Mitch McConnell says he has ‘great confidence’ in Dr. Mehmet Oz in Pennsylvania's hotly contested Senate race

close

Video

Dr. Oz: My Senate opponent wants to cancel all private health care

Pennsylvania Republican Senate candidate Dr. Mehmet Oz discusses the race against Democrat John Fetterman.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R- Ky., reversed his stance on Trump-back Senate candidate Dr. Mehmet Oz, who is trailing Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman.

McConnell was in Kentucky when he was asked Monday if Oz, the Republican nominee, has a chance at beating Fetterman in the upcoming midterm elections. 

"I have great confidence. I think Oz has a great shot at winning," he told reporters.

The remark came despite Oz trailing Fetterman in the polls. On Friday, McConnell hosted a fundraiser for Georgia Senate candidate Herschel Walker and Rep. Ted Budd, R-N.C., who is running for the state Upper Chamber. Trump has endorsed all three. 

OZ CHALLENGES FETTERMAN TO ACCEPT DEBATES

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., speaks with reporters following a closed-door policy lunch, at the Capitol in Washington. On Monday, he said he has "great confidence" in Senate candidate Mehmet Oz. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

McConnell noted that he hosts the event every August and that the gathering was scheduled six weeks ago. 

"I pick out three of our candidates every summer that I think have the best shot at winning and invite them," he said. "And I picked these three because I thought they were in critical states and had a good chance of winning."

Oz, a television doctor-turned-Republican political candidate, has been trailing Fetterman and painted by opponents as being an out-of-touch elite from neighboring New Jersey. 

On Monday, Oz's campaign targeted Fetterman for not joining President Joe Biden during the president’s stop on Tuesday in the crucial general election battleground state.

But Fetterman’s campaign points out that the lieutenant governor will meet with the president in one week – when both are in Pittsburgh to mark Labor Day.

Pennsylvania U.S. Senate candidate Dr. Mehmet Oz speaks during a Republican leadership forum at Newtown Athletic Club on May 11. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

The Oz campaign on Monday charged in a release that "No-Show John Fetterman strikes again" as it once again criticized the Democratic Senate nominee as he slowly increases his public appearances. Fetterman returned to the campaign trail two and a half weeks ago — at rally in Erie, Pennsylvania — for the first time since suffering a stroke in mid-May.