President Trump will meet with Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) at Mar-a-Lago.
According to CBS News, the Pennsylvania Democrat accepted an invitation from Trump to meet at his Florida estate.
“That is the plan. Yes, we are going to have a conversation,” Fetterman told CBS News.
“I think that one, he’s the president, or he will be officially,” Fetterman said, according to the outlet.
“And I think it’s pretty reasonable that if the president would like to have a conversation — or invite someone to have a conversation — to have it. And no one is my gatekeeper,” he added.
Fetterman is the first known sitting Democratic U.S. senator to meet with Trump.
🚨BREAKING: John Fetterman to visit Trump at Mar-a-Lago, the first sitting Democrat Senator to do so.
"I think it's pretty reasonable that if the president would like to have a conversation, or invite someone to have a conversation, to have it. And no one is my gatekeeper." pic.twitter.com/dDGHjpLgdP
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) January 9, 2025
Per CBS News:
Trump met with the Democratic mayor of Washington, D.C., Muriel Bowser, last month to talk about the inauguration and his second term, her office said in a statement.
However, a transition official cautioned that plans could change and that the Fetterman meeting has not been finalized.
Fetterman was the first Democrat to sponsor the Laken Riley Act, which would compel the federal government to detain noncitizens convicted or charged with burglary, larceny, theft or shoplifting. A version of the legislation passed the House and is now before the Senate for consideration.
“We absolutely need to have a secure border, and I have always also been incredibly supportive and protective for Dreamers,” Fetterman told the Washington Examiner on Tuesday.
Trump also hopes Fetterman will support some of his nominees, including Pete Hegseth for defense secretary, a source said.
🚨Report: Democrat Senator John Fetterman will meet with President Trump at Mar-a-Lago soon. Trump invited him and Fetterman accepted.
Via: CBS News pic.twitter.com/ti2fmF2Psz
— The Calvin Coolidge Project (@TheCalvinCooli1) January 9, 2025
ABC News reports:
Fetterman, once branded as a progressive, has increasingly signaled he’s willing to act more independently.
He was one of the first Democrats in the Senate to meet with Pete Hegseth, Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Defense, and he’s expressed willingness to back some of Trump’s other Cabinet nominees.
He also broke away from the progressive wing of his party last year by becoming an outspoken advocate for Israel, at one point traveling there to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
ADVERTISEMENTAs Senate Majority Leader John Thune has made clear he won’t back changes to the Senate rules requiring 60 votes to pass most legislation, Trump will need Democratic allies in the Senate.
This could mark an early effort by Trump to court Fetterman.
