Sen. Fetterman planned to write op-ed using talking points given to him by Israeli envoy

Democratic Sen. John Fetterman planned to write an op-ed on his support for Israel using talking points provided to him by Israel’s Ambassador to the US Yechiel Leiter, The Wall Street Journal reports.

The ordeal unfolded last summer when the ardently pro-Israel senator told aides that he wanted to introduce a resolution forcing lawmakers to vote on whether the Gaza war constituted a genocide.

Fetterman met Leiter in his office and convinced him to instead write an op-ed in which he would explain his continued support for Israel at a time when most of his party had turned on it over its policies toward the Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.

Fetterman told Leiter he would write the op-ed based on any points the ambassador offered him, and the Israeli embassy sent them over several days later.

However, Fetterman’s aides decided not to tell their boss about the talking points due to concerns that using them in an op-ed with the senator’s byline risked violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act, The Wall Street Journal reveals.

A spokeswoman for Israel’s embassy declined to comment.

Fetterman ended up dropping the op-ed idea anyway.