Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., told Fox News on Saturday that he no longer believes he shares “any more common ground” with the far-left faction of the Democratic Party over its position on Israel.
Appearing on “Saturday in America,” Fetterman also criticized efforts to replace Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., with Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md. He additionally labeled his newly announced 2028 Democratic primary challenger, Ahmed Moor, “pro-Hamas.”
“I have a strong, strong difference of opinion on Israel and the Jewish community overall now. I don’t think there’s going to be any more common ground,” Fetterman told Fox News host Kayleigh McEnany.
“Now I think if someone can’t identify [that] Iran is an enemy, and that it’s committed to destroying Israel and our nation as well, too — once again, this is the kind of individual that the Democratic Party elected,” he added.
After midterm elections in which Democrats regained control of both the House and Senate, Schumer is facing a challenge to his leadership. Van Hollen announced Thursday that he would seek to replace Schumer, drawing support from progressive lawmakers including Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Sen.-elect Abdul El-Sayed, D-Mich.
Fetterman said a Van Hollen victory would raise serious concerns.
“It would be troubling if my caucus elects someone like Van Hollen, that has really made his name being very… hostile to Israel,” Fetterman said when asked whether a Van Hollen win would cross a “red line.”
Fetterman said Van Hollen had built his profile around strong “anti-Israel” views and gained additional attention after making a high-profile trip to El Salvador to meet with Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran migrant deported by the Trump administration.
“Other than that, I can’t really think of what Van Hollen’s known for, but he became like a progressive darling, but I don’t see that he has a path to be leader, but overall it’s possible because just last weekend I had a lot of people protesting, demanding that we vote against Schumer,” Fetterman said.
“We have to find a way forward. After our massive wins, we immediately go back to fighting among ourselves. Can’t we just, you know, take the win?” he added.
Fetterman also urged Democrats to pursue bipartisan agreements on the national debt, artificial intelligence, Iran and Social Security. He said he hoped the party could work with the White House when possible.
“My hope [is] that our party doesn’t revert to our worst impulses. I am going to extend and just hope for bipartisan solutions and work with the White House if that’s possible. That’s where my votes will be,” Fetterman said.
Fetterman also took aim at Ahmed Moor, a Gaza-born Palestinian-American writer and activist who announced a 2028 Democratic primary challenge against him earlier in the week.
“This is someone that is very proud, very proud, pro-Hamas, and there are parts of my Democratic base [that] find my views more troubling or offensive, my strong support of Israel versus his views,” Fetterman said.
“I’m always going to support Israel. Iran knows that the Democratic Party, it’s very unlikely they’re [going to] hold the Iranian regime accountable. I think we deserve to have that conversation,” he added.
In a statement to Fox News Digital, Moor’s campaign rejected Fetterman’s characterization, saying the candidate “condemns violence against civilians by anyone.” The campaign also accused the Pennsylvania senator of failing to represent his constituents.
“Ahmed Moor is running on a platform of dignity, justice, and the rule of law. This includes ensuring that American tax dollars are spent in ways that benefit Americans, not on killing innocent people abroad. These views are in line with the majority of Pennsylvanians, who Fetterman has failed to accurately represent in Congress,” the campaign said.
The campaign said Moor supports “an arms embargo and targeted sanctions until Palestinians have equal rights.” It added that he would “fight antisemitism and anti-Palestinian racism with the same conviction.”
Fox News Digital reached out to Van Hollen for comment.