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Sen. John Fetterman,<\/span> a Pennsylvania Democrat, is sending fundraising emails pledging to \u201cstand with America\u201d and \u201creject the extremes\u201d \u2014 using email lists for Republican candidates and committees.<\/p>\n An email over the weekend sent by Fetterman\u2019s campaign came from the address \u201cinfo@gopsquad.com\u201d and vowed<\/a>: \u201cI\u2019m always going to reject Socialism and the Anti-American way of life.\u201d Other recent appeals sent from the same address encourage readers to help President Donald Trump pass new voting restrictions<\/a>, to read an \u201curgent memo<\/a>\u201d from House Speaker Mike Johnson on fighting the left, and to back Republican Mike Rogers<\/a> for Senate in Michigan over Abdul El-Sayed, whom the email compared to a terrorist and a \u201cthreat to our way of life.\u201d<\/p>\n The email from Fetterman\u2019s campaign comes as the senator has moved closer to the Republican caucus, rankling his Democratic colleagues and spurring rumors that he might switch parties<\/a>. He received the maximum allowed contribution from GOP megadonor Harlan Crow<\/a>, as The Intercept reported in July. But the use of Republican fundraising infrastructure represents a new step in Fetterman\u2019s confounding electoral strategy.<\/p>\n The Fetterman campaign also sent copies of the fundraising email from alternate GOP domains including \u201cunshakeableconservatives.com<\/a>\u201d and \u201cfreedomfaction.net<\/a>.\u201d It\u2019s possible that Fetterman for PA rented or bought a GOP email list, something campaigns commonly do for targeted outreach, but the campaign\u2019s specific arrangement is unclear. The text retreads major talking points that the Democratic senator delivered in a controversial video appearance<\/a> at the Republican party\u2019s midterm convention earlier this month, where he railed against \u201cextremes\u201d and promised to \u201cstand with America.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Fetterman\u2019s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n Former Fetterman staffers, who spoke to The Intercept on condition of anonymity for fear of professional reprisal, condemned their old boss\u2019s pivot and suggested he\u2019d betrayed his previous supporters.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s no surprise that he has to resort to GOP donors to prop up his dismal fundraising numbers.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n \u201cAfter taking contributions from millions of small-dollar donors who wanted a Democratic Senate, John Fetterman turned around and became Donald Trump\u2019s useful idiot,\u201d said one former staffer. \u201cNow, it\u2019s no surprise that he has to resort to GOP donors to prop up his dismal fundraising numbers.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n <\/p>\n With two years left in his first term, Fetterman has made himself the subject of a series of political upheavals and dramatic reversals. The image he was heralded for upon his 2022 election \u2014 a gritty<\/a>, heterodox<\/a>, and unpredictable<\/a> model for the future of the Democratic Party \u2014 has all but crumbled.<\/p>\n Staffers<\/a>, donors<\/a>, previous supporters<\/a>, and his Democratic colleagues have fled from Fetterman\u2019s orbit in droves as he\u2019s aligned himself with Republicans on Trump\u2019s war with Iran<\/a>, U.S. boat strikes<\/a> in the Caribbean, and funding<\/a> the Department of Homeland Security amid a slew of killings, shootings, and misconduct by federal immigration agents. <\/p>\n Earlier this month, the Wall Street Journal reported on his resistance to carrying out<\/a> his daily responsibilities as a senator \u2014 which marked a stark contrast from his energy for showing up on Fox News, where he made more than 50 appearances<\/a> in the first six months of this year. The senator has particularly alienated former supporters on the left with his hardline support for the Israeli government<\/a>, which he has offered unconditional support throughout its genocide in Gaza.<\/p>\n Fetterman\u2019s critics are looking for a candidate to primary him in 2028 as he fields questions about whether he plans to join the GOP \u2014 or run for reelection at all, given his sinking popularity<\/a> among his own party and outrage from former supporters<\/a> over his rightward turn.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cJohn Fetterman turned around and became Donald Trump\u2019s useful idiot.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n Fetterman\u2019s coziness with \u2014 and popularity among<\/a> \u2014 Republicans doesn\u2019t necessarily mean he\u2019s likely to join the GOP conference, said several former Fetterman staffers who spoke to The Intercept. They predicted that Fetterman might follow in the footsteps of former Democratic Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema<\/a> of Arizona, who consistently blocked their party\u2019s more progressive measures and then became independent. That, according to one former staffer, would let him maintain the wildcard he\u2019s curated over four erratic years in office.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cHe loves being the enigma,\u201d another former staffer told The Intercept. \u201cHe loves the, \u2018Well, you\u2019re gonna have to see what happens.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n
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