Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) was stumped cold when comedian Jon Stewart pressed him on where he draws the line for political support.
Fetterman appeared on Stewart's podcast, "The Weekly Show," for an interview that hasn't been released yet, but in a clip previewing the episode, Stewart repeatedly asked Fetterman to explain why he has increasingly embraced MAGA-friendly positions while feuding with his own party over issues like opposition to Israel.
"For you, you could agree with them 90 percent of the time, but Israel is the red line," Stewart said, seeking clarification from Fetterman on where he draws the line for his support.
"Absolutely," Fetterman said. "Israel, for me, like, I can't ever turn my back on Israel."
The interview focused on Israel as Stewart asked Fetterman about his opposition to Democratic Socialists who have won congressional seats and others running for office while criticizing Israel. Fetterman has said he would leave the Democratic Party if it "officially" became "anti-Israel," according to reports.
However, Stewart seemed baffled by why Fetterman draws that line.
"I mean no disrespect on this," Stewart told Fetterman. "But that is not our country," Stewart said, referring to Israel. Fetterman reacted to the statement by throwing his head to the side, seeming to be frustrated.
"You're saying that these candidates may have great ideas for our economy; they may want to do the exact same thing you want to do in terms of getting money out of politics; they may want to increase the social safety net; they may want to change the balance of power from capital back to labor," Stewart continued. "But if they don't agree with you on Israel, you don't want them in your party."
"I don't know who you're referencing specifically," Fetterman said.
Stewart shot back, "I'm referencing what you just said."
Fetterman shook his head and said, "Name one."
Stewart threw out names like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Abdul El-Sayed, and Bernie Sanders. Fetterman responded by saying that DSA members should "run under your own banner" and "Why not have a DSA party?" Stewart explained, "We have a two-party system," and said it didn't make sense to throw them out because they don't support Israel but agree with Fetterman on most other issues.
"You're literally saying we can all have discussions except when it comes to Israel, which is not America," Stewart said. "It seems like a weird line to draw."
Fetterman stammered and said, "I don't think that's weird," because historically the Jewish community suffers "when people or a government or people turn their back" on them.
"The Jewish community and Israel are not the same thing, brother man!" Stewart responded.
