John Fetterman mocked Senate rival Dr Mehmet Oz’s abortion remarks as he acknowledged “missing words” during their election debate in Pennsylvania.
Mr Fetterman, who is still recovering from a stroke that has left him with some auditory processing and speech issues, told a crowd in Pittsburgh that it was the pro-Trump Republican who still “had the worst line” of the night.
“Last night Oz said that – and I want to get this right – quote ‘local political leaders’ should decide whether a woman should be able to get an abortion. Basically, like (GOP candidate for Pennsylvania Governor) Doug Mastriano.
“You know for some of the focus on some of the words that I miss, he really has to say that he had the worst line of that night.”
Going into the debate, a CNN poll found that 51 per cent of likely voters support Mr Fetterman, a Democrat, compared to 45 per cent for Dr Oz.
Mr Fetterman was in Pittsburgh on Wednesday evening to attend a campaign event with musician Dave Matthews.
The Democrat told the crowd at the event that doing the debate “wasn’t exactly easy.”
“Knew it wasn’t going to be easy after having a stroke after five months. In fact, I don’t think it has ever been done before in American political history actually. You know, after that stroke, I got knocked down, but I got back up.”
Mr Fetterman, who has been fully cleared by his doctors, also acknowledged his health issues and recovery at the beginning of the debate.
“Let’s also talk about the elephant in the room. I had a stroke. He’s never let me forget that,” Mr Fetterman said.
“And I might miss some words during this debate, mush two words together, but it knocked me down and I’m going to keep coming back up.”
The debate was one of the most highly anticipated match-ups of the 2022 midterm campaign, as the Pennsylvania Senate race has become one of the nastiest in the country.
Dr Oz previously needled Mr Fetterman ahead of a proposed debate by saying his campaign would pay for medical personnel to be on hand. Mr Fetterman has accused Dr Oz of “lying” anytime he gets in front of cameras.
The Pennsylvania Senate race is one of Democrats’ best opportunities to flip a Republican seat, with GOP Sen Pat Toomey retiring.
Republicans have hit Mr Fetterman for being soft on crime, particularly noting how he worked to commute the sentences of two men convicted of second degree murder under spurious conditions who now work for his campaign.
Meanwhile, Mr Fetterman’s campaign has hit Dr Oz as a carpetbagger who resides in neighbouring New Jersey and doesn’t have strong ties to the Keystone State.
