Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., on Monday praised the general election chances of Pennsylvania GOP Senate candidate Dr. Mehmet Oz.
When pressed about Oz's potential for knocking off Democratic Party challenger and current Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, McConnell spoke of having "great confidence" in Oz, and that he had a "great shot" at defeating Fetterman on Nov. 8.
The current Senate contains 50 Republicans and 50 Democrats, which means the Oz-Fetterman race could tip the scales of party control.
The Pennsylvania matchup has also evoked great intrigue — on a national scale — since it pits a TV celebrity (Oz) against a candidate who suffered a stroke earlier this summer (Fetterman).
Fetterman currently owns a strong lead over Oz in the majority of Senate tracking polls. However, that doesn't account for a number of high-profile Republicans — including former President Donald Trump — planning in-state rallies on Oz's behalf in the coming weeks.
Last Friday, McConnell hosted a fundraiser for Oz, Georgia Senate candidate Herschel Walker, and Rep. Ted Budd, R-N.C.
The previous day, McConnell seemingly minimized the "candidate quality" of the GOP Senate contenders, while hinting that Republicans could fall short of taking back the Senate in the midterms.
"I think there's probably a greater likelihood the House flips [to Republicans] than the Senate," McConnell said then. "Senate races are just different. They're statewide. Candidate quality has a lot to do with the outcome."
That comment sparked outrage from Republican voters and leaders, including Trump, who called for McConnell to be replaced in the Senate leadership, in favor of someone who would project confidence for the upcoming election cycles.
A week later, though, tensions have seemingly simmered among the GOP leaders.
"I don't think I would have had [Oz] here if I didn't think" he could win, McConnell said about the GOP fundraiser.
The Oz-Fetterman back and forth has made for juicy headlines.
Earlier this month, Fetterman's campaign mocked a video of Oz apparently shopping for "crudité" in a local grocery store.
And Oz countered with a statement, belittling Fetterman's life choices, prior to his stroke.
"If John Fetterman had ever eaten a vegetable in his life, then maybe he wouldn't have had a major stroke and wouldn't be in the position of having to lie about it constantly," said Oz.
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