John Fetterman Is Fundraising on GOP Donor Email Lists
The Intercept
T
The Intercept
Original Source
Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman is using Republican campaign infrastructure to fundraise, reflecting his growing alignment with the GOP and distancing from Democratic allies. The move comes amid criticism over his unconditional support for Israel and hardline positions that have alienated former supporters.
John Fetterman Is Fundraising on GOP Donor Email Lists
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John Fetterman Is Fundraising on GOP Donor Email Lists
The hardline pro-Israel senator has been flirting with the idea of switching parties. Now he’s using Republican campaign infrastructure.
Akela Lacy
September 21 2026, 7:33 p.m. ET
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!WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 03: U.S. Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) speaks to members of the media as the Trump Cabinet briefs members of Congress on Iran at the U.S. Capitol on March 3, 2026 in Washington, DC. Trump administration Cabinet officials will be briefing all lawmakers in the House and Senate on U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., speaks to reporters as the Trump Cabinet briefs members of Congress on Iran at the U.S. Capitol on March 3, 2026, in Washington, D.C.
Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Sen. John Fetterman,
a Pennsylvania Democrat, is sending fundraising emails pledging to “stand with America” and “reject the extremes” — using email lists for Republican candidates and committees.
An email over the weekend sent by Fetterman’s campaign came from the address “[email protected]” and vowed: “I’m always going to reject Socialism and the Anti-American way of life.” Other recent appeals sent from the same address encourage readers to help President Donald Trump pass new voting restrictions, to read an “urgent memo” from House Speaker Mike Johnson on fighting the left, and to back Republican Mike Rogers for Senate in Michigan over Abdul El-Sayed, whom the email compared to a terrorist and a “threat to our way of life.”
The email from Fetterman’s campaign comes as the senator has moved closer to the Republican caucus, rankling his Democratic colleagues and spurring rumors that he might switch parties. He received the maximum allowed contribution from GOP megadonor Harlan Crow, as The Intercept reported in July. But the use of Republican fundraising infrastructure represents a new step in Fetterman’s confounding electoral strategy.
The Fetterman campaign also sent copies of the fundraising email from alternate GOP domains including “unshakeableconservatives.com” and “freedomfaction.net.” It’s possible that Fetterman for PA rented or bought a GOP email list, something campaigns commonly do for targeted outreach, but the campaign’s specific arrangement is unclear. The text retreads major talking points that the Democratic senator delivered in a controversial video appearance at the Republican party’s midterm convention earlier this month, where he railed against “extremes” and promised to “stand with America.”
Fetterman’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Former Fetterman staffers, who spoke to The Intercept on condition of anonymity for fear of professional reprisal, condemned their old boss’s pivot and suggested he’d betrayed his previous supporters.
> “It’s no surprise that he has to resort to GOP donors to prop up his dismal fundraising numbers.”
“After taking contributions from millions of small-dollar donors who wanted a Democratic Senate, John Fetterman turned around and became Donald Trump’s useful idiot,” said one former staffer. “Now, it’s no surprise that he has to resort to GOP donors to prop up his dismal fundraising numbers.”
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With two years left in his first term, Fetterman has made himself the subject of a series of political upheavals and dramatic reversals. The image he was heralded for upon his 2022 election — a gritty, heterodox, and unpredictable model for the future of the Democratic Party — has all but crumbled.
Staffers, donors, previous supporters, and his Democratic colleagues have fled from Fetterman’s orbit in droves as he’s aligned himself with Republicans on Trump’s war with Iran, U.S. boat strikes in the Caribbean, and funding the Department of Homeland Security amid a slew of killings, shootings, and misconduct by federal immigration agents.
Earlier this month, the Wall Street Journal reported on his resistance to carrying out his daily responsibilities as a senator — which marked a stark contrast from his energy for showing up on Fox News, where he made more than 50 appearances in the first six months of this year. The senator has particularly alienated former supporters on the left with his hardline support for the Israeli government, which he has offered unconditional support throughout its genocide in Gaza.
