Senator John Fetterman (D-PA) says that the Democratic Party needs to “own the shutdown” as the government closure drags on into its second month.
Appearing on CNN’s “State of the Union” with Jake Tapper, Fetterman was asked about the lapsing of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) on November 1, and who he blames for it.
“As you know, 42 million Americans, including two million Pennsylvanians, will not receive food stamp or SNAP benefits this month because funding officially lapsed yesterday. The White House says this is the fault of Democrats for shutting down the government. Democrats note that the Trump administration is not dipping into the contingency funds for SNAP and they think that Trump is doing that to pressure Democrats. How do you see it? Who do you blame for this?” asked Tapper.
Fetterman began by noting his distress at the notion of tens of millions of Americans losing their SNAP benefits, which is “one of the big reasons why I refuse to [shut] our government down.”
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“And again, I feel like the Democrats really need to own the shutdown. I mean, we’re shutting it down,” Fetterman added. “I know why they claim — because they want to address the tax credits, and I fully support that. I voted for all of their CRs, our CRs, every single time. And I refuse to put 42 million Americans in the kinds of food insecurity. … All is solved by just reopen[ing] our government and the people are now paid.”
Fetterman also noted that numerous unions and airlines are demanding that the Senate reopen the government: “And do we really want to make flying less safe by forcing this kind of situation and making things that much [more] stressed?”
Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman on who he blames for the shutdown:
FETTERMAN: “I feel like the Democrats really need to own the shutdown. I mean, we’re shutting it down.” pic.twitter.com/ywSPMlJVwL
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) November 2, 2025