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Democrat Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman said on Monday that he has missed some votes on the Senate floor in recent months because they were held on Mondays.

The New York Times and The Philadelphia Inquirer reported on May 25 that Fetterman missed 29 of the 236 votes since January, the third-worst record in the Senate. During a debate moderated by Fox Nation host Shannon Bream, the Pennsylvania senator said that these reports are a “weird smear” against him and that the majority of the votes he missed were held on “travel days.”

“It’s just part of a smear and it’s just not accurate. Now we move on and we’re still having this conversation, why at this point? I’m here, I’m doing that job, I’m defending on all those things and all of those important votes, I’ve always been there,” Fetterman said. “And for me, if I miss some of those votes, I’ve made 90% of those and we all know those votes that I’ve missed are on Monday, those are travel days. And I have three young kids and those are throwaway procedural votes, that they were never determinative or important, and that’s a choice that I made.”

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Fetterman said that independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and Democrat Washington Sen. Patty Murray missed more votes than him, and questioned why the left-wing media is not giving them negative press on the matter. Republican Pennsylvania Sen. Dave McCormick, who attended the debate, condemned the Democrats’ “disgraceful smears” against Fetterman in a May 9 post on X.

“It’s time to put Politics aside and stop these vicious, personal attacks against Senator Fetterman, his wife, and his health,” McCormick wrote. “While we have many differences, we are both committed to working together to achieve results for the people of Pennsylvania and make their lives better. He is authentic, decent, principled, and a fighter. These disgraceful smears against him are not the John that I know and respect.” In an interview with The New York Times, Fetterman said he felt “unfairly shamed” into participating in senatorial duties, which include participating in committee meetings and casting procedural votes. He said that being away from his wife and three children is the “worst part of the job,” adding that he missed votes in order to be home with his family and visit his father who had recently suffered from a heart attack.

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“I would go visit my dad instead of a throwaway vote,” Fetterman told the Times.

Democrats and the liberal media have become more critical of Fetterman as he strayed away from them on a number of occasions. Fetterman co-sponsored the Laken Riley Act, which requires federal authorities to detain illegal immigrants charged with committing theft-related crimes in the U.S., and has staunchly expressed support for Israel since the Oct. 7, 2023, attack carried out by Hamas.

The Pennsylvania senator also was the only member of his party who voted to confirm Attorney General Pam Bondi and was one of the few Democrats to openly oppose a government shutdown in March as senators battled over a continuing resolution bill.

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