Dem vice chair urges Fetterman to quit as party turns against senator: ‘Do the decent thing’

WASHINGTON, DC: Democratic National Committee Vice Chair Malcolm Kenyatta urged Sen John Fetterman, D-Pa, to resign Saturday, September 26, saying Fetterman should leave office if he has lost interest in doing his job.

Kenyatta spoke out after months of tension between Fetterman and his fellow Democrats.

Much of the friction stems from Fetterman’s regular appearances on conservative media, where he has been quick to criticize other Democrats.

He faced especially harsh criticism after virtually attending the Republican National Committee’s midterm convention in Dallas this year, where he backed Republican Sen Dave McCormick, R-Pa.

Wall Street Journal report intensifies John Fetterman backlash

“I want John to do the job that he has right now, and if he cannot do that job or he doesn’t want to do the job, then do the decent thing and quit,” Kenyatta said on 'The Dean Obeidallah Show' Saturday.

"And then you can spend all day on Fox News. You can be there from the morning till the evening.”

“So when I saw John show up to the Republican convention, praising a president who has cut the healthcare of millions of Americans, not only was I angry, I was disgusted,” Kenyatta said.

A recent Wall Street Journal story took aim at Fetterman, accusing him of not fully engaging with his job.

The piece even mentioned that he skipped a meeting with paralyzed veterans to appear on Fox News.

Kenyatta, who challenged Fetterman in the 2022 Democratic Senate primary, called this nothing new. He said Fetterman’s actions now only continue the pattern he showed as lieutenant governor.

“He had the single worst attendance record of any lieutenant governor in the history of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and all you have to do is stand at the dang rostrum. He couldn’t show up to stand at a rostrum,” Kenyatta said.

“All he could do was to try to promote himself and push out an image of himself that is disconnected from the reality of who he is.” 

“John is a political tourist to the needs of working people and working families,” Kenyatta added.

John Fetterman reaffirms Democratic Party ties amid backlash

Fetterman defended his position as a Democrat on Saturday despite straying from the party on key issues, but refused to speculate about how he would break ties if his party attained a 51-seat majority this November.

During the closing keynote at the Texas Tribune Festival in Austin, Fetterman said he believed Democratic control of the Senate was “entirely possible” and considered the possibility that he could be in a position to cast the tie-breaking vote on party-line legislation.

The Texas Tribune described the event as a conversation about why Fetterman was “charting his own course” and his views on the Democratic Party.

“Let’s revisit after the midterms, and let’s see what happens, you know, if I happen to be 51. I don’t know,” Fetterman said.

“I’m not going to be a Republican,” he told reporters on Capitol Hill. “Why can’t you guys just wait till the midterms? And if I turn a Republican, then I’ll be a liar. My name is not on the ballot. Chill.”

Sen John Fetterman (D-PA) speaks with reporters in the halls of the US Capitol on February 10, 2026 in Washington, DC (Michael M Santiago/Getty Images)

Fetterman reiterated his commitment to remaining within the Democratic Party again on Saturday. “I’ve said I have no path as a Republican. That’s a fact,” he said.