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As Senator John Fetterman plays defense over questions about his public and private behavior following a New York story revolving around his mental health, another alarming report has emerged. According to the Associated Press, a meeting last week between Fetterman and members of a Pennsylvania teachers union quickly fell apart following an apparent meltdown from the senator:
Before long, Fetterman began repeating himself, shouting and questioning why “everybody is mad at me,” “why does everyone hate me, what did I ever do” and slamming his hands on a desk, according to one person who was briefed on what occurred.
As the meeting deteriorated, a staff member moved to end it and ushered the visitors into the hallway, where she broke down crying. The staffer was comforted by the teachers who were themselves rattled by Fetterman’s behavior, according to a second person who was briefed separately on the meeting.
Their account was supported by reporting from the Philadelphia Inquirer, which found that the meeting between Fetterman and representatives from the Pennsylvania State Education Association and the National Education Association broke down after the teachers urged him to do more to protest the Trump administration’s recent cuts to education. Sources tell the Inquirer that Fetterman “grew frustrated and his tone shifted” and that he began to yell at the assembled union members, “asking what they wanted from him as he banged his fists on the table.” In a statement to the outlet, Fetterman described the meeting as “spirited.”
News of Fetterman’s outburst follows New York’s reporting that current and former staffers raised concerns about the senator’s fitness to serve in office following a 2022 stroke and a six-week hospitalization for depression. In 2024, Fetterman’s chief of staff, Adam Jentleson, emailed the doctor who had overseen Fetterman’s care and outlined his worries about the senator’s behavior, including concerns about whether he was taking his medication and keeping up with medical appointments. “I think John is on a bad trajectory and I’m really worried about him,” he wrote, citing his reckless driving as an example.
Fetterman responded to the article on Monday during an interview with CNN, calling it “a one-source hit piece, and it involved maybe two or three and anonymous disgruntled staffers saying just absolute false things.”
Fetterman, long known as something of a political loner, has received little public support from fellow Democrats recently, as Politico reported, leading some in Pennsylvania to speculate whether he will finish his term or run for reelection. But Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has continued to back him, telling NBC News, “He’s doing a good job, and he’s a good legislator.”
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