Video: Is This Why John Fetterman Doesn’t Want to Debate Dr. Oz?

It’s cringeworthy in a way that makes you feel sympathetic, regardless of politics.

The man has health issues and probably should be rehabilitating himself, not stumping around Pennsylvania on the campaign trail.

Campaigning is hard, grueling work that usually comes with long hours, bad sleep, worse food, and constant motion in the sprint of the last few weeks. It’s not the environment for someone trying to recover from life-threatening health problems.

This, in 30 seconds, is a lesson on campaigning while recovering from a stroke:

John Fetterman probably shouldn’t be running for the United States Senate right now. His limited public exposure is a result of trying to keep him out of the limelight and thus conceal the extent of his health problems.

Some have attacked Fetterman, as the above tweet does, for incorrectly sounding like he’s running against Republican incumbent Pat Toomey instead of Dr. Oz. It doesn’t seem to be the case, but with the dropped words and missing train of thought, it’s hard to tell.

This is why some have questioned Fetterman’s abilities when it relates to the campaign and duties in the U.S. Senate:

Rick Santorum, a former Republican senator from Pennsylvania, was even more blunt in his criticism last week on Newsmax: “John Fetterman is simply not capable of doing this job. He’s hiding in his basement, he’s not able to talk, he’s not able to process.”

The scrutiny of and questions about Fetterman’s health underscores the stakes of his race against Oz, which could decide who controls Congress’ upper chamber next year. Major politicians suffering health challenges mid-campaign — when they would normally be stumping for voters, night and day — is also relatively rare, and Fetterman’s campaign has been careful of overexposing him while he recovers.

Fetterman has attempted to turn the tables on his critics and cast their words as the political equivalent of punching a guy with glasses:

His [Fetterman’s] aides did not respond to requests to make his medical team available for this story. He has, however, previously responded directly to the GOP jabs at his recovery: “I know politics can be nasty, but even then, I could *never* imagine ridiculing someone for their health challenges,” he tweeted in August.

It’s not “ridiculing” to point out that a candidate is hiding behind health issues to avoid debating and avoid answering questions. It’s basically the Biden 2020 defense. Stay in the basement, never speak to the press, and stay as far away as possible from legitimate questions.

Even today, the Washington Post Editorial Board, no friend of Dr. Oz or Republicans, said Fetterman needs to debate more than once:

The campaign’s response to questions about Mr. Fetterman’s health is to point to a doctor’s note, released more than 14 weeks ago, which said “he should be able to campaign and serve in the U.S. Senate without a problem” if he takes his medications and exercises.

That’s not good enough. Mr. Fetterman is asking voters for a six-year contract without giving them enough information to make sound judgments about whether he’s up for such a demanding job. We have called for full disclosure of health records from candidates for federal office in both parties, including Donald Trump and Joe Biden, and we believe Mr. Fetterman should release his medical records for independent review.

And he should debate Mr. Oz before voters start casting their ballots.

Even Democrats know this game can’t go on forever and the voters deserve better. Fetterman wants to win from the basement. Republicans are hammering him over it. If more Democratic institutions like the Washington Post start leaning on him heavier, maybe it’ll happen.

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Nate Ashworth

The Founder and Editor-In-Chief of Election Central. He's been blogging elections and politics for over a decade. He started covering the 2008 Presidential Election which turned into a full-time political blog in 2012 and 2016 that continues today.

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