Pa. Senate Candidate John Fetterman Trolls Opponent Dr. Oz with 'Welcome Home' Banner Flying over Jersey Shore
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Bonnie Biess/Getty
Pennsylvania Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate John Fetterman is trolling his Republican opponent, Dr. Mehmet Oz.
Fetterman, the current lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania, is questioning the legitimacy of Oz's run in the state, as Oz has long been a resident of New Jersey. The famous TV doctor, 62, only became eligible to run in Pennsylvania after moving into a home owned in the state by his in-laws — a fact Lt. Gov. Fetterman, 52, has repeatedly pointed out.
In a 30-second campaign ad, Fetterman said, "This is John Fetterman. It's a fundamental choice that we have here. I only got involved in politics to make my town, then Pennsylvania a better, safer place. He just moved here to run for office."
Fetterman then ridiculed Oz's celebrity status, which he claimed would prevent Oz from adequately representing working-class Pennsylvanians.
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"Do you want someone that's all about North Jersey? Look, he's not one of us. He says he'll fight for working people. Okay. Hey, Doc Hollywood. Save your money. Pennsylvania is not for sale."
After the audio, Fetterman's campaign then took flight on Sunday — literally.
Along the beach line of Southern Jersey, Fetterman flew a satirically messaged banner for his opponent. It read, "HEY DR. OZ, WELCOME HOME TO NJ! ❤️ JOHN"
Next to an image of the flown words posted to Twitter, Fetterman wrote "To all yinz + youse down the shore today: hope you saw my very nice message ✈️ to one of NJ's famous longtime residents 🥰 "
John Fetterman/Twitter
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Boasting about his creative mocking of Oz, Fetterman wrote "Aerial Trolling!!!!" in an email statement to Huffpost.
The mocking of Oz's claim to residency follows a questionable voting history. Having used his in-laws' address to vote in Pennsylvania in 2020, Oz also voted in New Jersey the same year, according to Politico.
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Oz had previously responded to questions regarding his residency in the state and his legitimacy in running. He said, "Pennsylvanians that I speak to are quite clear that they care much more about what I stand for than where I'm from."
Additionally, although a New Jersey native, Oz did attend both college and medical school at the University of Pennsylvania — his claim to the state. Oz, who has been endorsed by former President Trump, is six percentage points behind Fetterman, according to a poll released by AARP last month.
