HARRISBURG, Pa. — Pennsylvania Republican U.S. Senate candidate Mehmet Oz debuted a new Trumpian confidence inspired by the former president’s endorsement, as the five candidates tried to set themselves apart as the “most Pennsylvanian” candidate in Monday’s debate for the GOP nomination.
The two GOP frontrunners — Oz, a cardiothoracic surgeon and former daytime TV host, and David McCormick, the former CEO of the world’s largest hedge fund — traded attacks from a debate stage in Harrisburg alongside three of their opponents.
Oz mentioned former President Donald Trump’s endorsement multiple times during Monday’s televised, multi-market debate. His opponents attacked him the most of any of the other candidates, and he also picked up a common strategy from Trump — choosing a catchy, alliterative nickname — by calling McCormick “Dishonest Dave.”
“President Trump saw right through him and that’s why he did not endorse (McCormick),” Oz said.
McCormick, in response, said Oz only received the former president’s endorsement because he was a weak candidate without it.
“He can’t run on his own positions and records,” McCormick added. “What’s true is that he has flip flopped on every major issue.”
Oz also acknowledged his long history living outside the state during Monday’s debate.
“Pennsylvanians care about what I stand for more than where I’m from,” said Oz, who grew up in Delaware and lived most of his adult life in New Jersey.
Other candidates included Carla Sands, the U.S. ambassador to Denmark under Trump; conservative political commentator Kathy Barnette; and former lieutenant governor candidate and business owner Jeff Bartos.
McCormick and Sands both tried to out-Pennsylvania one another — with Sands claiming her family had been in the state for eight generations, while McCormick said his family has lived here for seven. All of the candidates recognized that Bartos had lived in the state longer than them.
“There’s no one else in this race that’s more Pennsylvanian,” claimed Sands, who sold her homes in California before announcing her run for U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania.
Bartos also tried to capitalize on his business career and life in the state, noting the time he took during COVID-19 lockdowns to provide grants to small businesses — and that most of his opponents spent their time outside the state.
“You can’t save Main Street Pennsylvania if you can’t find Main Street Pennsylvania,” Bartos added.
Barnette also tried to portray herself as the only candidate committed to restoring Pennsylvanians’ freedoms, challenging the race’s frontrunners.
“I can promise the people of Pennsylvania, when these carpetbaggers lose, you will never see them again,” Barnette added.
McCormick and Oz have each spent millions of dollars attacking one another through TV ads since the start of this year. Just in the hour before Monday’s debate, at least six attack ads by McCormick or Oz aired. The ads have become a part of daily life for Pennsylvanians across the state, as the millionaire candidates try to paint one another as frauds.
They finally got to address some of these claims during Monday’s debate, with Oz trying to cast McCormick as a candidate aiming to “fool the electorate.” McCormick frequently pointed to past statements Oz had made during his many years as a celebrity TV host and defended his business dealings as part of the cost of being a successful businessman.
While each of the candidates said parts of the state’s election system need to be reviewed, Oz and Barnette took the strongest stances, saying that voters can’t “move past” the 2020 election.
Several of the candidates, including Oz and McCormick, said they do not support abortion, except in the extreme instance when the mother’s life is in danger.
Each of the candidates also emphasized that the state needs to capitalize on its energy resources and decrease its dependence on foreign imports. All of them said they support legislation to require athletes to play a sport based on their biological sex — a common talking point among Republicans since Penn swimmer Lia Thomas won an NCAA championship earlier this year.
Each candidate was asked to define what Trump’s “America First” slogan means to them.
To Oz, it means respect. To Bartos, it’s the policies Trump advocated for that strengthened the country’s economy pre-pandemic. For Sands, it’s her time as an ambassador pushing for policies that put the country first. To McCormick, it’s a set of policies that takes care of those “left behind” like its veterans.
For Barnette, the “Make America Great Again” movement does not belong to Trump, she said.
“MAGA actually belongs to the people,” she said. “They never shifted to President Trump’s values, it’s President Trump who shifted.”
A recent Franklin & Marshall College poll found that the race remains wide open, with both Oz and McCormick receiving only 16% and 15% support, respectively. Forty-three percent of GOP voters polled said they were still undecided on which candidate they’ll support.
Four of the candidates — excluding Sands — appeared together last month during a morning forum in Erie. But Monday’s debate was the first time all the candidates got to respond to one another’s attacks and debate how they would address top issues for Pennsylvania residents.
The hourlong debate was moderated by WPXI anchor Lisa Sylvester and ABC27 anchor and state Capitol reporter Dennis Owens.
The TV station will host another debate Wednesday night with the GOP gubernatorial candidates.
Voters have one week remaining to register to vote in the May 17 primary election. Voters can check their voter registration status here or register to vote here.
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