Former staffers for Sen. John Fetterman claim the Democratic Pennsylvania senator is apathetic about several aspects of his job and has canceled or refused meetings with them to appear on conservative news outlets or meet with Israeli advocacy groups, the Wall Street Journal reported Friday.
The Pennsylvania senator has faced several allegations of apathy towards his duties, which he has claimed are “smears.”
He is currently facing declining ratings, and warned in July that he would leave the Democratic Party if it adopts an anti-Israel stance.
The WSJ report published text messages and interviewed former staffers and lawmakers who detail how Fetterman has appeared to neglect his constituents’ concerns.
In comments to CNN, he said that it was the “the third hit piece from disgruntled staffers.”
“Per usual, lies, half-truths, innuendos, smears and anonymous,” Fetterman said. “No matter how many smears or stories, I’m proud to continue to deliver for Pennsylvania.”
What did the WSJ report allege that Fetterman did?
In one instance, Fetterman asked a staffer why he had to “keep having to meet” a group of officials from the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
“Because they’re worried about Medicaid cuts,” the staffer responded, in texts shown by the WSJ.
“Well, I’m not,” the senator replied.
In a statement to CNN, the senator said that he made a “dumb joke, and for that, I sincerely apologize.”
He added that he and his team “always have, and always will, advocate for CHOP, support their requests and any other needs that we can assist with.”
In another instance, Fetterman was set to meet with a group of three paralyzed veterans to discuss healthcare legislation.
He skipped the meeting and told his staff he wasn’t feeling well, but then showed up at his office looking totally fine and appeared on Fox News.
“It was my intention to meet with the group,” Fetterman told CNN. “Prior to the meeting, I was at home throwing up, so I asked my staff to continue with the meeting, which they did. Hours later, I felt well enough to continue the day as scheduled.”
In a third instance, Fetterman was set to attend a funeral for three police officers who died near his hometown, York.
He then texted a staffer complaining of the length of the funeral, and added that the length “may be a nonstarter.”
In his statement to CNN, Fetterman claimed to have met privately with family members of the slain officers.
“On the day of that tragedy, we privately ordered flowers to be delivered for their families and expressed my condolences publicly,” he told CNN in the same statement, referencing a September 2025 X/Twitter post.
“In June of this year, I privately attended a Tunnel to Towers fundraiser in York for the families. I met with their chief and the family members directly to express my personal condolences.”
Previous claims of Fetterman’s inability to carry out his senatorial duties
After the WSJ report was published, an anonymous group of Fetterman staffers started a Twitter account and is threatening to release more information about the senator on September 14, the day the Senate returns to session.
“If you were troubled by yesterday’s Wall Street Journal story… trust us, that’s just the tip of the iceberg. It’s even worse than you thought,” one post from the account reads.
“We’ve come together to share our stories (and screenshots) to show Pennsylvanians exactly who their senator is.”
The report also comes after a New York Magazine article from 2025 in which his former chief of staff, Adam Jentleson, raised concerns about the senator’s mental health.
The New York Magazine article cites a 2024 email, in which Jentleson detailed Fetterman’s concerning behaviors and noted that he was off his treatment plan after he was hospitalized in 2023.
At the time, Fetterman denied the claims in the New York Magazine article, and said it cited “disgruntled staffers” with a “weird grudge.”
“There are many crazy things about this story, but one is that this is an entirely new group of staff who have rotated in and apparently find themselves horrified at Fetterman’s behavior,” Jentleson wrote in response to Friday’s WSJ report.
