Trump Backs Dr. Oz’s Pennsylvania Senate Bid, Cites Doc’s Diagnosis That He’s in ‘Extraordinary Health’ in Glowing Endorsement
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Former President Donald Trump on Saturday endorsed Mehmet Oz in his Senate bid in Pennsylvania, saying the celebrity doctor is “smart, tough and will never let you down.”
In a statement, Trump said Pennsylvania has “a tremendous opportunity to Save America by electing the brilliant and well-known Dr. Mehmet Oz.”
Trump referenced The Dr. Oz Show, saying that he “has lived with us through the screen and has always been popular, respected, and smart.”
“He even said that I was in extraordinary health, which made me like him even more (although he also said I should lose a couple of pounds!)” Trump continued, before noting Oz’s Ivy League credentials.
In November, Oz joined the crowded field of contenders vying to replace the retiring Sen. Pat Toomey (R-PA) and has since raised $5.9 million for his campaign, though the vast majority — $5.2 million — was self-financed.
Trump’s endorsement comes two days after a The Hill/Emerson College poll found Oz and hedge fund manager Dave McCormick to be neck-and-neck ahead of the May 17 primary.
The poll showed McCormick receiving 18% among likely GOP primary voters, and Oz coming in a close second with 17%. Only one other candidate, conservative commentator Kathy Barnette, broke double digits with 10%, as the plurality of those surveyed (33%) were undecided.
Saturday’s endorsement marks the second Senate candidate in Pennsylvania Trump has backed.
A week before Oz announced his campaign, Trump-backed candidate Sean Parnell dropped out of the race after losing custody of his children.
A judge overseeing Parnell’s divorce found his estranged wife’s allegations that he had choked her and hit their children to be credible, and as a result, only granted Parnell visitation rights, according to CNBC.
The day Parnell withdrew, Trump spokesman Taylor Budowich tweeted that Trump was aware of Parnell’s intention and that the race “remains a top priority” for Trump and “rallying our movement behind the best America 1st candidate remains critical.”
In his endorsement of Oz, Trump said he believes Oz “will be the one most able to win the General Election against a Radical Left Democrat looking to do unthinkable harm to our Country.”
Trump added that he thinks in a Oz will perform “very well in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, where other candidates will just not be accepted.”
