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Kelty  September 3, 2026 11:53PM ET          (mailto:?subject=John%20Fetterman%20blew%20off%20paralyzed%20vets%20and%20children%27s%20hospital%20amid%20rightward%20drift%3A%20WSJ&body=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.rawstory.com%2Fjohn-fetterman-2677818335%2F)      (BeLoud Share)               (Bennito L. Kelty)   Bennito L. Kelty Bennito L. Kelty is an award-winning journalist at Raw Story. He covered the U.S.-Mexico borderlands in Arizona and later homelessness, immigration and politics for Denver Westword. A graduate of the University of Missouri Journalism School, he now lives in Aurora, Colorado.   (https://www.rawstory.com/u/bennitokelty) See Full Bio              (John Fetterman blew off paralyzed vets and children's hospital amid rightward drift: WSJ)    U.S. Senator John Fetterman (D-PA) looks on as U.S. Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Rand Paul (R-KY) presides over a vote whether to hold Anthony Fauci, the former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), in contempt for having invoked the Fifth Amendment in response to questions about the government's COVID-19 pandemic response during a July 29 hearing, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., August 6, 2026. REUTERS/Nathan Howard    Sen. (https://www.rawstory.com/john-fetterman-2677811987/) John Fetterman (D-PA) brushed off paralyzed veterans and a children's hospital while cash from a prominent conservative donor came in amid his rightward drift. According to a Thursday (https://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/john-fetterman-little-interest-senator-be74e7a3?mod=hp_lead_pos1) report by the Wall Street Journal, Fetterman canceled on three paralyzed military veterans who traveled from rural Pennsylvania in June to discuss legislation on their care. He told staff he might have eaten something bad, The Journal reported. Less than an hour after aides met the veterans in his place, Fetterman reportedly walked in looking fine and headed to (https://www.rawstory.com/john-fetterman-2677244928/) Fox News to talk about (https://www.rawstory.com/john-fetterman-israel-iran/) Israel . The Journal's reporting drew from more than a dozen former staffers and lawmakers, plus internal text messages. "Behind closed doors, the first-term senator shows little interest in doing the job beyond cultivating relationships with conservative media figures and advocating for (https://www.rawstory.com/tag/israel) Israel ," The Journal wrote. When an aide told him last September that officials from the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia wanted to meet over Medicaid cuts, Fetterman texted back, "Well I'm not," according to messages reviewed by The Journal, which added that he was "convinced they just want free trips to DC." The Journal described how Fetterman was once the mayor of the town of Braddock and a disciple of Bernie Sanders. He's increasingly aligned himself with Republicans, The Journal noted. He now polls better with GOP voters than Pennsylvania's Republican senator, Dave McCormick, per New York Times polling cited by The Journal. The drift has fueled speculation that he could switch parties, The Journal noted. In July, filings showed that he took money from a prominent conservative donor, according to The Journal. When he was asked in March about a call Senate Democratic leadership was arranging, Fetterman texted, "I truly don't care," The Journal reported. Fetterman didn't respond to The Journal's interview requests and walked away from a reporter at an Erie event last month. At the event, he defended his record by saying, "We have to work together."            (mailto:?subject=John%20Fetterman%20blew%20off%20paralyzed%20vets%20and%20children%27s%20hospital%20amid%20rightward%20drift%3A%20WSJ&body=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.rawstory.com%2Fjohn-fetterman-2677818335%2F)      (BeLoud Share)     (https://www.rawstory.com/smartnews/) SmartNews (https://www.rawstory.com/trump-news/) Trump News            For customer support contact (mailto:support@rawstory.com) support@rawstory.com . Report typos and corrections to (mailto:corrections@rawstory.com) corrections@rawstory.com .  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