Sens. Fetterman and McCormick collaborate on resolution condemning antisemitism

Pennsylvania Sens. John Fetterman and David McCormick have introduced Senate Resolution 288, a bipartisan resolution condemning the rise of antisemitism across the country.

Citing the antisemitic attack that injured eight people in Boulder, Colorado, the arson attack on Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s residence and the murder of Israeli embassy staff members Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Lynn Milgrim, the senators denounced anti-Jewish hatred.

The resolution has 34 co-sponsors.

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New Jersey Rep. Jeff Van Drew introduced a companion resolution to the House of Representatives. It was co-sponsored by 69 members of the House.

McCormick said he was dumbfounded at the antisemitism he saw on college campuses while he campaigned in 2024 and that he strives to be a strong voice denouncing the intimidation and hatred he observed.

“This is something that’s been very vivid in my mind ever since my wife and I visited Israel in January, after Oct. 7 [2023],” he said. “Here we are six months into my first term, and antisemitism and acts of violence are on the rise.”

The freshman senator said fighting antisemitism is an area where he, a Republican, and Fetterman, a Democrat, share common ground.

“He’s been an incredibly strong voice,” McCormick said of Fetterman. “He’s been unequivocal in his moral clarity on the issue.”

Fetterman said he considers McCormick a “colleague and friend” and the pair wanted to find issues they could work on together.

“We both live close to where the Tree of Life massacre occurred, and we’ve been concerned about the continued growth of antisemitism and the violence and intimidation connected to it,” he said.

Since Oct. 7, Fetterman noted, there’s been an acceleration of Jewish hatred at public events and on college campuses, as well as in the media and in organizations like the United Nations, which, he said, “has a really strong anti-Israel bias.”

Antisemitism, he said, is “a serious, significant issue and we want to address it.”

Fetterman, a frequent lightning rod for those on the far left, said he isn’t concerned about reaction to his support of the Jewish community, Israel or the United States’ strikes against Iran’s nuclear sites.

“When I get backlash, that to me shows it’s time to lean in even harder,” he said. “I’ve experienced a tiny percentage of what they Jewish community is facing. So, if I can work with my friend and colleague to introduce this legislation, then that’s a win-win.”

Fetterman has faced criticism from some Democrats because of several of his positions. He supports Donald Trump’s decision to bomb Iran’s nuclear facilities, tying it back to the hostages held by Hamas in Gaza.

“We can never forget that there are hostages living underground for 600 days,” he said. “We must bring them home and we must hold Hamas accountable. Iran helped create, finance and organize that. We can’t forget what Iran has done through its proxies in the region and their work to destabilize the region.”

McCormick said a nuclear Iran would be an “existential” threat, not just to Israel or the region, but the entire world.

“Iran’s explicit goal is to destroy the state of Israel and to destroy the ‘Great Satan,’ the United States,” he said. “I agree with President Trump and others who have said that a nuclear Iran is completely unacceptable.”

And, McCormick said, a nuclear Iran would likely start a Middle East arms race, with Gulf and Arab states working to secure their own nuclear weapons.

“The world’s safer if Iran doesn’t have a nuclear weapon,” he said. “I’ve always believed that. What’s happened has been a remarkable set of military operations by the Israelis to destroy the terrorist proxies of Iran — Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis and to a lesser degree the Islamic Jihad in Iraq.”

McCormick said he agrees with Trump’s decision to bomb Iran’s nuclear facilities, noting that the U.S. made every effort to first find a peaceful solution.

Given that the U.S. mission was never about regime change, McCormick said, he doesn’t expect American troops to have boots on the ground in Iran.

The two senators agree that working together where common ground exists makes sense and is something they’ll continue.

“I had a hard election, and I always said, ‘If I’m fortunate enough to win I’m going to represent every single person in the commonwealth — Republican, Democrat and Independent — to get things done in Pennsylvania,’” McCormick said.

Fetterman, he said, is a strong, independent voice with whom he can have honest conversations, even about issues on which they disagree.

“He’s a totally authentic person,” McCormick said. “Even though we disagree on 70-80% of the key issues, the things we agree on, like antisemitism and hate, we’re going to find ways to work together.”

Fetterman said he doesn’t understand the vitriol lobbed against people who work across party lines.

“These are our neighbors — we all live together,” Fetterman said. “I don’t understand that kind of thinking.”

For the Democratic senator the moral calculus is simple.

“What’s right is right. I never poll test how it’s going to land,” he said. PJC

David Rullo can be reached at drullo@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.