“SOUNDING THE ALARM” – GOP Panics Over Flailing Oz Campaign

POLITICO: “Oz’s poor image among voters is ‘really freaking everybody out.’”
NYMag: “What the Hell Is Going on With Dr. Oz’s Senate Campaign?”

Senate Republicans are “privately sounding the alarm about physician Mehmet Oz’s bid for the Senate” due to his “lackluster polling and fundraising,” along with new reports that he vacationed in Florida and Ireland in the month of June and “did not return until early July.” 

See for yourself:

POLITICO: ‘Alarm bell’: GOP reassures donors despite Oz struggles
By Holly Otterbein and Natalie Allison
July 29, 2022

• The GOP establishment is feeling down on Dr. Oz.

• The Senate Republicans’ campaign arm is privately sounding the alarm about physician Mehmet Oz’s bid for the Senate in the critical battleground of Pennsylvania.

• The National Republican Senatorial Committee raised concerns about Oz’s lackluster polling and fundraising on at least three separate occasions in recent weeks, multiple sources told POLITICO.

• On a donor call last week that focused on Senate races throughout the country, NRSC officials discussed Oz’s poor performance in polls, including his high unfavorability ratings, said a person on the call.

• “It was an alarm bell,” the person said, adding that Oz’s poor image among voters is “really freaking everybody out.”

• The person on last week’s donor call likewise said there was also a “bit of consternation” about the fact that Oz has not contributed more of his own money to his general election campaign… The donor and consultant class also has complained about Oz’s recent travels, including trips he reportedly took after the May 17 primary to Ireland and Palm Beach.

NYMag: What the Hell Is Going on With Dr. Oz’s Senate Campaign?
By Nia Prater
July 29, 2022

• Puck is reporting that the former TV personality was in Palm Beach, Florida, until June 9 at least, not holding his first post-primary event until June 10. Oz reportedly also traveled to Ireland to visit family at the end of June and did not return until early July.

• The trips have allegedly frustrated the National Republican Senatorial Committee and even former President Donald Trump, who endorsed Oz during the close Republican primary, according to Puck.

• Oz’s visit to Pat’s and Geno’s, a pair of well-known cheesesteak shops, quickly went viral following a joke from Fetterman who likened Oz to a tourist. (His campaign has been plagued by claims of carpetbagging due to his longtime residency in New Jersey. Oz has since purchased a home in Pennsylvania.)

• The Philadelphia Inquirer recently reported that Oz also trailed Fetterman in fundraising, raising only $3.8 million from April to June. That number includes $2.2 million that Oz loaned to his campaign.

See also: DSCC: Oz Gets Pork Rolled On ‘New Jersey Day’

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