What happened? The wife of Sen. John Fetterman (D., Pa.) wrote an exclusive op-ed for Elle, the French fashion magazine, in which she lashed out at critics and subtly vowed to exact revenge by ambitiously pursuing a career in politics.
What did it say? Fetterman's wife began by responding to a bombshell Washington Free Beacon report about her decision to flee the country with her children after her husband checked himself into Walter Reed National Medical Center to receive treatment for what his office claimed was "clinical depression."
Gisele Left-Her-Man: Fetterman's Wife Fled to Canada After Senator Entered Hospital for Depression
The ensuing media frenzy "exploded" her world, which was already "closely monitored, highly scrutinized, and heavily trolled by right-wing extremists," Fetterman's wife complained. "So I did the first thing I could think to do: Packed [the kids] in the car and drove" to Niagara Falls, where they "talked about how incredibly brave their father's actions were," as well as how "fun can—and must—coexist with pain and heartbreak."
The shrill-toned article goes on to claim (without evidence) that describing Fetterman's spouse as an "ambitious, power-hungry wife, secretly plotting to fill his Senate seat," was akin to promoting "wildly preposterous" "conspiracy theories." (Note: No one has suggested her plotting was being done in secret.) She accused "people" of being mean to her "on social media."
What's the point? Writing an op-ed is one of the clearest indications that someone intends to pursue their political ambitions by running for public office (or filling a seat held by a health-challenged spouse). Despite expressing a desire to step out of her spouse's enormous shadow by establishing her own professional identity—"I am not my husband's career," she declares—Fetterman's wife insists she has no political ambitions.
"While I've dedicated my professional life to nonprofit work and community support, pursuing change as a politician is something I would never do," she wrote. "I've always preferred serving others as a private citizen and have no interest in the politicking of policy."
That is precisely the sort of thing an aspiring politician would say before announcing a campaign for public office. It happens all the time. In March 2018, for example, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D., Mass.) asserted she was "not running for president in 2020." Nine months later, Warren launched a presidential exploratory committee, followed by the formal launch of her (failed) campaign in February 2019.
Even the deviously ambitious Hillary Clinton, who was obviously running for president in 2016, pretended that she might not up until the moment she declared her candidacy.
Bottom line: She's running. The Free Beacon will continue to hold Fetterman's wife—and Fetterman's wife's husband—accountable with our reporting.