source: WHYY<\/p>\n
Pennsylvania Democrats found themselves on opposite sides of the same Dallas event this week.<\/p>\n
As WHYY<\/a> and NPR<\/a> both reported, U.S. Sen. John Fetterman made a surprise video appearance at the first-ever Republican National Midterm Convention on Wednesday, September 9, while U.S. Rep. Madeleine Dean of Bala Cynwyd joined fellow Democrats in separate counter-programming at the same gathering.<\/p>\n The two-day convention, held at American Airlines Center in Dallas, is the first midterm convention any party has staged in 50 years.<\/p>\n Republican National Committee Chair Joe Gruters had previewed it as a kind of political rally centered on the president, a framing that stuck when President Donald Trump spoke for one hour and 44 minutes on opening night.<\/p>\n Fetterman Introduces McCormick, Distances Himself From Party’s Left<\/p>\n Fetterman’s pre-recorded message ran about 64 seconds. Dressed in his trademark black hoodie and standing in front of a Pittsburgh steel plant, he introduced Pennsylvania Republican Sen. Dave McCormick and described him as the kind of legislator who gets things done.<\/p>\n Fetterman called McCormick a close friend and said the two would work alongside President Trump to protect steelmaking jobs in the region.<\/p>\n The video contained no direct praise of Trump. What it did include, repeatedly, was Fetterman identifying himself as a Democrat while distancing himself from what he called the extreme left and its socialist tendencies.<\/p>\n He framed his appearance as the act of a pragmatic, common-sense lawmaker.<\/p>\n McCormick welcomed Fetterman warmly from the podium, thanking him for both the friendship and what he called courage.<\/p>\n McCormick then pivoted to criticizing the broader Democratic Party, describing it as a radical movement that attacks law enforcement, undermines the military, and tolerates antisemitism.<\/p>\n Dean Calls the Convention a Sign of Republican Weakness<\/p>\n Rep. Madeleine Dean, whose district covers parts of Montgomery County just outside Philadelphia, took a sharply different view.<\/p>\n She told WHYY the convention was staged from a position of fear, arguing Republicans organized it because they sense they are losing ground ahead of the midterms.<\/p>\n Dean joined other Democrats in offering counter-programming at the Dallas event rather than ignoring it outright.<\/p>\n Fetterman’s Appearance Draws Party Criticism<\/p>\n Fetterman’s video drew fast criticism from fellow Democrats. Delaware U.S. Rep. Sarah McBride posted on X that a Democratic politician choosing to speak at a Trump midterm convention was like boarding the Titanic after it had already struck the iceberg.<\/p>\n NPR noted that Fetterman had been growing increasingly estranged from his party before Wednesday.<\/p>\n A Wall Street Journal report published earlier this month, based on interviews with former staff and colleagues, described him as showing little engagement with his Senate duties while cultivating ties to conservative media and focusing heavily on advocacy for Israel.<\/p>\n Fetterman dismissed the story, calling it a collection of lies, half-truths, and anonymous smears.<\/p>\n The split between Fetterman and Dean at the same event captures the unresolved tension inside Pennsylvania’s Democratic delegation over how to position the party against a Republican majority heading into the 2026 midterms.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"source: WHYY Pennsylvania Democrats found themselves on opposite sides of the same Dallas event this week. 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