HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP/KYW Newsradio) — Candidates for the Republican nomination for Pennsylvania's open U.S. Senate seat charged into their live-televised prime-time debate with extra incentive to attack Mehmet Oz after the celebrity heart surgeon received former President Donald Trump’s endorsement.
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They attacked almost solidly throughout Monday’s one-hour debate at the studio of WHTM-TV with barely three weeks to go to the May 17 primary election.
Trump earlier this month endorsed Oz, who is best known as daytime TV’s host of “The Dr. Oz Show.” The endorsement hovered over the debate, and Oz raised it repeatedly, just hours after Trump announced that he will come to western Pennsylvania next week for a rally to promote him.
Oz appeared alongside four others: conservative activist Kathy Barnette, real estate investor Jeff Bartos, ex-hedge fund CEO David McCormick, and Carla Sands, Trump’s ambassador to Denmark.
All five met the polling threshold set by the debate host's parent company as they vie for the nomination to succeed retiring two-term Republican Sen. Pat Toomey in the presidential battleground state.
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The campaign is one of this year’s premier Senate contests, with carpetbaggery a prominent and persistent issue following the recent arrival of three wealthy and well-connected candidates from other states — McCormick, Oz, and Sands. It was the first question in Monday night’s debate.
The candidates started off by proving how “Pennsylvania” they are, referring to their connections to the commonwealth. When asked about the supply-chain shortage, Oz shared his solution: “Natural gas that could power the entire country for 200 years; they will provide well-paying jobs here in Pennsylvania.”
“The energy sector is key to unlocking our economy,” McCormick followed. “It’s key to unlocking jobs here.”
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Sands insisted jobs be brought back. “We have to make things here. … Onshore the jobs, and we do it here in Pennsylvania. We can make steel here, we can make pharmaceuticals.”
Bartos wants to unleash Pennsylvania’s energy industry. “We are sitting on two Saudi Arabias of natural gas. We can power the nation and we can power our allies around the world with Pennsylvania resources.”
Barnette turned the discussion to finger-pointing, blaming the other side of the aisle for the current situation of jobs and the supply chain.
“Much of what we are experiencing, if not all of it, is as a direct result of the failed policy of the Democrat Party,” she said.
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The pro-life candidates were also asked: If Roe v. Wade was overturned, should there be an exception for rape, incest or life of the mother?
“There should be an exception for the life of the mother,” replied Oz, who said he has always been pro-life. “We don’t want mothers dying as they try to give birth to a child.”
“I am pro-life at the beginning of life and at the end of life,” Sands responded. McCormick and Bartos said there can be exceptions in “rare instances.”
However, instead of using their time to speak on hot-button topics, many candidates instead turned their attention to negatively targeting their opponents.
“Our values never shifted to President Trump’s values. It was President Trump who shifted and aligned with our values,” said Barnette, who shifted gears to again speak on Oz’s endorsement.
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The Senate race has become an expensive duel between McCormick and Oz, who combined — with super PACs that support them — have reported spending more than $37 million.
The primary election is May 17.