Sen. John Fetterman Gets Personal During Hearing on Disabilities

At a Senate Aging Committee hearing on September 21, John Fetterman showed how personal the topic was to him. Since his 2022 Senate campaign, Fetterman has been very open about his health, both mental and physical. He suffered a stroke in May 2022 and still went back on the campaign trail. In November 2022, he was elected Senator for the state of Pennsylvania. After taking office in 2023, he also checked himself into a hospital to get help for his mental health.

This week’s hearing was aimed at making government technology accessible for disabled, elderly, and veteran citizens. Experts from these communities provided testimony on how to move forward. During the discussion, Fetterman explained how technology has assisted him in the Senate.

There should be more empathy in law-making

Since Fetterman’s stroke, he lost the ability to process language fully. To help him, Fetterman uses electronic devices to transcribe what people are saying to ensure he’s not missing any information. He said it helps him in doing his job as well as interacting with his children and watching television. In front of the Senate hearing committee, Fetterman demonstrated how it worked.

While talking, he got a little choked up imagining how challenging it would be to move through life without such helpful technology at the ready. He expressed how much it has helped him to keep up with the world around him. Fetterman asked how he and his colleagues could be more empathetic with law-making and accessibility. Accessibility Engineer Chris Westbrook requested that lawmakers give equal importance to accessibility, security, and technology.

To me, the entire exchange shows how leadership should be done. Fetterman said he always considered himself to be an empathic person, but now his empathy is on an entirely different level. However, he is still listening to the people who know more than him. So many leaders in our country have removed themselves from the struggles others face. From the GOP we hear solutions to poverty as “just get a job.” Or remedying adverse effects of climate change by just “turning on your air conditioner.” Empathy and emotion are what make us human and allow us to connect to others. Republicans are so worried about what Fetterman’s wearing and not paying attention to how he is leading. Keep up the good work, Fetterman.

(featured image: Nathan Howard/Getty Images)