Sen. John Fetterman recently made an appearance on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” where he took the opportunity to lecture Americans about the qualifications of those who hold positions in power. “America is not sending their best and brightest,” the junior senator from Pennsylvania told Colbert. “These people are making decisions that are, you know, determining the government here. It’s actually scary.”
In the same interview, Fetterman was asked about the captioning technology he uses following a stroke last year. “Sometimes I use this captioning that is nothing different than having glasses, like you have. So I absolutely can process everything, but sometimes the language gets kind of lost in translation.”
In a September Senate hearing, Fetterman said he uses the transcription service to help him “fully participate in [meetings], and in conversations with my children, and interacting with [his] staff.” He went on to detail his difficulty with communication, saying, “I had a stroke about 18 months ago, and … I have lost my ability to fully process language.”
In the same hearing, Fetterman expressed his reliance on external sources to aid his performance in the upper chamber. “I can’t imagine if I didn’t have this kind of a bridge to allow me to communicate with other people effectively,” he said.
Corporate media refrained from covering Fetterman’s health until his debate with Dr. Oz several leading up to the 2022 election. When asked if he would release his medical records for the sake of transparency, Fetterman replied, “Transparency is about showing up.”