Fetterman Went to Israel on NYC Mental Health Nonprofit's Dime

[MayReasonRule]

Sen. John Fetterman has missed 30 floor votes this year. Back in his state of Pennsylvania, he’s cancelled town halls and come under fire for failing to engage with his own constituents.

But in March, during a state work period in which senators typically engage with the people they represent, he instead went on an all-expenses-paid trip to Israel, thanks to the generosity of a New York City nonprofit focused on mental health in the international Jewish community.

Alongside his wife Gisele, Fetterman flew first class to Israel and stayed in five-star hotels in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem as part of a “Fact-Finding Mission,” according to recent travel disclosure documents. On the trip, the itinerary shows, he met with President Benjamin Netanyahu “to discuss the current state of affairs in Israel and Israel’s response to the mental health crisis following the October 7th terrorist attacks.” During that meeting, Netanyahu gave Fetterman a silver beeper to commemorate Israel’s attack in Lebanon — which the United Nations has called a “terrifying violation of international law.”

Fetterman’s three-day Israel trip, which cost over $36,000, was funded by Relief Resources, a New York City-based nonprofit that describes itself as “dedicated to supporting the international Jewish community in overcoming the broad range of conditions related to mental illness.” While Fetterman has been under intense scrutiny surrounding his mental health and ability to do his job, on the trip he was honored at a Jerusalem gala for his “leadership in mental health awareness and legislative advocacy.”

https://theintercept.com/2025/05/28/john-fetterman-israel-paid-trip-nonprofit/

[leftstreet]

1. LOL n/t

[sop]

2. Bob Menendez in a hoodie.

Have they found any gold bars yet?

[JBTaurus83]

3. What a joke

he can take a $36,000 trip but he can't show up to the US Senate in anything other than gym shorts. Another Kristen Sinema. This won't end well for us.

[ananda]

16. That stroke changed him.

And that change is ugly.

[Paladin]

17. Ya think?

What were your first 100 clues?

[brush]

4. What a disappointing slub he's turned out to be.

Thos over-sized hoodies of his are as full of him as he is of himself.

[yardwork]

5. Meh. This breathless article doesn't move me.

Like most Democrats, I think Fetterman should step down and let the governor of PA appoint a replacement. I doubt the people of PA appreciate him missing votes and not showing up for work.

But a $36,000 junket to a foreign country is not something new for politicians. And while I think that trinkets that commemorate military attacks is tacky and probably illegal for Fetterman to accept, it's laughable to call it a "terrifying violation of international law," especially in today's context.

Does the Intercept have anything to say about Trump? Didn't think so.

[karynnj]

11. It was not the commemorative trinket that the UN spoke of,

but the pagers that blew up killing people with them.

To me, it seems the non profit was spending money on things not within its mission. There are many groups that do fund trips, by legislators, including AIPAC and JStreet. Many legislators have gone and there was little controversy. It might be good to have a policy that applies to all countries on these trips, but it is wrong to focus just on one Senator.

A bigger problem is that he is missing votes and not showing up for committee meetings. There have been numerous cases of this happening as legislators deal with health issues. Here, the question is whether if he could go to Israel, why couldn't he go to the Capital building. Not to mention, when he was not voting etc, I would guess he was not meeting with constituents. As he felt better, there were many important parts of his job he could have done rather than vacation anywhere.

I used the word vacation as this was not a Senate kotel where he was with fellow Senators doing fact finding. It was essentially a paid for vacation with perks like meeting Netanyahu.

[yardwork]

12. The sentence is unclear.

Your reading makes a little more sense. Overall, the article reads like a high school paper's expose.

[karynnj]

15. The article is poorly written

[Celerity]

13. and you would be wrong

you said

Does the Intercept have anything to say about Trump? Didn't think so.

well.......................

https://theintercept.com/politics/













etc etc

[Autumn]

6. Mental illness? Right. Sounds like a grifting scheme.

[Rebl2]

9. Just what

I thought as well.

[Incanus]

10. I'm wondering how celebrating with a war criminal

and being gifted a silver trophy improves one's mental health?

[Autumn]

14. I know if I was gifted a three-day trip costing over $36,000 , first class all the way

I sure wouldn't be depressed. As a politician this just looks bad. Maybe he would feel better if he reprseented the people that elected him instead of representing Israel.

[travelingthrulife]

7. This guy needs to go. He is going to cause more and more damage to Democrats.

[Tetrachloride]

8. tora tora tora