Donald Trump Jr. mocked Pennsylvania Democratic Senate nominee John Fetterman as “brain dead” Sunday as he took the stage at his father’s Make America Great Again rally in Miami.
It is the third rally the former president has hosted in three days and his penultimate before the contentious midterm elections on Tuesday November 8th.
During his warm-up speech, Donald Jr. attacked Democrats over rising crime rates across the country, including Fetterman for his tenure as mayor of Braddock, Pennsylvania.
Like many Republicans, he also suggested Fetterman was not up to the senator’s job because of the auditory processing and speech problems he experienced after suffering a stroke in May.
“Democrats want to release violent criminals,” Donald Jr. said, including “John Fetterman, the potential brain-dead Senator from Pennsylvania.”
The crowd outside the Miami-Dade County Fair & Exposition Center booed the populist progressive’s name.
Junior later returned to his comments about Fetterman: “We have to get over the nonsense to talk about what we’re dealing with. I mean, I used the Fetterman example earlier.’
He referenced similar comments he made in late October.
“I think if you want to be a United States Senator, you should have basic cognitive function,” said Donald Jr.
Donald Trump Jr. took the stage at the Miami-Dade County Fair & Exposition Center before his father’s headlining speech
He said the media called him a “performer” for making fun of Fetterman, whom he defined as “racist toward people with disabilities.”
“The media haunts me, they say he’s an Ableist, which means he’s racist towards people with disabilities.”
He continued, “It’s not like he’s in a wheelchair and can think but not be able to form a sentence.”
It comes after Fetterman accidentally said he was anti-abortion at a rally in Philadelphia on Saturday.
“I run on Roe v. Calf. I celebrate the death of Roe v. Wade,” said the Pennsylvania lieutenant governor.
Referencing the incident at his rally, Donald Jr. said, “They’re going to put him in there to vote whatever Chuck Schumer tells him to do. You don’t have to think, you just have to be able to show up and put your hand up.
“And his comments on Roe v Wade yesterday don’t even seem right,” he said.
“Today we are dealing with a Democratic Party that does not believe that a US senator should not be sane.”
Fetterman, who fought against the famous doctor Dr. Mehmet Oz may have been trying to say that his opponent “requested the death of Roe v. Wade celebrates”.
Fetterman and his Republican rival were neck and neck in the hard-fought race, but his public speaking performance has raised concerns after a series of garbled responses, many of which have been attributed to his recovery from his stroke.
John Fetterman appeared to have misspoke, saying he “celebrated the demise of Roe V Wade” during a speech to voters on Saturday night.
Fetterman appeared alongside Barack Obama, Pennsylvania governor nominee Josh Shapiro, and President Biden
“I run on Roe v. Calf. I celebrate the death of Roe v. Wade.” He could be heard saying on camera while holding a microphone
Fetterman at the campaign rally at Temple University’s Liacouras Center in Philadelphia
Last week, Oz surpassed John Fetterman in polls for the first time, just days before the midterms and a week after their debate, which fully highlighted the lingering effects of his Democratic rival’s stroke.
The two-point gap — 48 percent to 46 percent — continues a steady improvement for Oz, whose support from likely Pennsylvania voters has risen 5 percentage points since September, according to a poll by The Hill/Emerson College.
Real Clear Politics poll average has Oz by just 0.1 percent and is expected to win — even if it has the smallest lead by then.
It also reflects a national trend as Republicans are rising sharply in polls, with some matching or overtaking their Democratic challengers in the days leading up to the election after months behind.
Meanwhile, Fetterman’s support is up just 1 percent from the Oct. 28-31 poll. The split between the two candidates is within the margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points of the poll.
Consequently, this particular poll has shown that Fetterman, 53, is ahead of Oz, 62.
A televised debate performance last month shocked some viewers and only fueled further concerns about his ability to hold political office.
“Hello, good night everyone,” Fetterman said before discussing his health. “Let’s also talk about the elephant in the room: I had a stroke. [Oz] let me never forget that.’
At one point, Fetterman was asked to clarify his position on fracking, as moderators referred to a 2018 interview in which the lieutenant governor expressed broad opposition to the practice, but no ban.
“I support fracking — I don’t support, I don’t support — I support fracking, and I support fracking,” he responded to voter confusion.
During the course of the debate, Fetterman twice hesitated to release his full medical record to the public.
“My doctor ultimately believes I’m fit for the ministry, and so do I,” Fetterman said.
A new survey from The Hill/Emerson College shows that Dr. Mehmet Oz has overtaken Democratic rival John Fetterman for the first time – with just five days until the 2022 midterms
Republican hopeful Dr. Mehmet Oz participated in the Pennsylvania Senate debate last month
The Democratic Lt. gov. John Fetterman (left) debated with Republican Dr. Mehmet Oz (right).
It was previously revealed how Fetterman used giant screens on the ground to help him get his message across
Former President Barack Obama (left) and President Joe Biden (right) strolled onto the stage together at a rally for Democrats John Fetterman and Josh Shapiro in Philadelphia.
At Saturday’s rally in Philadelphia (from left): gubernatorial candidate Josh Shapiro, former President Barack Obama, President Joe Biden and Senate President hopeful Lt. gov. John Fetterman
Ahead of the debate, Fetterman’s campaign had softened expectations, saying there would be “awkward pauses” and “delays and errors” because the Democrat would read closed captions due to his auditory processing issue.
When asked about small business owners worried about the minimum wage hike, he said: “We all need to make sure everyone who works is able to do it – that’s the most American bargain, if you’re working full-time you should.” being able to live with dignity is true.
“We cannot allow companies to be subsidized by not paying individuals who simply cannot escape to pay in their own way,” he said.
A day later, Fetterman gave a smooth 13-minute stump speech in Pittsburgh as his campaign tried to downplay Tuesday’s performance, saying Fetterman had always been bad at debates and that the closed captioning system he used as a tool was flawed.