MAGA Fans Compare John Fetterman to George Santos After Hospitalization
Make America Great Again (MAGA) supporters drew comparisons between Democratic Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania and GOP Representative George Santos of New York after the senator was hospitalized overnight.
Late Wednesday, Fetterman, who had a stroke during his campaign last year, was hospitalized at the George Washington University Hospital after feeling lightheaded during a Senate retreat. His office said "initial tests did not show evidence of a new stroke," that the freshman senator would remain overnight as doctors ran more tests.
"He is in good spirits and talking with staff and family," Joe Calvello, Fetterman's communications director, said in a statement.
In response, some MAGA fans used Fetterman's health to justify the recent controversies surrounding Santos. Shortly after Santos was elected in November, it was revealed that he had fabricated parts of his resume and background throughout his campaign, including lying about his college record and employment history at Goldman Sachs and Citigroup.
"John Fetterman lied more about his health than George Santos did about his life to get elected," Nick Adams, a conservative author with ties to former President Donald Trump, tweeted on Thursday.
One Twitter user said Fetterman's hospitalization was "why I have zero problems with George Santos."
"Reporters chase him around all day saying he lied to get in congress," @ComfortablySmug wrote. "Seems like Fetterman had a much bigger lie to get in."
Another user, @MNReal, whose profile describes them as a "ProMAGA Critical Thinker," tweeted: "Republicans answered Democrat Fetterman with George Santos. Tit for Tat. They have nothing to complain about that they didn't ask for."
MAGA supporter @fast782 wrote: "This was outrageous that this rat got elected to senate. And their criticizing Santos?" while @igfucious tweeted: "Fetterman lied about his health. This is why I hope George Santos serves Congress for another 50 years."
Although some were quick to criticize Fetterman, other Republicans, like Representative Scott Perry and Senator Tim Scott, offered prayers to his family.
"Please join me in sending our prayers for a speedy recovery to Senator @JohnFetterman who was hospitalized last night in Washington, D.C., after feeling lightheaded while attending a Senate Democratic retreat," Perry tweeted on Thursday.
On Thursday, Scott opened a Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs hearing by offering a moment of silence and prayer for the Pennsylvania senator, who serves on the committee.
"Let me first start my thoughts and my comments with Senator Fetterman," Scott said. "I think we should take a moment and just pray for his health. I know that he was hospitalized and it's important for us to recognize the stress that's on his family and on himself. So, if we could just have five seconds of silence so we can pray for him."
Fetterman's recovery from his stroke last year took center stage in his race against Republican Dr. Mehmet Oz, who made an issue of whether Fetterman was honest about the effects of his stroke.
Fetterman's campaign was attacked for not being more forthcoming about the stroke he suffered days before the May primaries and his previously undisclosed heart condition.
While Fetterman opened the only debate of the race by addressing his stroke, his performance in the debate put the effects of his stroke on public display. Because he has struggled with auditory processing disorder as a result of the stroke, he made notable verbal stumbles during the debate. Nonetheless, Fetterman flipped Pennsylvania's Senate seat blue in the midterms.
"This campaign has always been about fighting for anyone who's ever been knocked down that got back up," he said in his victory speech.
Newsweek reached out to Fetterman for comment.
