Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo held an alarming press conference in the state of Pennsylvania.
During the Press Conference, the former CIA director and former Secretary of State warned Pennsylvania voters that Dr. Oz voted in Turkey’s elections, and works for state entities in the country.
Dr. Oz currently holds dual citizenship in the United States and Turkey.
Pompeo’s comments come on the same day Trump is set to endorse Oz for the U.S. Senate.
BREAKING: Fmr Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is holding a press conference this morning outlining national security concerns of @DrOz's relations to the government of Turkey, including security clearance, working for state entities, and voting in Turkish elections
— Jack Poso 🇺🇸 (@JackPosobiec) May 6, 2022
The New York Post had these details to report:
Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday alleged that Republican US Senate candidate Dr. Mehmet Oz may be a security threat if he is elected to office.
Oz received the endorsement of former President Donald Trump ahead of the May 17 Republican primary in Pennsylvania, but many Trump administration veterans, including Pompeo, back businessman David McCormick.
Pompeo, a former CIA director and ex-Kansas congressman, said that Oz, who holds dual citizenship, must explain his relationship with Turkey’s government, citing Oz’s decision to vote in Turkish elections as recently as 2018 and his work with Turkish Airlines.
“Maybe it’s all innocent, maybe it’s all straight up, but we and the people of Pennsylvania and the Americans who he will be representing as one of 100 members of the US Senate voting on important national security matters need to understand the scope and depth of his relationship with the Turkish government,” Pompeo said.
Besides his questionable ties to Turkey, Dr. Oz has liberal views on abortion.
Take a listen:
Please DO NOT RT this video of @DrOz supporting Roe v Wade ahead of his appearance tomorrow in conservative Western PA pic.twitter.com/G4xwg0tjRf
— Jack Poso 🇺🇸 (@JackPosobiec) May 6, 2022
The Hill didn’t stay silent on Pompeo’s comments either:
Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo raised concerns about the ties Mehmet Oz, former President Trump’s endorsed candidate in the Pennsylvania Senate race, has to Turkey in a press briefing arranged by Oz’s chief opponent in the race.
Pompeo, who’s supporting Oz’s rival, Dave McCormick, in the Keystone State, held the briefing the same day Trump is expected to stump in Pennsylvania for Oz. The briefing was first advertised by the McCormick campaign.
The former secretary of State, who served under Trump, said McCormick is a “patriot,” unlike Oz, whom Pompeo accused of having ties to the Turkish government.
The briefing marks a notable escalation by Pompeo, who has fueled speculation in recent months that he’s mulling a presidential run in 2024. Trump is also widely expected to mount another White House bid.
“Dave would make an extraordinary United States senator,” Pompeo said during the briefing.
“We criticize American candidates all the time because they didn’t vote,” Pompeo said. “This is different from that. Not only did he not engage in the American [process] but he engaged in the Turkish political process. That raises in my mind a lot of judgments about his priority.”
ABC News first reported Wednesday that Oz, who holds Turkish citizenship, voted in Turkey’s 2018 election despite previously saying he was never politically involved in the country “in any capacity.” His campaign spokesperson Brittany Yanick confirmed to ABC that Oz had voted in the election but denied that the vote amounted to “political involvement.”
Dr. Oz fundraising text today off of the abortion decision: “I’m not afraid to say it. The Court is right. Chip in NOW to support Life!”
Dr. Oz in 2019: I’m “really worried” that overturning Roe would harm women’s health. A “big-time concern.”https://t.co/PywuGGnXHO
— Roger Sollenberger (@SollenbergerRC) May 3, 2022
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