Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) weighed in on the growing calls for Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) to resign in the wake of federal indictments for bribery, claiming that fictional mobster Tony Soprano was the last man to stash that much cash in New Jersey.
Fetterman, who was the first of a number of Democrats to call for Menendez to step down, joined MSNBC host Joy Reid on “The ReidOut” to discuss the situation on Tuesday evening.
Reid posed the question to Fetterman, asking how he felt about being the first to call for a member of his own party to resign — and the Pennsylvania senator said that given the charges against Menendez, he was surprised no one else had beaten him to it.
“Honestly, I was actually surprised that I was the first one. I mean, it’s so black and white. I mean, it’s so clear,” Fetterman told Reid. “The last time there’s ever been a man with so much cash in their home in New Jersey was Tony Soprano. You know?”
“I mean, it’s not a — it’s not a — it’s not a close call, and if you were looking for the most incriminating kinds of evidence, nobody could even come up with gold bars in a mattress,” Fetterman continued. “So, and again, he’s entitled to have his day in court, but he is not entitled to remain in the Senate and he needs to go.”
Reid continued to press, asking whether Fetterman had spoken to any of his colleagues about what they might have to say on the subject — and he argued that while he couldn’t speak for any of them, he was not going to budge in his assessment.
“New Jersey is a safe, blue seat, and they have a governor ready to appoint somebody that’s ready to step in and make the kind of votes that he needs to do. And again, it’s never been about him. It’s about the Senate and the integrity, and he needs to go,” he said.
Reid also asked Fetterman about the recently-relaxed Senate dress code — which most have attributed to his steadfast refusal to wear anything dressier than a hoodie and gym shorts — and he argued that it was less important than other issues the Senate was facing.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP
WATCH:
.@JohnFetterman: “@tedcruz could show up dressed like Spiderman & I would be a-OK w/ that. I do think we have more important kinds of things to be worrying about, you know, whether it’s gold bars in a mattress or whether it’s the shutdown or the impeachment” pic.twitter.com/Fkt1AhTNiL
— Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) September 27, 2023
“Ted Cruz could show up dressed like Spiderman and I would be A-OK with that,” Fetterman joked. “I do think we have more important kinds of things to be worrying about, you know, whether it’s gold bars in a mattress or whether it’s the shutdown or the impeachment.”