Sen. John Fetterman told Fox News host Jesse Watters Thursday evening that much of the U.S. media was “carrying water” for Iran, likely to spite President Donald Trump, though he refused to call out his fellow Democrats for the same thing
John Fetterman told Fox News host Jesse Watters Thursday evening that much of the U.S
Sen. John Fetterman told Fox News host Jesse Watters Thursday evening that much of the U.S. media was “carrying water” for Iran, likely to spite President Donald Trump, though he refused to call out his fellow Democrats for the same thing.
Watters asked, “Senator, do some members of your party think Trump is more dangerous than the Iranians?” – a question that stems from criticism of the president over the murderous and terrorism-supporting regime in Tehran, despite the fact that Democrats have joined Republicans in condemning Iran’s nuclear weapons pursuits for decades.
“I can’t speak for my other Democrats, but the American media has, essentially, become — carrying water for Iran,” Fetterman said. “And they’re describing the kinds of circumstances, then they forget the way Iran has behaved.
“And why can’t we just call what Iran has been — and what it continues to do, those things? America is the force of good in the world, and holding Iran accountable, what they’ve done, is important,” he said.
Fetterman delivered a combative defense of U.S. military operations in Iran during a heated exchange last month with with former Daily Caller staffer and current CNN host Kaitlan Collins — and at one point bluntly told her, “You don’t have to cut me off here.”
Fetterman appeared on The Source as fallout continued from a Feb. 28 Tomahawk missile strike that hit the Shajarah Tayyebeh elementary school building in Minab, southeastern Iran. Iranian reports claim at least 175 people were killed, most of them children.
A preliminary U.S. military investigation later found the strike resulted from faulty targeting intelligence based on outdated data provided by the Defense Intelligence Agency.
The intended target was reportedly an adjacent Iranian base
The intended target was reportedly an adjacent Iranian base.
Nearly every Senate Democrat signed a letter to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth calling for a “swift investigation.” Fetterman was the only Democrat who did not.
Collins pressed him directly. “Every Senate Democrat except you signed a letter today… asking for an investigation into that strike on a girls’ school in Iran,” she said. “Why did you not sign that letter, senator?”
Fetterman responded that he agreed the strike was a tragedy and supported accountability — but rejected broader Democratic criticism of the war.
“Well, because we all agree that it is a tragedy having that school hit, absolutely,” Fetterman said. “And we all agreed now for an investigation. What I don’t agree with the rest of my colleagues… is that it’s a war of choice or it’s dumb… I think it’s a good thing and I support that.”
He emphasized that the Pentagon had already acknowledged likely responsibility and said an apology would be appropriate if the findings are confirmed.
But Fetterman pivoted to what he described as disproportionate media outrage over the school strike
But Fetterman pivoted to what he described as disproportionate media outrage over the school strike compared to coverage of Iranian actions.
“And I would remind everybody listening right now, the United States never, ever targets civilians,” he said. “Iran does… and they massacred 35,000 of them just a couple of weeks ago.”
As Collins attempted to interject, Fetterman continued forcefully.
“The left media is much more angry… about this hospital. And it is a tragedy. But they didn’t seem to be as concerned about the Iranians massacring tens of thousands of their young people just a couple of weeks ago.”
Collins pushed back, noting that CNN had extensively covered protests and internal unrest in Iran.
“Well, I don’t watch, so I don’t know,” Fetterman replied, adding that he was referring more broadly to what he sees as a pattern in “other left media,” including outlets like The New York Times, which he accused of portraying the war effort as a disaster.
