Oz: ‘The only thing Joe Biden has built back better is the Republican Party’

Pennsylvania Senate candidate Mehmet Oz (R) campaigned with former President Trump ahead of the May 17 Republican Senate primary, saying to a crowd on Friday that “the only thing Joe Biden has built back better is the Republican Party.”

More than a minute into his speech, which lasted less than 10 minutes in total, the celebrity doctor affirmed that “life starts at conception” after he was hammered earlier this week for previous comments he made in a 2019 interview on the matter.

“I’m a heart surgeon, I value it,” he added.

He also covered a few issues widely seen as hot-button topics within the Republican Party, including whether to allow transgender women athletes to play with sports teams that align with their gender identity, inflation and a nod to some Republicans’ calls to fire top infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci.

“The simple thing is we should be able to say that we see, like, biologic men should not play women’s sports. You all agree with that?” Oz said, referring to transgender women.

“Well, why isn’t anyone saying that? Why didn’t the [National Collegiate Athletic Association] say it? Why didn’t my alma mater, the University of Pennsylvania, say it? Because they’re cowards. They’re not willing to do what you’re willing to do to, bravely say what needs to be said,” he continued.

In light of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’s (R) legislation that curbs instruction regarding gender and sexual orientation by primary school teachers, Oz said, “They want to come in the far left liberal woke ideology and teach our children about gender in the first grade.”

“Do you teach calculus to first graders? No, because they can’t understand it. You don’t want to turn kids over to these ideas that we know scientifically do not benefit them,” he added.

The rally comes less than two weeks before the May 17 primary. The Cook Political Report has rated the Senate seat as a “toss-up” for Republican-held seats.

Oz this week came under fire by several candidates over previous remarks he made during a 2019 interview with “The Breakfast Club” in which he expressed concern over anti-abortion legislation being passed in Alabama.

“I’m really worried about it,” he responded at the time. “I tell ya, I’ve taken care of a lot of women who’ve had issues around childbirth. The problem with the law as it stands now — I think they’ll really only pass to generate a Supreme Court challenge, but most women don’t know they’re pregnant.” 

Oz’s since-changed stance was cited by several Republican challengers during a Pennsylvania Senate Republican primary debate earlier this week, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.