Fetterman’s critics are looking for a candidate to primary him in 2028 as he fields questions about whether he plans to join the GOP — or run for reelection at all, given his sinking popularity among his own party and outrage from former supporters over his rightward turn.
> “John Fetterman turned around and became Donald Trump’s useful idiot.”
Fetterman’s coziness with — and popularity among — Republicans doesn’t necessarily mean he’s likely to join the GOP conference, said several former Fetterman staffers who spoke to The Intercept. They predicted that Fetterman might follow in the footsteps of former Democratic Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, who consistently blocked their party’s more progressive measures and then became independent. That, according to one former staffer, would let him maintain the wildcard he’s curated over four erratic years in office.
“He loves being the enigma,” another former staffer told The Intercept. “He loves the, ‘Well, you’re gonna have to see what happens.’”
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As Fetterman’s staffers struggled in recent months to get him to do basic parts of his job — including fundraising — his office reached out to staffers for Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., to ask him to talk to Fetterman in an attempt to right what they saw as a sinking ship, according to a former staffer. The staffer said that Schumer agreed, but Fetterman refused to talk to him. Schumer’s office has said the two are in communication and met for dinner in August.
If there’s a lesson to be learned from Fetterman’s explosion onto the national stage and the trail of disgruntled staffers, organizers, and small-dollar donors left in its wake, it has little to do with political ideology and more to do with psychology, former staffers told The Intercept. Fetterman views himself as a renegade and an outsider above all else, according to his former staff. He has long struggled with depression, and while campaigning in 2022, he suffered a stroke whose effects led him to use assistive technology in the Senate and continue to be felt in other ways**.**
Notwithstanding any decision he might make about switching parties, the conservative world has welcomed Fetterman with open arms. In July, Fetterman attended a retreat in Montana hosted by Rupert Murdoch, the conservative media scion behind Fox News, at the network’s invitation, according to two former Fetterman staffers. At the retreat, Fetterman spoke on
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© THE INTERCEPT
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Terms of UsePrivacy
* Iran
* Midterms
* Justice
* War on Gaza
* Unmasking ICE
* Chilling Dissent
* About
* Support Us
John Fetterman Is Fundraising on GOP Donor Email Lists
The hardline pro-Israel senator has been flirting with the idea of switching parties. Now he’s using Republican campaign infrastructure.
Akela Lacy
September 21 2026, 7:33 p.m. ET
*
* Share on Facebook
*
* Share on X
* Share on LinkedIn
* Share on WhatsApp
!WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 03: U.S. Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) speaks to members of the media as the Trump Cabinet briefs members of Congress on Iran at the U.S. Capitol on March 3, 2026 in Washington, DC. Trump administration Cabinet officials will be briefing all lawmakers in the House and Senate on U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., speaks to reporters as the Trump Cabinet briefs members of Congress on Iran at the U.S. Capitol on March 3, 2026, in Washington, D.C.
Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Sen. John Fetterman,
a Pennsylvania Democrat, is sending fundraising emails pledging to “stand with America” and “reject the extremes” — using email lists for Republican candidates and committees.
An email over the weekend sent by Fetterman’s campaign came from the address “[email protected]” and vowed: “I’m always going to reject Socialism and the Anti-American way of life.” Other recent appeals sent from the same address encourage readers to help President Donald Trump pass new voting restrictions, to read an “urgent memo” from House Speaker Mike Johnson on fighting the left, and to back Republican Mike Rogers for Senate in Michigan over Abdul El-Sayed, whom the email compared to a terrorist and a “threat to our way of life.”
The email from Fetterman’s campaign comes as the senator has moved closer to the Republican caucus, rankling his Democratic colleagues and spurring rumors that he might switch parties. He received the maximum allowed contribution from GOP megadonor Harlan Crow, as The Intercept reported in July. But the use of Republican fundraising infrastructure represents a new step in Fetterman’s confounding electoral strategy.
The Fetterman campaign also sent copies of the fundraising email from alternate GOP domains including “unshakeableconservatives.com” and “freedomfaction.net.” It’s possible that Fetterman for PA rented or bought a GOP email list, something campaigns commonly do for targeted outreach, but the campaign’s specific arrangement is unclear. The text retreads major talking points that the Democratic senator delivered in a controversial video appearance at the Republican party’s midterm convention earlier this month, where he railed against “extremes” and promised to “stand with America.”
