Democrat John Fetterman has declined an early September debate against his Republican opponent Mehmet Oz in the Pennsylvania U.S. Senate race, citing recovery from a recent stroke.
In a statement on Tuesday evening, Fetterman said that he rejected Mehmet Oz’s campaign offer to debate in the first week of September, accusing his Republican opponent of thinking “it is funny to mock” his stroke recovery.
“I’m eager to put my record and my values up against Dr. Oz’s any day of the week,” Fetterman. “As I recover from this stroke and improve my auditory processing and speech, I look forward to continuing to meet with the people of Pennsylvania.”
On Tuesday, the Oz campaign team put out a list of concessions for the debate, including an offer, according to NBC News, to:
…pay for any additional medical personnel” that Fetterman might need on standby while reportedly allowing him “bathroom breaks and allowing him to have all of his notes on hand, along with an earpiece to obtain answers from his staff.
Fetterman said the a list of “concessions” from Oz’s campaign “made it abundantly clear that they think it is funny to mock a stroke survivor.”
“My recovery may be a joke to Dr. Oz and his team, but it’s real for me,” Fetterman said.
The Oz campaign has challenged John Fetterman to as many as five debates ahead of the November mid-term election as the Lt. Governor continues to struggle with public speaking.
John Fetterman today held his second rally since having a stroke in which he spoke for less than 5 minutes.
Here are the highlights. pic.twitter.com/lwo40YWcZi
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) August 23, 2022
While Fetterman’s narrowing lead may allow him some time to dodge Oz’s debate prodding, questions about his health and mental faculties will continue to raise public suspicion if he keeps it up for too long.
Christopher Borick, a pollster and political science professor at Muhlenberg College in Pennsylvania, told NBC News that Fetterman will have to debate Oz in the fall if wants to secure victory:
There is a degree of pressure for Fetterman to demonstrate that he’s ready to go. It doesn’t mean he has to agree with everything. But he’s going to have to debate Oz this fall. I don’t think it’s highly salient in this campaign but given Fetterman’s health situation, he has to show he’s capable of occupying this role.
Brittany Yanick, a spokesperson for Oz, called Fetterman “a liar, a liberal, and a coward” in response to his debate dodge on Tuesday.
“Ok, so when will he debate?” she said. “He won’t ever say — not even in his latest whiny statement.”
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