President-elect Donald Trump‘s nominee to oversee the enormous Medicare and Medicaid programs is Dr. Mehmet Oz, an Oprah Winfrey-hatched media personality (like Dr. Phil) whose first stab at politics was a 2022 run to represent Pennsylvania in the United States Senate.
Oz’s path to power was no yellow brick road, however, and the TV doctor lost the race to the left-leaning, shorts-wearing, Israel-supporting John Fetterman.
Fetterman has fashioned himself as a pragmatist who — whatever his beefs with the conduct of his GOP rivals — will seek common ground to get things done if it doesn’t violate his principles. To wit, he is ready to cast his vote to confirm Oz as Trump’s Medicare maestro as long as Oz intends to “protect and preserve Medicaid and Medicare.”
New — Just spoke to Sen. John Fetterman about his old rival, Dr. Mehmet Oz, whom he defeated in a fierce 2022 Senate race.
On Oz’s nomination to head the health agency overseeing Medicare and Medicaid, Fetterman very much open to voting for his confirmation.
“I’m going to be…
— Manu Raju (@mkraju) November 19, 2024
Oz could be a MAGA Republican, a Democratic socialist, or a Martian, Fetterman implies — so long as he will keep these critical benefits secure for the Americans who rely on them. A promise on that and Fetterman says he will be “voting for the dude.” Fetterman shared the post below, in which Manu Raju quotes him on his conditional support.
Fetterman acknowledges his history with Oz — the Senate campaign wasn’t noted for its civility — but the winner says (as winners often do) that he has “no bitterness” towards his erstwhile rival, despite having politics that are “obviously different.”
Oz has advocated the same “let bygones by bygones” approach when it comes to any bitterness against Fetterman, saying after his loss in a campaign full of personal attacks that “we are facing big problems as a country and we need everyone to put down their partisan swords and focus on getting the job done.”