John Fetterman, the Democrat running for the US Senate in Pennsylvania, has defended his refusal to release in-depth medical records, after questions about his condition while recovering from a major stroke.
“We’ve shown more, and shared more types of medical evaluations, more than pretty much anyone else, unless you’re running for president,” Fetterman said. CBS Evening News on Thursday.
However, Fetterman has resisted calls to release detailed medical records or allow interviews with his doctors, instead citing a one-page doctor’s note he released last month saying he had “no work restrictions” and ” full service in public office. ‘
dr. Mehmet Oz, Fetterman’s Republican rival in the race, released a four-page letter from his doctor in September after the editors of The Washington Post and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette called on both candidates to release their medical records.
Fetterman, 53, insists he is fit to serve after suffering a stroke in May, which left him with auditory processing problems, making it difficult for him to understand spoken words at times.
“We already knew that was going to be a challenge, given someone who is recovering from a stroke. It’s also been a challenge for my family,” Fetterman told CBS.
John Fetterman, the Democrat running for the US Senate in Pennsylvania, has defended his refusal to release in-depth medical records as he recovers from a major stroke
dr. Mehmet Oz, Fetterman’s Republican rival in the race, released a four-page letter from his doctor in September after calling on both candidates to release medical records.
As he did in previous interviews and his October 25 debate with 62-year-old Oz, Fetterman again used large screens with captions of the interviewer’s questions.
CBS also revealed that the captions were written by a human stenographer who sits behind the scenes and types the conversation in real time.
Fetterman has explained that he has no hearing problems, but that he has persistent problems understanding spoken conversations, which helps him understand through the written captions.
The effects of Fetterman’s stroke were fully apparent during the debate, as he struggled to get through a few sentences and offered some confusing arguments for his views, including whether he was for or against fracking.
He was also criticized after an NBC News interview last month in which the candidate used written captioning for the first time to better understand the questions put to him.
Fetterman’s wife Gisele said the criticism was offensive to people with disabilities and demanded an apology from the press who were concerned about the Democratic candidate’s health.
In Thursday’s interview, Fetterman again used large screens with captions of the interviewer’s questions. The written captions help him to understand spoken words
CBS also revealed that the captions were written by a human stenographer (see above) who sits behind the scenes and types the conversation in real time.
A new poll by The Hill/Emerson College shows that Dr. Mehmet Oz preceded Democratic rival John Fetterman for the first time — with just days left until the 2022 midterms
Those arguments didn’t deter the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the largest newspaper in Fetterman’s homeland, which said Sunday. endorsed Oz’s candidacy.
‘Mr. Fetterman’s health – he suffered a serious stroke in May – is not the problem. However, his lack of transparency in refusing to release his medical records is disturbing,” the Post-Gazette wrote in its endorsement. “It suggests an urge to hide and a mistrust of people.”
“All candidates for important elected office must release their medical records, as must Mr. Oz,” they added. “If you want privacy, don’t run for public office.”
When Fetterman’s team was reached for comment, she pointed out to DailyMail.com that Oz’s “hometown” newspaper is Philadelphia Inquirer endorsed the Democratic candidate.
Fetterman’s campaign has accused Oz, a long-time resident of New Jersey, of being a “carpet bagger,” which is a negative term that describes a candidate seeking a position in a place where they have few ties.
In Thursday’s interview, Fetterman also hit back at Oz about the Republican’s claims of being soft on crime, a theme that has made Oz his final argument of the campaign.
“I’d say there are things called the Oz rule that when he’s on TV he’s lying,” Fetterman said, referring to Oz’s long career as a famous physician with a history of questionable medical claims.
“I’m the only candidate in this race who actually had hands-on experience fighting crime,” he said.
“I was mayor of a community for almost 14 years and I made gun violence the center of all my attention,” he added.
Fetterman grew up in York, Pennsylvania, but was mayor of his adopted hometown of Braddock from 2006-2019. He left his mayoral office to become Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor for Democratic Governor Tom Wolf.
Fetterman has pointed to this one-page doctor’s note he released last month, saying he had “no work restrictions” and “can serve full duty in public office.”
On June 3, Fetterman released a letter from his cardiologist who said he was able to serve “without problems” but noted that he had “not seen a doctor in five years” and had not taken his medication.
“We’re going to take our argument to the end,” Fetterman said.
The open Senate seat that Fetterman and Oz are competing for is vacated by Republican Senator Pat Toomey.
With the Senate currently split 50-50, the race in Pennsylvania could be decisive in determining which side will take control of the chamber over the next two years.
The latest poll in the race, released Thursday, showed that Oz was ahead of Fetterman for the first time, days before the November 8 election.
The two-point gap — 48 percent to 46 percent — remains a steady improvement for Oz, whose support from likely Pennsylvania voters has increased 5 percentage points since September. according to The Hill/Emerson College polls.
Meanwhile, Fetterman’s support rose just 1 percent in the latest October 28-31 poll, compared to its level in September.
The split between the two candidates remains within the poll’s plus or minus 3 percentage point margin of error.