Curt Flewelling, FISM News

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Five months after Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman suffered a stroke, lingering questions continue to dog the senate hopeful. His first in-person interview since the setback did little to answer those questions.

NBC permitted Mr. Fetterman to utilize a transcription device during his interview with reporter Dasha Burns. The accommodation was made to assist the Democrat with tracking questions. According to Burns, “He has trouble following a conversation unless he can read the words being said.”

Burns went on to say, “When the captioning device was off, it wasn’t clear he was understanding our conversation.” As Burn’s comments went viral, the backlash against her was swift, with reporter Kara Swisher, who had recovered from a stroke herself, calling the attack on Fetterman’s health “appalling.”

The embattled reporter was quick to defend herself. Burns tweeted, “Our reporting did not and should not comment on fitness for office. This is for voters to decide. What we push for as reporters is transparency. It’s our job.”

This odd shift of focus from Fetterman’s health to an insensitive reporter seems to be precisely what is frustrating many Pennsylvanians. Every time voters want to see medical records or simply hear substantive reports from Fetterman’s medical team, they are stonewalled and then quickly maligned.

The last hint of anything remotely pertaining to the candidate’s health was a generic statement by his cardiologist, Ramesh Chandra, just weeks after his stroke. The doctor said, “If he takes his medications, eats healthy, and exercises, he’ll be fine…He should be able to campaign and serve in the U.S. Senate without a problem.” 

Fluffy, platitudinous assurances by his doctor over four months ago are doing little to allay voters’ concerns that something might be amiss. Fetterman’s refusal to agree to multiple debates and only reluctantly conceding to just one, days before election day, have done little to reassure voters.

With no new clinical information on Fetterman’s health and scarce evidence from the politician himself that he can even hold a conversation without the aid of a captioning device, constituents are left to wonder. 

Media attacks on journalists for simply trying to clear this cloud of secrecy concerning his condition are wildly inappropriate, particularly since this same media referred to Fetterman’s life-threatening stroke as “minor” well into the summer.

His opponent, Dr. Mehmet Oz, has chosen to focus on the lack of transparency surrounding his opponent’s health rather than his fitness for office. In an interview with Dasha Burns he said, “When people ask me questions, and they often do, about his health condition, you know what I say, Dasha? ‘I have no idea.'”

Dr. Oz was down by ten points in the polls just a few weeks ago. According to the latest Trafalgar Group poll, he is now down by just two, 47% to 45%.

The questions swirling around the health of this beleaguered candidate are no doubt contributing to this narrowing lead.