Fetterman campaign says stroke recovery factors into fall debate plans
Fetterman campaign says stroke recovery factors into fall debate plans
Advisers say Fetterman can engage in one-on-one conversations but struggles with more chaotic auditory environments
By Michael Scherer, Colby Itkowitz and Lenny Bernstein
August 31, 2022 at 7:46 p.m. EDT
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/08/31/fetterman-oz-debates-pennsylvania/
"SNIP......
Pennsylvania Democrat John Fetterman’s Senate campaign said Wednesday that his stroke recovery, which has complicated his ability to engage in verbal conversations, could influence his plans for debates with Republican nominee Mehmet Oz in one of this fall’s highest-stakes races.
“We are working to figure out what a fair debate would look like with the lingering impacts of the auditory processing in mind,” Fetterman campaign strategist Rebecca Katz said. “To be absolutely clear, the occasional issues he is having with auditory processing have no bearing on his ability to do the job as senator. John is healthy and fully capable of showing up and doing the work."
Advisers say Fetterman can engage in one-on-one conversations but struggles with more chaotic auditory environments, a condition that is common for stroke survivors and which doctors say can improve over time.
Fetterman, who returned to the campaign trail on Aug. 12, has yet to agree to any debates despite assurances from his advisers that he does plan to meet Oz, a celebrity cardiologist, onstage. He announced Tuesday that he would not attend a proposed debate Sept. 6, after the Oz campaign released a statement that, Fetterman said, showed “they think it is funny to mock a stroke survivor.”
......SNIP"
= new reply since forum marked as read
