‘Doc Hollywood’: In a twist, Democrats attack Senate candidate Mehmet Oz for his ties to show business

In an advertising campaign for John Fetterman, a Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania, for a vacant seat in the US Senate, he attacked his rival, Mehmed Oz, calling him “not one of us” and as part of the wealthy entertainment elite.

“Hey Doc Hollywood, save your money, Pennsylvania is not for sale,” Fetterman said at the scene as a replayed video of Ozzy, the longtime TV host, kisses his star on the Paseo de Fame.

Obviously, it’s not a novel for a campaign trying to rival Hollywood connections, but this time it’s a Democrat, Fetterman, trying to criticize Republican Oz for his show business. This is a bit of a departure from the common campaign tactics used by the right against its left-wing opponents, which have dominated Hollywood’s fundraising and sponsorship for generations.

Contrary to Ozzy’s name recognition, Fetterman tried to use stardom as a tool, as he did during his campaign. enlisted of departure The Jersey Shore Trolling Oz in a cameo scene meant to mark his move from New Jersey to Pennsylvania and play on Keystone State’s contempt for his neighbor.

Ozzy tried to grab a page from Donald Trump’s playbook, which he supported, promoting his personal brand as what it takes to take on the Washington establishment. Your campaign logo features the same square as your TV show.

Like Trump, Ozzy enjoyed being in the spotlight, serving as the Grand Marshal for the Hollywood Christmas Parade, attending the red carpet and the Daytime Emmy Awards, for which he personally won three times as a host and four times the show. Show.

Even after the Senate vote was announced, Ozzy appeared on the Wall of Fame in a ceremony in February to reveal his star, or recipients are charged a $ 50,000 sponsorship fee.

At the event, Oz himself linked the Walk of Fame ceremony with his Pennsylvania campaign. He told TMZ: “I think our state is such a big microcosm of the whole country, that you really have to get people on both sides of the aisle to talk to each other. That’s why I kept talking about how the splendor of a Hollywood stars reflect the divine spark, divinity in our eyes when we look at each other, see it, so love and respect each other.

His main contender for the Republican nomination, David McCormick, said his campaign attacked Ozzy for “spending his life putting fame and Hollywood first.” A McCormick-affiliated PAC has already won the seat by calling Oz a “Hollywood liberal”. “Dr. Ozzy may be suitable for Hollywood, but he is not suitable for Pennsylvania. “

However, Trump’s support helped Oz defeat McCormick in the primary. Fetterman, in a way, picked up where Ozzy’s old rival left off. This meant continuing forays into Oz’s background as a longtime freelancer living in Cliffside Park, NJ. While trying to reach out to rural and working-class voters, Fetterman, who often wears hats and sports tattoos, also tries to thwart Oz, implying that “Doc Hollywood” is out of place.

Fetterman called for raising the minimum wage, protecting trade unions, tackling climate change, protecting abortion rights and supporting a “compassionate response to immigration reform” – all issues in tune with most Democrats.

Sean Parnell, who dropped out of the Republican Senate primary last year, told NBC News in May that Fetterman is “the hammer-wielding Democratic folk hero.” it’s not her, so she’ll be up to the Republican candidate to point it out and prove it. “

Polls suggest that Fetterman wiped out. RealClearPolitics’ average brings him eight points ahead of Ozzie. A recent Fox News poll, which showed Fetterman an 11-point lead, showed fewer Republicans stuck to Oz, 73 percent, compared to Fetterman Democrats, 89 percent.

“Compare Fetterman with someone who was born in the state, educated in the state, was mayor of the state, against an opponent who lived in New Jersey and was from New Jersey. [into the public eye] “Through television, the connection with Hollywood is quite strong,” said Christopher Borick, a political science professor at Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania.

Borick noted that Fetterman essentially connects Oz’s connections in Hollywood with his New Jersey residence, both locations in not “lovely” Pennsylvania.

“Certainly celebrities here, as elsewhere, can help grab attention and, by targeting the right audience, can bring energy to a campaign,” he said. “Their role is not always harmful. But it can have a negative aspect, especially if you are associated with a place that is not good for the voters. “

Republicans have been trying to downplay his rival’s Hollywood ties for some time. Josh Hawley attempted to link Claire McCaskill to Harvey Weinstein in the 2018 Senate race. Four years earlier, Mitch McConnell’s allies created a fake Hollywood Squares graphic to connect his rival, Alison Grimes, to Hollywood liberals.

Like other Democrats at the Senate races this cycle, Fetterman has attracted donors from Hollywood. They include Barbra Streisand, Don Henley, Damon Lindelof, David Mandel, Christian Bale, Marg Helgenberger, Mark Ruffalo, Heather Thomas, and John Leguizamo.

Matthew Littman, a Los Angeles-based Democratic political strategist, said Fetterman isn’t trying to say that “the people in the entertainment industry are bad people, but that Ozzy is a showman, insincere and misplaced.” reality.”

On Ted Nugent’s podcast last spring, Ozzy said his story is precious. “It’s not bad to be involved in the fun. I’ve never lived in Hollywood. I refused to move from there. I like where I live now. But fundamentally, you are learning about wars against awakened ideology, against perverted media. You have to control yourself. “The values ​​I hold are shared by my fellow Pennsylvania and they know I will fight for them.”

Oz’s campaign sought to portray Fetterman as a socialist, indicating his past support for Bernie Sanders as he tried to belittle his image as a “hard blue collar man”. Oz called him a “pretentious populist,” but he also tried to defend Fetterman’s absence from the campaign. After suffering a stroke before the Democratic primary, Fetterman plans to return to the streets on Friday in an election rally.

This was announced by the spokesperson for the Oz campaign Term“No amount of memes or attacks will distract Pennsylvanians from wages, safety and job security stolen from Biden-Fetterman’s radical agenda. The spokesperson added,” It’s been 84 days since John Fetterman’s last public campaign event. . He hid in his basement and refused to answer publicly for his radical and liberal views. “

Borick said Ozzy should be “very careful not to cash in on other people’s personal health problems,” but said his attacks on Fetterman’s suburban upbringing and parenting as an adult were “probably a better way.” to win”.

Katherine Kramer Brownell, associate professor of history at Purdue University and author The Politics of the Entertainment: Hollywood in American Political Lifenoted that “the Republican Party has been more successful in turning celebrities into candidates, while the Democratic Party has been more successful in raising funds from celebrities.”

When he got into politics, Reagan also faced attacks for being too active, he said, but sought to reinforce his background in show business. He has become a “citizen politician” who can “connect more closely with the electorate”.

Trump has taken his stardom to another level, using valuations as his currency and his ability to work as one of his greatest assets, especially when it comes to dissent. Unlike Ozzy, he never won an Emmy, but he also tried to use that grudge to his advantage. In one of the 2016 presidential debates, Hillary Clinton mocked Trump for accusing him of doing Emmy makeup, to which she replied, “I should have.”

“It’s a mindset. That’s what Donald thinks, and it’s funny, but it’s also really creepy, ”Clinton said.

Oz noted that his star on the Walk of Fame is “next to Ronald Reagan and next to Donald Trump,” but it’s an open question whether they share the same political experience or ability to connect with voters.

Fetterman is betting he can neutralize Oz’s fame and overcome democratic mid-term challenges with something different and even a little irreverent. “I’m not like a typical politician,” he told him in one of his first commercials of him. “I’m not a normal person.”