Shocking video clips from an interview between NBC News’ Dasha Burns and John Fetterman show the Pennsylvania Democratic Senate candidate needing assistance from a transcription program to understand the questions being asked of him face-to-face by the reporter.
The videos call into question Fetterman’s mental capabilities following a stroke he suffered back in May.
NBC anchor Lester Holt introduced the segment in which he points out that Burns’ interview with Fetterman “was not a typical candidate interview.”
“No Lester, because of his stroke Fetterman’s campaign required closed captioning technology for this interview to essentially read our questions as we asked them,” she responded.
“And Lester, in small talk before the interview without captioning, it wasn’t clear he was understanding our conversation.”
And yet, somehow this Senate race is close.
Pennsylvania Lt. Governor and Democratic Senate candidate John Fetterman sat down with @DashaBurns in an exclusive interview using closed captioning.
Fetterman discussed his recovery after suffering a stroke in the primaries and his race against Republican Dr. Mehmet Oz. pic.twitter.com/0fee1cKXgY
— NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt (@NBCNightlyNews) October 11, 2022
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RELATED: WaPo Op-ed Says Fetterman Has ‘Obligation’ To Release Medical Records, Debate Oz
John Fetterman’s NBC Interview Raises Questions About His Mental Fitness
NBC News reporter Dasha Burns hit Democrat John Fetterman with a question about his mental stamina right out of the gate, asking whether voters can “trust that you will be able to do this job on day one.”
Fetterman pauses to read the question off of the computer screen before responding, “Yeah, of course.”
The candidate for Senate explained why the transcription program is a necessity.
“That auditory processing where I’ll hear someone speaking but sometimes it’ll be precise on what exactly that they’re saying. I use captioning,” he said.
Yea, and President Biden’s inability to understand what day of the week it is is due to a stutter.
Another clip from the interview shows it isn’t exclusively ‘auditory processing’ that is the problem, as Fetterman stumbles over the pronunciation of the word ’empathetic.’
LMFAO are you f*cking kidding me? pic.twitter.com/SPb5uAfWKL
— The Columbia Bugle 🇺🇸 (@ColumbiaBugle) October 11, 2022
Burns pointed out that Fetterman has “declined” requests to see his medical records.
Fetterman pointed to a letter from his physician “saying that I’m able to serve and to be running,” but Burns countered that the public deserves a more recent assessment.
“I mean, respectfully that letter from your physician, that was six months ago. Don’t voters deserve to know your status now?” she replied.
NBC: “We’ve asked for your medical records… you’ve declined. Why?”
Fetterman: “Our doctor has already given a record saying I’m ready to serve.”
NBC: “That letter was six months ago. Don’t voters deserve to know your status now?”
Fetterman: I do speeches and give interviews pic.twitter.com/5yDNvaeYdN
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) October 11, 2022
Will Need Assistance During the Debate
NBC’s Dasha Burns also revealed that John Fetterman will be using the closed captioning computer program to assist him during a debate with his opponent, Republican candidate Mehmet Oz, scheduled for later this month.
“Fetterman told us he’s committed to debating Dr. Oz on October 25th, where he will also be using closed captioning,” she reported.
Fetterman couldn’t even make it through a basic, friendly interview with MSNBC: couldn’t hear, couldn’t understand.
He’s unfit to serve in the Senate. pic.twitter.com/GIApHtd2AS
— Monica Crowley (@MonicaCrowley) October 11, 2022
A Washington Post editorial last month voiced concerns over Fetterman’s health and said the Pennsylvania Democrat candidate has an obligation to be transparent with his current medical condition.
“Mr. Fetterman acknowledges his difficulties with auditory processing, which make it hard for him to respond quickly to what he’s hearing,” the Post wrote.
“He receives speech therapy — and we wish him a speedy, full recovery — but the lingering, unanswered questions about his health, underscored by his hesitation to debate, are unsettling.”
NEW: John Fetterman’s latest rally occurred in Scranton last Saturday.
Here are the highlights. pic.twitter.com/3O2ElJeKdi
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) September 19, 2022
Oz had initially challenged Fetterman to a series of five debates before the Democrat finally agreed to the late October one-off, a debate which will be held well after early voting is already underway in Pennsylvania.
Polls have shown the race between Oz and Fetterman getting tighter in recent weeks. While still trailing, some outfits have Oz creeping closer to the margin of error just a month out from the midterm election.
If Fetterman wins, it’d be difficult to view Pennsylvania as a swing state going forward. If voters are willing to put this unwell man in the Senate, they’ll put any Democrat in office no matter the circumstances.
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