Fetterman’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Former Fetterman staffers, who spoke to The Intercept on condition of anonymity for fear of professional reprisal, condemned their old boss’s pivot and suggested he’d betrayed his previous supporters.
> “It’s no surprise that he has to resort to GOP donors to prop up his dismal fundraising numbers.”
“After taking contributions from millions of small-dollar donors who wanted a Democratic Senate, John Fetterman turned around and became Donald Trump’s useful idiot,” said one former staffer. “Now, it’s no surprise that he has to resort to GOP donors to prop up his dismal fundraising numbers.”
Most Read
With two years left in his first term, Fetterman has made himself the subject of a series of political upheavals and dramatic reversals. The image he was heralded for upon his 2022 election — a gritty, heterodox, and unpredictable model for the future of the Democratic Party — has all but crumbled.
Staffers, donors, previous supporters, and his Democratic colleagues have fled from Fetterman’s orbit in droves as he’s aligned himself with Republicans on Trump’s war with Iran, U.S. boat strikes in the Caribbean, and funding the Department of Homeland Security amid a slew of killings, shootings, and misconduct by federal immigration agents.
Earlier this month, the Wall Street Journal reported on his resistance to carrying out his daily responsibilities as a senator — which marked a stark contrast from his energy for showing up on Fox News, where he made more than 50 appearances in the first six months of this year. The senator has particularly alienated former supporters on the left with his hardline support for the Israeli government, which he has offered unconditional support throughout its genocide in Gaza.
Fetterman’s critics are looking for a candidate to primary him in 2028 as he fields questions about whether he plans to join the GOP — or run for reelection at all, given his sinking popularity among his own party and outrage from former supporters over his rightward turn.
> “John Fetterman turned around and became Donald Trump’s useful idiot.”
Fetterman’s coziness with — and popularity among — Republicans doesn’t necessarily mean he’s likely to join the GOP conference, said several former Fetterman staffers who spoke to The Intercept. They predicted that Fetterman might follow in the footsteps of former Democratic Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, who consistently blocked their party’s more progressive measures and then became independent. That, according to one former staffer, would let him maintain the wildcard he’s curated over four erratic years in office.
“He loves being the enigma,” another former staffer told The Intercept. “He loves the, ‘Well, you’re gonna have to see what happens.’”
We’re independent of corporate interests — and powered by members. Join us.
Become a member
Join Our NewsletterThank You For Joining!
Original reporting. Fearless journalism. Delivered to you.
Will you take the next step to support our independent journalism by becoming a member of The Intercept?
Become a member
By signing up, I agree to receive emails from The Intercept and to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Join Our Newsletter Original reporting. Fearless journalism. Delivered to you. I'm in
As Fetterman’s staffers struggled in recent months to get him to do basic parts of his job — including fundraising — his office reached out to staffers for Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., to ask him to talk to Fetterman in an attempt to right what they saw as a sinking ship, according to a former staffer. The staffer said that Schumer agreed, but Fetterman refused to talk to him. Schumer’s office has said the two are in communication and met for dinner in August.
If there’s a lesson to be learned from Fetterman’s explosion onto the national stage and the trail of disgruntled staffers, organizers, and small-dollar donors left in its wake, it has little to do with political ideology and more to do with psychology, former staffers told The Intercept. Fetterman views himself as a renegade and an outsider above all else, according to his former staff. He has long struggled with depression, and while campaigning in 2022, he suffered a stroke whose effects led him to use assistive technology in the Senate and continue to be felt in other ways**.**
Notwithstanding any decision he might make about switching parties, the conservative world has welcomed Fetterman with open arms. In July, Fetterman attended a retreat in Montana hosted by Rupert Murdoch, the conservative media scion behind Fox News, at the network’s invitation, according to two former Fetterman staffers. At the retreat, Fetterman spoke on
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Source: The Intercept
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