Dr. Oz announces U.S. Senate bid as a GOP candidate

Acclaimed television personality, cardiothoracic surgeon, Columbia University professor and author Dr. Mehmet Oz announced on Tuesday that he will join Pennsylvania’s U.S. Senate race.

In a Washington Examiner op-ed, Oz pointed towards the polarization and anger that Americans have been experiencing since the start of the pandemic as his primary motivation for running.

“That’s why I am running for the U.S. Senate: to help fix the problems and to help us heal,” he wrote.

In a nod to his family’s immigrant background, the senatorial hopeful described how his father pushed him to get ahead – ultimately inspiring him to be successful in the medical and entertainment industries.

“He taught me to study hard, enjoy the dignity of work, and serve others. My formative years were spent preparing for a lifetime of challenging operations,” Oz recalled.

Oz was quick to position himself within the Republican camp, however – referencing the government’s poor response to the COVID-19 pandemic – while still tipping his hat to former President Donald Trump’s “moments of brilliance,” which included the creation and distribution of mRNA vaccines through Operation Warp Speed.

“Many great ideas were squashed,” said Oz, referencing government experts’ monopoly on the pandemic response. “That’s not the America my parents came to. That’s not the one I grew up in. That’s not the one I want to leave behind.

This positioning is of particular note as the implosion of former Republican front-runner Sean Parnell’s campaign left Trump’s endorsement – previously won by Parnell in August of last year – on the table in the Commonwealth in a bid to replace Sen. Pat Toomey.

The race is widely considered of utmost importance by both parties as it could help decide control of the U.S. Senate.  

Oz will enter a race that in which several prominent Republicans already stand, including Montgomery County developer Jeff Bartos, former Ambassador to Denmark Carla Sands and conservative commentator Kathy Barnette.

The newly minted candidate also attacked experts and their response to the vaccination debate, saying, “COVID-19 became an excuse for the government and elite thinkers who controlled the means of communication to suspend debate. Dissenting opinions from leading scholars were ridiculed and canceled so their ideas could not be disseminated.”

Montgomery County’s GOP Chair Elizabeth Preate Havey said Oz revealed his intention to run to her on Friday. Separately, Oz spoke with Allegheny County’s GOP chair, Sam DeMarco, who said Oz did not directly say he will run, but “he left me with no doubt that he is going to be running for U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania," the AP reported. 

Oz was expected to announce his candidacy on Fox News’ The Hannity Show, after Hannity hinted that a “huge announcement” would be made on Tuesday night.

The Republican hopeful ended his op-ed saying, "I’m running for the Senate to empower you to control your destiny, to reinvigorate our great nation, and to reignite the divine spark that we should always be seeing in each other."