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Senators John Fetterman and Dave McCormick: Bipartisanship, Money in DC, Datacenters, Graham Platner
Brief
Pennsylvania’s two senators, Democrat John Fetterman and Republican Dave McCormick, used the conversation to model pragmatic bipartisanship while laying out sharply different emphases on solutions. Both said they voted to keep the government open and repeatedly returned to the theme that Pennsylvania’s electorate forces compromise: McCormick stressed the state’s 19 electoral votes and its split urban/rural coalitions, and Fetterman repeatedly defended working across the aisle as necessary to protect the commonwealth and the country. They agreed on several policy priorities—energy, fentanyl, anti‑Semitism, and AI—but diverged on how to handle structural tensions (the filibuster, the role of government in markets, and data‑center policy).
McCormick framed AI and data centers as an urgent national‑security and economic competition with China: he said the state is roughly six to eight months ahead of China in AI capability, warned that a data‑center moratorium would cede advantage to Beijing, and blamed foreign and dark‑money campaigns for stoking local opposition. He pointed to concrete wins from his Energy & Innovation Summit—about $92 billion in commitments—and gave the Homer City example (4.4 GW total with ~3.4 GW tied to data centers and ~1 GW returned to the grid) to show how energy and data investment can create construction jobs, high wages for trades (electricians, welders), and downstream economic activity. Fetterman, who earlier favored eliminating the filibuster, said he now defends it—crediting centrist Democrats for preserving a tool that forces cross‑party work—and warned against the party extremes and rhetoric that he believes fuel polarization. Both senators acknowledged the K‑shaped recovery and rising economic anxiety—Fetterman cited a median Pennsylvania income near $52,000—while McCormick proposed market‑based opportunity vehicles (Invest America accounts, a $1,700 school‑choice credit) and both lamented the corrosive role of massive campaign spending in shaping local debates.
Why it matters
Senators John Fetterman (D) and Dave McCormick (R) emphasized bipartisanship in Pennsylvania and said they both voted for the funding bill to avoid a government shutdown, arguing votes should be 'country over party.'
Key details
- Senator Dave McCormick warned the U.S. has only a 'six to eight months' lead on China in the AI race, framed a proposed moratorium on data centers as a 'China‑first' policy, and accused outside (including CCP‑linked) money of driving anti‑data‑center misinformation.
- McCormick says Pennsylvania's July 'Energy & Innovation Summit' catalyzed roughly $92 billion in committed investment; he described a Homer City project delivering 4.4 GW (3.4 GW to a data‑center complex, ~1.0 GW back to the grid) and reported his office receives ~100,000 constituent outreaches per week.
- Senator John Fetterman said Democrats were wrong in 2020 to push to eliminate the filibuster and now defends it — praising Senators Manchin and Sinema — arguing the filibuster preserves minority rights and forces compromise.
- McCormick credited bipartisan work on fentanyl reductions, stating Pennsylvania saw fentanyl deaths fall from ~4,000 in one year to ~1,600 this year (a ~60% decline), and highlighted 2024's high African‑American turnout in Pennsylvania.
- Both senators acknowledged growing economic anxiety and wealth concentration: Fetterman noted Pennsylvania's median household income is around $52,000; McCormick proposed market‑oriented fixes (Invest America accounts and a $1,700 annual school‑choice tax credit) to expand opportunity.