Progressives are criticizing Sen. John Fetterman’s (D-PA) office over its reaction to a letter anonymously signed by 411 congressional staffers urging their bosses to promote a ceasefire in Gaza.
Fetterman chief of staff Adam Jentleson sent a team-wide email on Friday, one day after the letter was published, reminding staff of the office’s media relations policy. The rule, Jentleson pointed out, prohibits staffers from making public statements on social media or otherwise.
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He went on to note that staffers are permitted to anonymously sign letters or petitions that go against the first-term senator’s views.
The policy is in step with how most Capitol Hill offices operate. Staffers would be hard-pressed to find a lawmaker willing to employ someone who publicly criticizes their boss’s positions rather than address disputes internally, regardless of ideology.
Jentleson discussed this in the email, writing: “As staffers, it is important for us to remember that while we all feel passionately about a lot of issues, we are here to serve John and the people of Pennsylvania.”
“As the saying goes, our names are not on the door,” he continued. “In this line of work, it is great to find a member who aligns with your values, however it is rare if not impossible to find one that aligns 100%.”
He then noted his past experience working for bosses “whom I disagreed with on many issues, including some who were pro-life, pro-gun, and anti-gay marriage. Importantly, by its very nature, this line of work offers an opportunity to help shape the boss’ views in ways that can have a direct and lasting impact on the issues we care about — but that kind of change is, invariably, best achieved by working internally.”
The email infuriated some on the Hill, so much so that the Congressional Progressive Staff Association said on Monday that “[N]o office can prohibit you from signing onto an anonymous letter or survey if you do so using personal time and resources, no matter what they tell you.”
The group was responding directly to the uproar over the Fetterman email matter, though the office memo did not tell staffers that they could not sign on to letters or petitions in an anonymous fashion.
A Fetterman spokesman did not respond to the Washington Examiner’s request for comment on the email.
The Pennsylvania Democrat has been vocal about his support for Israel since Hamas carried out its Oct. 7 attack, as well as his opposition to a ceasefire despite the idea having wide support among progressives in the House.
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“Now is not the time to talk about a ceasefire,” Fetterman wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter, last week after more than a dozen House Democrats introduced a resolution calling for one. “We must support Israel in efforts to eliminate the Hamas terrorists who slaughtered innocent men, women, and children.”
“Hamas does not want peace, they want to destroy Israel. We can talk about a ceasefire after Hamas is neutralized.”
