Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman backtracked on Monday and stopped being the only Democrat in the Upper House to refuse to sign a resolution to officially condemn President Donald Trump's decision to grant sweeping clemency to defendants who assaulted Capitol Police Officers on the January 6 riots.
Fetterman's name now joins those of all other Democrats in the document, POLITICO's Kyle Cheney reported. A spokesperson told the outlet he is in fact supporting the resolution, which says "the Senate disapproves of any pardons for individuals who were found guilty of assaulting Capitol Police officers."
UPDATE: Fetterman has officially signed onto the resolution disapproving of President Trump's pardon of those who assaulted Capitol Police. https://t.co/L1OWto2kkT pic.twitter.com/TNQl28VpKr
— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) January 27, 2025
The resolution is unlikely to pass as Republicans control the Senate, but its formal introduction could force some GOP Senators to take a clear stance on the matter, considering some have spoken against it.
Fetterman's initial reluctance was seen as another instance in which he broke with the party. The Pennsylvanian who won a three-candidate primary and survived a stroke amid a high-pressure campaign, became the first Senate Democrat to meet with Trump after the 2024 election.
"I'm the Senator for all Pennsylvanians— not just Democrats in Pennsylvania," Fetterman said in a statement after revealing Trump invited him to Mar-a-Lago. "I've been clear that no one is my gatekeeper. I will meet with and have a conversation with anyone if it helps me deliver for Pennsylvania and the nation."
For his part, Trump told the Washington Examiner that they had a "totally fascinating meeting" and that Fetterman is a "commonsense person" and "not liberal or conservative."
But despite seemingly parting ways with his party's establishment, the senator has squashed questions and rumors about potentially switching parties. He told Semafor that talk about a party flip to the GOP is "amateur-hour s—."
"If they think, 'Oh, it's going to be like a Manchin or a Sinema play,' that's just not true, and that's not going to happen," Fetterman said to the outlet on the evening of Trump's inauguration, referring to former Sens. Joe Manchin (W.Va) and Kyrsten Sinema (Ariz.), who began their careers as Democrats but retired this year as Independents.
"It's not going to happen. And even if I wanted to do that, this is a rocket sled to Palookaville to try and switch— I would make a pretty bad Republican," he added.
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