John Fetterman weighs in on Gavin Newsom moving to center, warns him 'internet exists'

HARRISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA: In a recent interview on ‘NewsNation Prime,’ Senator John Fetterman (D-PA) said the political strategy of shifting to the center, as apparently done by California Governor Gavin Newsom (D), is dangerous now because everything is on the internet. 

Fetterman said past comments and actions “of the outlandish things that they’ve said or they’ve done,” will inevitably surface during future campaigns, a problem he believes "everyone will" face.

John Fetterman's skepticism on centrist shift of Gavin Newsom

As host Natasha Zouves asked him if he thought Gavin Newsom's apparent move to the center on contentious issues was the right course for the Democratic party, Fetterman granted, “Everyone’s going to go into the middle.” 

Meanwhile, Zouves, after playing a clip of Newsom talking about men in women’s sports with Charlie Kirk, asked, “You alluded to this earlier. Do you think the shift to the center really has to be the right move for the party going forward, whether it’s Newsom or anyone else?”

But he quickly highlighted a major pitfall in this strategy, adding, “But people [forget] that the Internet exists and all of the clips and all of the outlandish things that they’ve said or they’ve done, that's going to have about 20 or 30 million dollars that can pound you for those things."

John Fetterman says accountability comes during general election

John Fetterman connected the current political rhetoric and the push toward the center to a future electoral reckoning. He said, “All of the things that you say right now or the things now, you want to pander or monetize faux outrage now, you’re going to pay when you actually have to run in an election that you’re accountable."

John Fetterman holds a rally at Nether Providence Elementary School on October 15, 2022 in Wallingford, Pennsylvania. Election Day will be held nationwide on November 8, 2022 (Mark Makela/Getty Images)

He added, “When you actually have Republicans and Democrat[s] and you have a purple situation where you have to find a way forward. And that’s exactly what I’ve been trying to do here during my time here in the Senate.”

John Fetterman says every politician faces backlash for past stances when shifting to the center

Zouves then asked Fetterman directly if Newsom's past positions would "come back to haunt him" as he positions himself as more centrist or moderate. Fetterman didn't mince words with his response, "Everyone will," he said of the challenge.

He described the predictable cycle: “They’ll pander, scream to the base, and then now — then they’re going to have to try to just walk it back or now just pretend that all these things weren’t said or done. That’s how it works. And that’s one thing I refuse to do.”