5 Wildest Details From the Wall Street Journal’s Bombshell John Fetterman Report

(Francis Chung/POLITICO via AP Images)

The Wall Street Journal dropped a bombshell new report on Senator John Fetterman (D-PA) late Thursday, detailing allegations that the Democrat has routinely dodged constituents, skipped Senate business, and frustrated his own staff while devoting increasing attention to conservative media and Israel.

The Journal based its report on interviews with more than a dozen former staffers and lawmakers, along with internal records and messages. Fetterman did not respond to its requests for an interview or detailed questions about the allegations.

Here are five of the most striking revelations.

1. Fetterman canceled on paralyzed veterans — to attend a Fox News interview

Three paralyzed military veterans from rural Pennsylvania traveled to Washington in June for a long-awaited meeting with Fetterman about legislation affecting their care. Staffers were told the senator was feeling unwell and canceled the meeting, according to The Journal.

However, Fetterman reportedly later arrived at his office, opting instead to do an interview with Fox News:

One morning in June, three paralyzed military veterans in wheelchairs from rural Pennsylvania arrived at the office of Sen. John Fetterman for a long-awaited meeting to discuss legislation that would improve their care.

Fetterman’s staff greeted them with bad news: The Pennsylvania Democrat had to cancel. He’d told his staff he may have eaten something bad and wasn’t feeling well, according to people familiar with the matter.

Less than an hour after his staffers met with the veterans in his place, Fetterman walked into his office, showing no signs of illness. He had an appointment he didn’t want to miss, he told staff: an interview on Fox News to discuss Israel and the war in Iran.

2. Fetterman reportedly dismissed constituent meetings

The Journal reported that Fetterman frequently refused or canceled meetings with constituents and lawmakers.

When an aide told him Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia wanted to discuss Medicaid cuts last year, Fetterman allegedly responded: “Why do I have to keep having to meet with chop.”

After being told the hospital was concerned about vaccines and Medicaid, he replied: “Well I’m not,” before adding: “I’m convinced they just want free trips to DC.”

(Screengrab via WSJ)

On another occasion, in April 2025, Fetterman refused to meet with a “busload of constituents” who had traveled to Washington from Pennsylvania with state lawmaker Anthony Hardy Williams. The group wanted to discuss Trump administration cuts to grants impacting the preparedness of their “flood-prone neighborhood”:

Fetterman was the only one who refused to meet with them, Williams said in an interview. At one point, they saw Fetterman walking the halls and yelled, but he didn’t acknowledge them, according to Williams.

“He was available. He just chose not to meet with us,” Williams said.

That same month, Fetterman bailed on a meeting with another Pennsylvania politician who went to Washington to discuss programs for the homeless, instead taking a meeting with a pro-Israel advocate:

Also last April, Fetterman agreed to take a meeting with another state lawmaker, Liz Hanbidge, who drove down from Pennsylvania to introduce herself, and to discuss programs that help the homeless and working poor in her county. But when Hanbidge arrived, according to staffers who were present, Fetterman claimed he hadn’t agreed to the meeting. The aides spent more than an hour pleading with him to talk to her; staffers eventually met with Hanbidge in his place.

Fetterman did take another meeting that day — with Bruce Pearl, the former college basketball coach and Israel advocate. The pair discussed legislation that would affect college sports, and Pearl thanked Fetterman for his stance on Israel, Pearl said in an interview.

3. Fetterman found a way to be marked present at hearings, “then leave”

After reports scrutinized his Senate attendance, records showed Fetterman had skipped 11 of 12 full committee hearings during one stretch.

The Journal reported that Senator Katie Britt (R-AL) later explained how senators could check in before leaving for other business. Fetterman subsequently had aides help ensure clerks noticed his arrival only for him to “then leave and go about his day,” according to former staffers:

Britt, through a spokeswoman, said she merely explained to Fetterman that “most members typically check in and then go about their days with meetings, speeches, votes, and other engagements while they wait for their turn to actively participate.”

Soon after, Fetterman implemented the strategy with his aides, including deploying an advance staffer to catch the clerk’s eye, so Fetterman could get credit for attending even though he only drifted into the room for a minute or less. Since last June, Fetterman was marked present at 26 out of 31 full hearings of his assigned committees, transcripts show, even though in 20 of them he didn’t say a word.

4. A three-hour police funeral was apparently a “nonstarter”

Fetterman also backed out of attending the funeral for three police officers killed near his hometown of York last year, according to the report.

After an aide explained that the formal ceremony would last at least three hours, Fetterman responded: “3 hours??”

Told it was effectively three separate funerals, he replied: “This may be a nonstarter.”

(Screengrab via WSJ)

5. Staff reportedly blocked an Israel op-ed over legal concerns

The Journal also reported that Fetterman told Israeli Ambassador Yechiel Leiter he would write an op-ed supporting Israel using points supplied by the ambassador:

Late last summer, Fetterman told his advisers and senior staff he wanted to introduce a resolution forcing every senator to take a public stance on whether the war in Gaza constituted a genocide. His senior staff tried to talk him out of this idea, according to people familiar with the matter, but he was undeterred.

Last September, Israel Ambassador Yechiel Leiter met with Fetterman in his office, and suggested an alternative: Fetterman could write an op-ed explaining why he continued to support Israel, according to people familiar with the matter.

Fetterman agreed, and told Leiter he would write the submission based on any points the ambassador sent over, according to these people. A few days later, embassy staff sent over drafted points for Fetterman to consider.
Fetterman staffers decided not to tell him about it, out of concern that drafting an op-ed based on suggestions from the Israeli embassy, under the senator’s name, risked violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act.

The Journal added that Fetterman reportedly then dropped the issue, according to the former staffers.

The revelations come at a politically consequential moment for Fetterman, whose growing distance from Democrats and popularity among Republican voters have fueled speculation about his future in the party.

Fetterman denied that he was considering switching parties, but has since said he would leave if Democrats became “the anti-Israel party.” He is next up for reelection in 2028.

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