Dr. Oz begged for the debate with John Fetterman, but it backfired on him and caused Fetterman to raise more than $2 million in less than 24 hours.
In a statement provided to PoliticusUSA, the Fetterman campaign announced:
Pennsylvania Lt. Governor John Fetterman’s campaign for U.S. Senate announced that it has raised over $2 million since the Senate debate ended at 9:00 p.m. last night.
The unprecedented and massive haul for a Pennsylvania Senate race demonstrates the deep grassroots enthusiasm Fetterman has behind his campaign. Some of the cash will be used to air a new TV ad featuring Dr. Oz’s extremely radical comments on abortion from last night’s debate in key markets.
While Oz has to loan his campaign money to get through the home stretch, the grassroots are stepping up and supporting John Fetterman. The reason why small donations are valued as an electoral metric is that there is a direct correlation between small donors and the likelihood of voting. Campaigns with large small donor bases also tend to have the most committed voters.
Fetterman campaign manager Brandon McPhillips promised that the fundraising windfall would be used to make sure that Pennsylvania women understand Oz’s position on abortion, “This is 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. Our campaign will put this money behind making sure as many Pennsylvania women as possible hear Dr. Oz’s radical belief that ‘local political leaders’ should have a say in their personal healthcare decisions.”
The national media has been obsessed with Fetterman’s health for months, but what they should be examining is the health of his campaign. The debate that Dr. Oz wanted so badly led to the Republican making the biggest gaffe and may have backfired and doomed his campaign.
Mr. Easley is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
