Lt. Gov. John Fetterman struggled to phrase some of his answers during his Pennsylvanian U.S. Senate debate last night against Mehmet Oz, while Fetterman also read closed captioning questioning, leading some national pundits to worry about his performance. But many Pennsylvanians, who have known Fetterman for years, saw a strong and determined man who gained by showing up and exposing Oz, who gave the most damaging answer of the night. The hours after the debate resulted in an avalanche of small donor support for Fetterman.
The Fetterman campaign announced the fundraising in a statement provided to PoliticusUSA:
Lt. Governor John Fetterman’s campaign for U.S. Senate this evening announced that it has raised over $1 million since the Pennsylvania Senate debate ended at 9:00 p.m.
The unprecedented and massive haul for a Pennsylvania Senate race demonstrates the deep grassroots enthusiasm Fetterman has behind his campaign.
Fetterman campaign manager Brandon McPhillips said, “It’s clear that the people of Pennsylvania have John’s back in this race. They stepped up tonight with a gigantic show of support for John and his debate performance. We’re honored and grateful for the support heading into the last two weeks of the race.”
Despite some national concern over Fetterman’s speech and audio cognition, pundits uniformly saddled Oz with the most harmful answer of the night. In a state that favors women’s choice, Oz muttered that he always believed abortion should be a decision made by a woman, her doctor, and the local state politicians as if there is a place for Mastriano in a woman’s exam room.
Dr. Oz literally said tonight that he wants “local political leaders” (like his buddy Doug Mastriano) to decide whether or not women have access to safe + legal abortions
That is EXTREME
These critical decisions should be made between a woman and her doctor. Period. pic.twitter.com/lWeYm6lTgN
— John Fetterman (@JohnFetterman) October 26, 2022
The Fetterman influx of money in the hours post-debate surely represents supporters making a statement about a temporary disability (that does not impact judgment) and the utter horror of hearing Oz expressly state that local political leaders should have a say in that exam room between a woman and her doctor.
Ultimately, Pennsylvanians know John Fetterman and know that a temporary disability cannot change his fundamental values. Meanwhile, Pennsylvanians are still trying to figure out why Oz even wants to be in the Senate or what he believes. At times, it seems as though Oz believes whatever Republican pollsters tell him to believe on any given day. The race will not be decided by one’s physical ability to debate. It may, however, come down to a terrifying answer elicited in a debate. A shower of money seems to prove that Fetterman walked away with supporters backing him more solidly than ever.
@JasonMiciak believes a day without learning is a day not lived. He is a political writer, features writer, author, and attorney. He is a Canadian-born dual citizen who spent his teen and college years in the Pacific Northwest and has since lived in seven states. He now enjoys life as a single dad of a young girl, writing from the beaches of the Gulf Coast. He loves crafting his flower pots, cooking, and currently studies philosophy of science, religion, and non-math principles behind quantum mechanics and cosmology. Please feel free to contact for speaking engagements or any concerns.