John Fetterman says Democrats would hate Trump even for ‘ice cream and lazy Sundays’

WASHINGTON, DC: Sen John Fetterman, who has been critical of his party’s positions on a range of issues, slammed Democrats for hating anything President Donald Trump does.

Fetterman has frequently criticized members of his party over political messaging and what he views as unnecessary political fights.

John Fetterman criticizes Democrats over anti-Trump focus

Fetterman criticized fellow Democrats during a conversation with Bill Maher on Monday, May 11, arguing that many in the party oppose nearly everything Trump does.

Sen John Fetterman (D-PA) walks to the Senate chamber at the US Capitol on April 23, 2024 in Washington, DC (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

Speaking on Maher’s 'Club Random' podcast, Fetterman said, “if he came out for ice cream and lazy Sundays, we would hate it,” suggesting that many Democrats oppose Trump so strongly that they would criticize even harmless or trivial things associated with him.

Maher responded by saying Republicans sometimes behave similarly, adding that he and Fetterman largely agreed on the issue.

"People attack us because they think we’re picking fights with the left," Maher said. "We’re not picking fights. We just don’t let it pass if we think something is stupid."

Fetterman then questioned why politicians had to have an "opinion on everything.”

"We all have platforms and we all have a personal bandwidth. You have to choose what’s your, and I don’t chase these small, weird things because it has no impact on the overall," he said.

Democrats’ anti-Trump strategy draws criticism from John Fetterman

As the conversation progressed, Bill Maher argued that Democrats often focus on issues he considers unimportant.

"Go after the stuff that matters, the politicization of the Justice Department, the threatening of elections. I mean, all the stuff," he said.

"And the stuff like ballroom stuff, that’s the cloud. It just doesn’t matter. And if you chase it, it’s so much more about you." Responding to Maher’s comments, Fetterman said his party could not resist anti-Trump impulses.

"And now we’re, you know, the Democratic Party, we can’t resist our worst impulses as things continue to accelerate," Fetterman said.

"We keep trying to get ahead of California. You know, as a national party, we can’t get ahead of California, of these kinds of policies and these kinds of thoughts of what we think it should be."

Young male voters drifting away from Democrats, says Fetterman

In an earlier conversation with Bill Maher during 'Real Time with Bill Maher,' the Pennsylvania Democrat spoke about why young male supporters of the party are growing disconnected. He said the party's messaging is driving voters away by increasingly portraying men as "part of the problem."

"Well, without a doubt, though you know there's part of the Democratic Party became more and more anti-men or describing that they were part of the problem, or they have toxic traits," Fetterman said during the discussion on Friday, May 8.