Hannity Helped Boost Oz to a Primary Win – Now He’s Pointing Blame for Bad Poll Numbers

Sean Hannity identified the culprit for the foundering poll numbers of Dr. Mehmet Oz in his race for the U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania: Mitch McConnell?

In doing so, the Fox News host also unwittingly made the case that Oz is a terrible candidate he had no business boosting in the first place.

Oz has appeared on Hannity numerous times with the backing of the host both before and after Oz won the GOP primary, presumably thanks in some part to his appearances on the show. He’s also called Hannity a “true friend” who has given him campaign advice “behind the scenes.”

But so far, voters aren’t sold on Oz, a carpetbagger from New Jersey who only registered to vote in Pennsylvania in 2020 – using his in-laws’ address. He’s also released some odd social media posts and can’t stop getting owned on Twitter.

An aggregate of polls shows Oz trailing Lt. Gov. John Fetterman by double digits in the race to replace a retiring Republican senator, despite the fact Fetterman has held just one rally since suffering a stroke in May. Fetterman is working with a speech therapist to overcome his speaking struggles.

So far, Oz has been a bad candidate. That’s not to say he can’t win, as there is plenty of time left to improve as a candidate and close the gap. But right now the numbers look bad for Oz and they are bad because he is a bad candidate.

But to Hannity, this is an unpalatable conclusion because it means acknowledging your “true friend” is a bad candidate and that you did a lot to help the bad candidate get the nomination. It also means Donald Trump erred when he endorsed Oz, which is simply an impossible conclusion to draw in Republican politics. So, the fault must lie elsewhere, anywhere, but with Oz and the people who actively supported him.

Enter Mitch McConnell.

On his show Friday night, Hannity aired a clip of McConnell suggesting he’s concerned about certain Republican nominees for Senate, though he did not name any.

“I think there’s probably a greater likelihood the House flips than the Senate,” McConnell said. “Senate races are just different. They’re statewide. Candidate quality has a lot to do with the outcome.”

Hannity reacted with indignation and said McConnell’s plan for Republican nominees is to “leave them out to dry and fend for themselves” in their races.

“You don’t hear Chuckie Schumer complaining about candidate quality in Pennsylvania,” Hannity added. “How about you get out there, Mitch, and fight for your team? What’s your agenda, Mitch?”

Now, what it is that McConnell is supposed to do to help Oz is anyone’s guess. But if the complaint is that the Republicans’ Senate fundraising arm isn’t doing enough to help him, that is a gripe that should be lobbed at Sen. Rick Scott, the chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee. Hannity surely has Scott’s number, as the senator has appeared on his show several times.

Anyway, here’s how Hannity described Fetterman during this segment:

Candidate quality? You mean like in Pennsylvania – the Democratic Senate candidate, a devout socialist-style in the vain of – let’s see – Bernie Sanders, who he endorsed over Joe Biden; a guy that literally can’t put two sentences together himself; he’s only spent 11 minutes on the campaign trail; a guy that wants to legalize heroin and have areas where people can shoot up in public.

Now, just for the sake of argument, let’s say it’s true the Senate Democratic nominee in a swing state is a devout socialist who can’t speak coherently. The fact remains that right now, this man is leading in the polls for a seat currently occupied by a Republican. 

And while we’re italicizing here, What does this fact say about his opponent?

It says that right now, Oz is a bad candidate. He’s a celebrity doctor mega-millionaire who owns 10 properties and only recently moved to Pennsylvania, a deeply working-class Rust Belt state whose voters he is (shockingly!) not connecting with at the moment.

Watch above via Fox News.

This is an opinion piece. The views expressed in this article are those of just the author.