me deeply.”FETTERMAN PRAISES ‘GREAT FRIEND’ MCCORMICK IN SURPRISE MIDTERM CONVENTION VIDEOJentleson sat down with New York magazine in 2025 after leaving Fetterman’s office and said the senator exhibited erratic and risky behavior frequently, raising questions about his mental health. Several months before Jentleson started working for Fetterman, the then-primary candidate had suffered a near-fatal stroke, leaving him with lingering auditory processing issues.Fetterman has found himself at odds with parts of the Democratic Party and has developed closer relationships with Republicans in recent weeks. He has particularly clashed with Democrats over Israel and the party’s approach to socialism.
