After a painful debate, even more mainstream news outlets are starting to discuss concerns about Democratic Pennsylvania Senate candidate John Fetterman’s health.
CNN’s Wolf Blitzer asked White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Wednesday, “After last night’s debate, does [President Joe Biden] have any concerns about Fetterman?”
“Not at all,” she responded. “Look, Fetterman, as we know, he’s also lieutenant governor. He’s been able to serve in that role.”
She went on, “The president sees him as an authentic advocate of the middle class. And that matters. And so the president has been with the lieutenant governor for quite some time over the past several months.”
Watch the video below:
WATCH: Wolf Blitzer Flat-Out Asks WH Spox Jean-Pierre Does Biden 'Have Any Concerns About Fetterman' After Debate? https://t.co/RG6LKrQwvr via @mediaite pic.twitter.com/TWp5fFVwzL
— Tommy moderna-vaX-Topher (@tommyxtopher) October 27, 2022
Perhaps it should not be too surprising CNN is asking questions about Fetterman’s health. After all, they spent years analyzing every aspect of then-President Donald Trump to determine whether he was about to die or had developed some horrible illness.
But after Tuesday night, you can definitely sense Democrats are very nervous about Fetterman.
If you watched any moment of the debate between the two candidates, you probably couldn’t help but think it was painful. No one should want to see another person struggle so publicly.
There was a chance the face-off could have yielded a great reward. And that was if Fetterman seemed to exceed expectations. His supporters could have touted his progress and had firmer ground to argue that doubts about his health were vastly overblown.
But unfortunately, he did not beat expectations. It is clear Fetterman was not ready to spar in a debate format which can be fast-paced and made more challenging if you are relying on closed captions to help.
In debates, it is not just the answers that matter. If someone comes off as too aggressive or too nervous or not healthy, it can hurt a candidate.
Some have argued it was impressive and bold for Fetterman to decide to debate despite his challenges. However, you can’t help but wonder if, in days, or months, or years he will look back with regret at his decision to get on that stage.
Of course, the president and his staff are not going to throw the Democratic nominee under the bus with less than two weeks to go before the election.
But they cannot be without any doubts about Fetterman, especially as FiveThirtyEight’s tracker shows his double-digit lead has been slimmed down to two points — and that was before the debate.
Pennsylvania is a key state for Republicans. If they can hold onto it in November, their chances of winning the Senate or at least keeping the status quo would increase significantly.
And this debate may have provided just enough doubts or concerns about Fetterman that voters who had not made up their minds might vote for the Republican in the race.
