At the 2024 Atlantic Festival, when asked why voters like those from Pennsylvania or people he grew up with support Donald Trump, Senator Fetterman acknowledged that some people he knows are backing Trump, even though they’re “appalled by some of these things.”
He went on to say he disagreed with the Democrats’ approach of focusing on Trump’s status as a “convicted felon,” explaining, “I thought we were the party that believed in second chances and not condemning people for their past mistakes.”
Fetterman also expressed doubt that legal battles or impeachment would impact Trump’s support, saying, “What’s left? He’s been impeached twice, survived two assassination attempts—one where a bullet actually hit him.”
He emphasized that while it’s not easy to explain, there’s a palpable energy and anger among Trump’s supporters in Pennsylvania, and this needs to be respected. “You can’t understand it scientifically, but you have to acknowledge that it’s real,” Fetterman warned.
On the subject of fracking, Fetterman noted that Vice President Kamala Harris has recently distanced herself from her previous stance on banning fracking, despite her earlier calls to end it during her 2019 presidential run. When questioned by CNN’s Wolf Blitzer about Harris’s shift, Fetterman avoided a direct answer and instead redirected the conversation back to Trump, asserting that he doesn’t believe fracking will be a key issue in the upcoming election.
