John Fetterman Calls Out ‘Tin Foil Hat’ Democrats Who Think Trump Assassination Attempts Were Staged

(AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

Senator John Fetterman (D-PA) called out those in his own party who believe that the attempt on President Donald Trump’s life at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner was staged on Monday.

On X, Fetterman shared a screenshot of a Mediaite headline from earlier in the day that read, “A Quarter of Americans and 34% of Democrats Believe the WHCD Shooting Was Staged.”

From NewsGuard’s report on the survey it conducted with NewsGuard:

Nearly one third of Americans (30 percent) believe that at least one of the three attempts on President Donald Trump’s life over the last two years was staged, according to a new NewsGuard/YouGov poll. For each attempted assassination, a majority of Americans said either that it was staged or that they were not sure — averaging 54 percent across all three.

Only 38 percent of Americans believe that all three assassination attempts were authentic.

A national survey of 1,000 Americans conducted by YouGov on behalf of NewsGuard asked respondents from April 28 to May 4 whether they believed any of the three attempts on Trump’s life — at a July 2024 campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, at Trump’s West Palm Beach golf course in September 2024, and at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in April 2026 — “was staged.” Respondents indicated whether they thought the statement that the assassination attempt was staged was “true,” “false,” or that they were “not sure.”

The same poll found that 34% of Democrats believed the attack at last month’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner was staged. There is no evidence to suggest that any of the three assassination attempts were faked.

In his tweet, Fetterman rebuked those advancing conspiracy theories.

“Assassinations + political violence are real. My party can’t be the tin foil hat brigade. I was there a table away and I promise you, this was not staged,” he wrote.

Trump has reportedly offered Fetterman his “total and complete endorsement” if he decides to switch parties, but Fetterman has insisted he intends on remaining a Democrat.

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