Trump eyes Hail Mary to lock up GOP control in Senate: report
U.S. President Donald Trump holds a meeting in the Situation Room at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S. June 21, 2025. The White House/Handout via REUTERS THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY/File Photo

President Donald Trump has apparently directed Republicans to persuade a Democrat to leave his party and join the GOP, The New Republic reported on Wednesday.

Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) — who has often sided with Republican lawmakers and been questioned by critics over his party loyalty — has reportedly become a target for the president. Fetterman was the only Democrat to vote against the latest war powers resolution on Wednesday and was the deciding vote in the seventh attempt to end Trump's military operation in Iran.

Trump has viewed Fetterman as someone who can potentially help secure Republican control in Congress and wants to convince the Democrat "to switch parties to help retain the GOP’s fragile majority in the Senate."

Fetterman has denied any plans to leave the Democratic Party and has said he would be a "s----- Republican." The president has called the centrist lawmaker his "favorite Democrat."