Former President Donald Trump’s support in Pennsylvania ahead of Election Day is “astonishing,” according to Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA).
“There’s a difference between not understanding, but also acknowledging that it exists,” Fetterman told the New York Times.
“And anybody spends time driving around, and you can see the intensity,” the Democrat said. “It’s astonishing. I was doing an event in Indiana County — very, very red. And there was a superstore of Trump stuff, and it was a hundred feet long, and it was dozens of T-shirts and hats and bumper stickers and all kinds of, I mean, it’s like, Where does this all come from? It’s the kind of thing that has taken on its own life.”
Fetterman’s comments come as Trump is ahead of Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, by 0.6% in Pennsylvania, according to a RealClearPolitics polling average. Pennsylvania is a key swing state in the 2024 election that could decide the race. In 2020, the Keystone State swung for then-candidate and now-President Joe Biden by roughly 80,500 votes.
In the interview published Saturday, Fetterman discussed how X Owner Elon Musk has taken on a particularly unique role as a billionaire donor through his campaigning for Trump.
“And it’s like something very special exists there,” Fetterman said of Trump’s support in Pennsylvania.
“And that doesn’t mean that I admire it,” he added. “It’s just — it’s real. And now [Elon] Musk is joining him. I mean, to a lot of people, that’s Tony Stark. That’s the world’s richest guy. And he’s obviously, and undeniably, a brilliant guy, and he’s saying, ‘Hey, that’s my guy for president.’ That’s going to really matter.”
In “some sense,” Fetterman told the outlet, Musk “is a bigger star than Trump.”
Musk, 53, has taken on a major role in the 2024 race due to his significant backing of a super PAC called America PAC that is backing Trump. The Justice Department recently warned Musk’s group that it could be violating federal law by handing out large sums to voters through a giveaway system.
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Fetterman endorsed Harris in July, shortly after Biden dropped out of the presidential race. He told the New York Times that the race is about a “stark choice” between Harris and Trump.
“And that’s why the people that are left that haven’t made up their decision are going, you know, what do I want for the next four years? And I do believe enough people will choose Harris. But it’s going to be much, much closer than anyone would want,” Fetterman said.