Fetterman defends political identity, weighs potential role as 51st senator

Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman (D) defended his position as a Democrat on Saturday despite straying from the party on key issues — but refused to speculate how he would break ties if his party attained a 51-seat majority this November.

During the closing keynote at the Texas Tribune Festival in Austin, Fetterman said he believes a Democratic control of the Senate was “entirely possible” and considered the possibility that he could be in a position to cast the tie-breaking vote on party-line legislation.

“Let’s revisit after the midterms, and let’s see what happens, you know, if I happen to be 51. I don’t know,” Fetterman said.

Throughout their conversation, the moderator, CBS News’ Major Garrett, repeatedly probed Fetterman on whether he would leave his party. The senator has broken with his party during his first term in the Senate to join Republicans in voting against Iran war powers resolutions and opposing the cutoff off aid to Israel.

Earlier this month, the Democrat faced criticism from his colleagues after he appeared in a video at the GOP’s midterm convention in Dallas, in which he introduced Pennsylvania’s GOP Sen. Dave McCormick as a “great friend.”

In response to negative reactions to this clip, Fetterman insisted he was not considering switching parties.

“I’m not going to be a Republican,” he told reporters on Capitol Hill. “Why can’t you guys just wait till the midterms? And if I turn a Republican, then I’ll be a liar. My name is not on the ballot. Chill.”

Fetterman reupped his commitment to remaining within the Democratic Party again on Saturday.

“I’ve said I have no path as a Republican. That’s a fact,” he said.

Later, the Pennsylvania senator appeared to misspeak when responding to an audience question about why he would not switch his political identification to “independent” given his breaks with Democrats.

“Because I’m a lifelong Republican,” the senator replied, prompting a quick correction from the Garrett.

“I guarantee you, that’s going to break through. That’ll get clipped,” Fetterman joked. “Yeah, I’m a lifelong Democrat though.”