News/Commentary

‘Kicking balls in the authority’: Montage of verbal misses raises concerns if Fetterman’s fit for office

October 10, 2022 | | Print Article

While there is no joy to be taken in someone else’s misfortune, it is difficult to fathom how one can watch Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman struggle — and often fail — to communicate a cohesive thought without questioning if he is fit to serve in the U.S. Senate.

This shouldn’t be a partisan question. It doesn’t display a lack of empathy for the man who sadly suffered a stroke in May.

It’s common sense.


(Video: Fox News Digital)

And while the endless string of short-circuited statements from Fetterman has certainly been a gift to his Republican opponent, Dr. Mehmet Oz, his inability to find words and put them in the proper order is something that needs to concern every American.

Even Fetterman knows he’s having a hard time.

“As you know, I had a stroke,” he told the crowd at a Pittsburgh rally earlier this month. “Oh and I’m so grateful to be here today now after surviving that better and better, you know?”

“You know, the only lingering issue that I have after that stroke is sometimes auditory processing, sometimes,” he continued. “And, every now and then, I might miss a word or, sometimes, you know, I might mush two words together.”

Despite his insistence that speech is his “only lingering issue,” the former mayor of Braddock, Penn., isn’t helping his case. As Britanny Yannick, Dr. Oz’s communications director, pointed out, Fetterman’s refusal to release his medical records is “bizarre and strange.”

According to Yannick, “on KDKA radio, John Fetterman swore up and down he’s not on the heart transplant list.”

“If he’s willing to tell a journalist that he doesn’t need a heart transplant on the record,” she told Fox News Digital, “what is the big deal about making his medical records public to back that up? Fetterman already hid the fact that he had atrial fibrillation when he ran for Lieutenant Governor and throughout the Democratic primary for Senate, so how can we take him at his word now?”

“The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette called on both candidates to release their medical records weeks ago. Oz released his. Why hasn’t Fetterman?” she continued. “It’s bizarre and strange he hasn’t done it yet. What is John Fetterman hiding?”

Some of the gaffes made by Fetterman are just painful to hear.

After Oz described Fetterman as “kicking authority in the balls,” Fetterman went on MSNBC and told host Chris Hayes, “I’m doing fantastic, and it’s not about kicking balls in the authority or anything.”

Last month, in a prerecorded video, he urged his supporters to “take advantage of this amazing opportunity to, the only thing you have… stand… to lose is your record.”

“The Eagles are so much better than the Eagles!” he exclaimed in front of a Philadelphia crowd last month.

Clearly, he was referring to the Philadelphia Eagles, but the rest of his thought got lost on the journey between his brain and his mouth.

But what if, instead of football, he was arguing for or against something that actually matters on the Senate floor? As the left so often reminds us, “words matter.”

Words have consequences.

And yet his campaign continues to dismiss legitimate concerns as “pathetic” and cruel Republican attacks.

“As we’ve said over and over again, John is healthy and he also still has a lingering auditory processing issue that his doctors expect will go away,” John Calvello, spokesperson for Fetterman’s campaign, told Fox News Digital. “John has already released a letter from his cardiologist, put out a candid letter directly from himself about his stroke, and talked about his health openly with local and national media.”

“Unfortunately for Dr. Oz and the pathetic Republicans who are desperately rooting against his recovery,” he added, “John is getting better every day and he is going to win this race to be Pennsylvania’s next Senator.”

Melissa Fine
Latest posts by Melissa Fine (see all)

Comment

We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. If a comment is spam, instead of replying to it please click the ∨ icon below and to the right of that comment. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.

Latest Articles