Donald Trump urges Sen. John Fetterman to switch to Republican Party

President Donald Trump has openly encouraged Pennsylvania Democratic Senator John Fetterman to switch parties and join the Republican Party. Speaking to reporters at Joint Base Andrews on Saturday, Trump described Fetterman as a “great guy” with “great common sense” and suggested that the senator performs better in polls as a Republican than as a Democrat.

The overture comes amid growing speculation regarding Fetterman’s political alignment, as he has increasingly broken with Democratic leadership on key issues such as immigration and Israel. While Fetterman has historically voted with his party the vast majority of the time, his voting alignment with Senate Democrats has recently declined.

Fetterman has previously rejected the idea of a party switch. In a May writing for The Washington Post, he stated he would be a “terrible Republican who still votes overwhelmingly with Democrats.” The comments arrive just weeks before midterm elections that could determine control of the U.S. Senate.