A campaign ad from Republican U.S. Senate candidate Dr. Mehmet Oz shows Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez emerging from the skull of John Fetterman holding a "free healthcare" sign.
Dr. Oz Derided Over Ad Attacking Fetterman's Support for 'Free Healthcare'
"What's radical," responded a top aide to Sen. Bernie Sanders, "is 338,000 Americans dying during the pandemic because they could not afford for-profit healthcare."
Republican U.S. Senate hopeful and ultra-millionaire Mehmet Oz attempted Monday to cast his Democratic opponent, Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, as "the most radical candidate in the country" by citing his support for "free healthcare," a line of attack that was met with widespread derision on social media.
Dr. Oz, a former television personality who is trailing the key Senate contest by double digits, delivered the attack through a crudely animated ad showing Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) emerging from Fetterman's skull holding a sign that reads, "Free healthcare for everyone!"
"Socialized medicine?" the narrator scoffs. "Where did he get these crazy ideas?"
The ad, which has previously aired on television, answers the question with an animation of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who has polled as the most popular politician in the United States.
Watch:
"Honestly had to double check that this wasn't a parody account," Robert Maguire, research director at Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, tweeted in response to the clip, which includes a slew of other attacks on Fetterman's policy agenda, some of them highly misleading.
Warren Gunnels, Sanders' staff director, added that "67% of the American people support providing Medicare to every American, including 69% of independents and 87% of Democrats."
"What's radical," Gunnels added, "is 338,000 Americans dying during the pandemic because they could not afford for-profit healthcare."
Gunnels was referencing a peer-reviewed study published in June showing that more than 338,000 U.S. coronavirus deaths could have been prevented if the country had a single-payer healthcare system that guaranteed comprehensive coverage for all.
Fetterman has long expressed support for Medicare for All and promised, if needed, to cast the decisive Senate vote in support of single-payer legislation, a position that led for-profit healthcare interests to attack him during the Democratic primary. On his campaign website, Fetterman states his view that "healthcare is a fundamental human right--just like housing, food, and education."
Oz, by contrast, has pledged to "expand access to private sector plans expanded by President Trump," an apparent reference to the former president's executive order bolstering privately run Medicare Advantage plans that are notorious for overcharging the government and denying patients medically necessary care.
Oz has also vowed to take on healthcare industry "lobbyists and powerful special interests," not mentioning that he has benefited from Big Pharma cash.
Urgent. It's never been this bad.
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission from the outset was simple. To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It’s never been this bad out there. And it’s never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed and doing some of its best and most important work, the threats we face are intensifying. Right now, with just four days to go in our Spring Campaign, we are not even halfway to our goal. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Can you make a gift right now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? There is no backup plan or rainy day fund. There is only you. —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Republican U.S. Senate hopeful and ultra-millionaire Mehmet Oz attempted Monday to cast his Democratic opponent, Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, as "the most radical candidate in the country" by citing his support for "free healthcare," a line of attack that was met with widespread derision on social media.
Dr. Oz, a former television personality who is trailing the key Senate contest by double digits, delivered the attack through a crudely animated ad showing Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) emerging from Fetterman's skull holding a sign that reads, "Free healthcare for everyone!"
"Socialized medicine?" the narrator scoffs. "Where did he get these crazy ideas?"
The ad, which has previously aired on television, answers the question with an animation of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who has polled as the most popular politician in the United States.
Watch:
"Honestly had to double check that this wasn't a parody account," Robert Maguire, research director at Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, tweeted in response to the clip, which includes a slew of other attacks on Fetterman's policy agenda, some of them highly misleading.
Warren Gunnels, Sanders' staff director, added that "67% of the American people support providing Medicare to every American, including 69% of independents and 87% of Democrats."
"What's radical," Gunnels added, "is 338,000 Americans dying during the pandemic because they could not afford for-profit healthcare."
Gunnels was referencing a peer-reviewed study published in June showing that more than 338,000 U.S. coronavirus deaths could have been prevented if the country had a single-payer healthcare system that guaranteed comprehensive coverage for all.
Fetterman has long expressed support for Medicare for All and promised, if needed, to cast the decisive Senate vote in support of single-payer legislation, a position that led for-profit healthcare interests to attack him during the Democratic primary. On his campaign website, Fetterman states his view that "healthcare is a fundamental human right--just like housing, food, and education."
Oz, by contrast, has pledged to "expand access to private sector plans expanded by President Trump," an apparent reference to the former president's executive order bolstering privately run Medicare Advantage plans that are notorious for overcharging the government and denying patients medically necessary care.
Oz has also vowed to take on healthcare industry "lobbyists and powerful special interests," not mentioning that he has benefited from Big Pharma cash.
Republican U.S. Senate hopeful and ultra-millionaire Mehmet Oz attempted Monday to cast his Democratic opponent, Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, as "the most radical candidate in the country" by citing his support for "free healthcare," a line of attack that was met with widespread derision on social media.
Dr. Oz, a former television personality who is trailing the key Senate contest by double digits, delivered the attack through a crudely animated ad showing Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) emerging from Fetterman's skull holding a sign that reads, "Free healthcare for everyone!"
"Socialized medicine?" the narrator scoffs. "Where did he get these crazy ideas?"
The ad, which has previously aired on television, answers the question with an animation of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who has polled as the most popular politician in the United States.
Watch:
"Honestly had to double check that this wasn't a parody account," Robert Maguire, research director at Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, tweeted in response to the clip, which includes a slew of other attacks on Fetterman's policy agenda, some of them highly misleading.
Warren Gunnels, Sanders' staff director, added that "67% of the American people support providing Medicare to every American, including 69% of independents and 87% of Democrats."
"What's radical," Gunnels added, "is 338,000 Americans dying during the pandemic because they could not afford for-profit healthcare."
Gunnels was referencing a peer-reviewed study published in June showing that more than 338,000 U.S. coronavirus deaths could have been prevented if the country had a single-payer healthcare system that guaranteed comprehensive coverage for all.
Fetterman has long expressed support for Medicare for All and promised, if needed, to cast the decisive Senate vote in support of single-payer legislation, a position that led for-profit healthcare interests to attack him during the Democratic primary. On his campaign website, Fetterman states his view that "healthcare is a fundamental human right--just like housing, food, and education."
Oz, by contrast, has pledged to "expand access to private sector plans expanded by President Trump," an apparent reference to the former president's executive order bolstering privately run Medicare Advantage plans that are notorious for overcharging the government and denying patients medically necessary care.
Oz has also vowed to take on healthcare industry "lobbyists and powerful special interests," not mentioning that he has benefited from Big Pharma cash.