The two U.S. senators from Pennsylvania—John Fetterman, a Democrat, and Dave McCormick, a Republican—in a joint appearance on June 2 condemned anti-Semitism in the United States in the wake of two high-profile attacks targeting Jews in the country.
The comments came a day after an attack at a Jewish rally in Boulder, Colorado, that left eight people injured. Witnesses said that during the incident the attacker yelled “Free Palestine,” the same slogan used by a shooter who killed two Israeli staffers outside a museum in Washington on May 21.
Fetterman said anti-Semitism is “out of control.”
“We’ve lost the argument in parts of my party—and for me, that moral clarity, it’s really firmly [with] Israel,” he said at a discussion with McCormick at the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate in Boston.
Fetterman has faced criticism within his own party for his strong support for Israel during its ongoing war against the terrorist group Hamas. Some progressives have opposed the war because of the large death toll in the Gaza Strip.
McCormick concurred with Fetterman on the issue of anti-Semitism. He also spoke about efforts by the United States to broker a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip, saying Hamas’s demilitarization is a top priority in negotiations, and that without it, no deal can be reached.
“Two things [have] to happen at the same time,“ McCormick said. ”There needs to be constant pressure on Hamas, to destroy the military capability of Hamas. ... You can’t live 600 meters away from people who want to slit your throat in the middle of the night.”
He noted that Israel needs to allow deliveries of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, which he said has become a complicated issue because of Hamas’s use of aid to fund its military operations.
McCormick made the comments after a recent trip to Israel. Steve Witkoff, U.S. special envoy to the Middle East, on May 31 rejected a Hamas counterproposal during the negotiations, calling it “totally unacceptable.”
While negotiations were ongoing, McCormick said the United States needs to “keep the pressure on Hamas while at the same time giving aid.”
Both Fetterman and McCormick criticized Iran, which they blame for Hamas’s attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, which began the war. Iran, which backs the terrorist group, has denied any involvement in the attack.
“We have an opportunity to destroy [Iran’s] nuclear facility,” Fetterman said, referring to recent media reports suggesting that Israel and the United States may launch a joint operation to target Iranian nuclear facilities with airstrikes.
“They’re actively enriching uranium now. They’re at 60 percent. They have, I think, 900 pounds perhaps of that, and it’s a short step to get 90 percent, and that’s [a] weapons-grade kind of a weapon. ... Israel understands that we have a window here to attack that.”
President Donald Trump said last week that he told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to conduct military strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities in order to allow the United States to reach a nuclear deal with the regime.
“I said, ‘I don’t think it’s appropriate [to conduct strikes on Iran],’” the president said, noting that “very good discussions” were happening to ensure that Iran’s nuclear program will not lead to nuclear weapons production.
