After securing his victory in the Pennsylvania Republican Senate primary thanks in large part to the support of Donald Trump, Mehmet Oz – better known as Dr. Oz – has been quietly erasing the former President from his social media and campaign pages.
Trump issued a statement back in April on why his supporters should vote for Oz despite a lengthy history of positions in which the celebrity doctor was decidedly not conservative or America First.
Axios reports that following the endorsement, Trump was “a near-ubiquitous fixture” in Oz’s campaign ads, while the Republican candidate constantly branded himself in cover photos and campaign page popups as “endorsed by Trump.”
Oz was declared the winner of the primary over David McCormick by a mere 951 votes after a final vote tally was released on June 8th.
He had been, CBS News wrote, aided in his victory by the “coveted endorsement from former President Donald Trump.”
It seems Trump’s job was a thankless one, now.
Thank you, Mr. President. I couldn’t agree more! pic.twitter.com/rBhuW46b4j
— Dr. Mehmet Oz (@DrOz) April 10, 2022
RELATED: I’m Just Going To Say This: Trump’s Endorsement Of Dr. Oz Is The Wrong Move
Dr. Oz Wipes Trump From His Site
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Just four days after victory had been declared, a June 12th screen grab of Dr. Oz’s Twitter page shows an image of him and Trump had been replaced with a solo picture, and the “endorsed by Trump” logo was gone.
It’s actually rather amusing to see the images side-by-side. In the endorsement cover photo, Oz looks like he’s involved in a hostage situation. In the solo effort, he cracks a bit of a smile.
Who could have predicted this pic.twitter.com/1vQMhYdYUP
— Jack Posobiec ???????? (@JackPosobiec) June 22, 2022
In the bio section of his Twitter page, Dr. Oz also dropped the statement: “Trump Endorsed Candidate for U.S. Senate.”
It now reads simply, “Thank you, Pennsylvania.”
Trump’s bad judgement when picking people is starting to irk me a lot
— Cassandra. PETA KILLS ANIMALS (@CassandraRules) June 22, 2022
Axios reports that the purge doesn’t simply affect his Twitter page. Banners on Facebook were also changed.
And despite airing “a barrage of Trump-focused ads during the primary,” Oz’s ad “after winning the Republican nomination didn’t mention or include footage of Trump,” something they describe as “a stark departure.”
Dr. oz stabbed trump in the back now that he has the nomination for Senate. We warned you.
— Carmine Sabia (@CarmineSabia) June 22, 2022
Mistake By Trump?
To many supporters of President Trump, the Oz endorsement marked another choice involving a Republican with a questionable track record that could conceivably turn on him in the future.
“Trump’s bad judgment when picking people is starting to irk me a lot,” wrote blogger Cassandra Fairbanks.
Appears to have dropped Trump from his stump speech too, as I noted last week.https://t.co/Pqh7Entb1y https://t.co/z7YZ3kAAU8
— Chris Potter (@CPotterPgh) June 22, 2022
Earlier this year, I questioned Trump’s endorsement of Oz, noting some eminently unconservative views held by the Pennsylvania Republican.
- In a 2008 interview with the National Review of Medicine, Oz said, “I’m not socially conservative,” and argued in favor of abortion, adding there should not be obstacles “during the difficult time that women have when trying to terminate a pregnancy.”
- In a 2019 interview, Oz stated ‘red flag’ gun laws “help protect you and your family” and have been shown to prevent mass shootings.
- Said he’d like to see an anonymous call-in system for people to report concerns over others’ social media posts as part of those ‘red flag laws.
- Was a strong advocate during the Obama years of health insurance mandates and even bragged that he helped get Obamacare passed by serving on President Obama’s council.
It’s pretty hard for me to fully express how disappointed in Trump I am for endorsing Oz.
— Kurt Schlichter (@KurtSchlichter) April 9, 2022
Trump has said his endorsement was more about winning as a bottom line.
“This is all about winning elections in order to stop the Radical Left maniacs from destroying our country,” Trump said.
Perhaps that’s what Oz is thinking now by trying to erase the former President. The general election, after all, is a whole other beast.
“Oz’s transition for the general election highlights the tightrope many Trump-endorsed candidates have attempted to walk — embrace the former president where it counts, while keeping him at arm’s length in situations where his brand is toxic,” Axios writes.
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