Pennsylvania Democratic Senate nominee John Fetterman stepped up his social media game once again, this time enlisting New Jersey musician Steven Van Zandt—best known as a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band—to troll his Republican rival Mehmet Oz for running in Pennsylvania's Senate race despite living in New Jersey.
Van Zandt can be seen in a video Fetterman posted to his official Twitter account. It has received nearly 2 million views as of this writing.
In it, he encourages Oz—a millionaire best known for pushing conspiracy theories and endorsing unproven products and non-scientific advice—to "come on back to Jersey where you belong." Oz listed his in-laws home in Pennsylvania as his residence despite social media posts and campaign ads showing him at his New Jersey mansion.
You can view the campaign spot and hear what Van Zandt said in the video below.
\u201cNJ's own @StevieVanZandt \ud83c\udfb8 has a VERY special message for Dr. Oz!! \n\nSo Dr. Oz just fuhgeddaboudit!\u201d— John Fetterman (@John Fetterman) 1658938083
Van Zandt said:
"Yo, Dr. Oz! Stevie VZ here! What are you doing in Pennsylvania? Everybody knows you live in New Jersey and you’re just using your in-laws’ address over there."
"And you do not want to mess around with John Fetterman ― trust me. You’re a little out of your league. Nobody wants to see you get embarrassed."
"So come on back to Jersey where you belong and we’ll have some fun, eh? We’ll go to the beach. We’ll go surfing."
"You know? C’mon."
The video was well received on Twitter, where many proceeded to troll Oz themselves.
\u201cHowling. \nVote \ud83d\udd35 in Pennsylvania. \nWith any luck, Dr. Oz will forget where he is and be voting in Turkey or New Jersey that day.\u201d— Victoria Brownworth (@Victoria Brownworth) 1659012951
\u201cI \u2764\ufe0f the NJ trolling!! Makes me proud to call this home! \ud83d\ude02\u201d— Cyndi LouWho (@Cyndi LouWho) 1658958654
\u201cEveryone knows @DrOz represents New Jersey, not Pennsylvania.\u201d— Messaging Matters (@Messaging Matters) 1658962126
\u201cPaging Dr Oz.\u201d— Artie Artie (@Artie Artie) 1658965015
\u201cAs a Pennsylvanian I know this resonates.\n@JohnFetterman got game.\u201d— Jay Ruby (@Jay Ruby) 1658969414
\u201cBest ad campaign ever.\u201d— The True American (@The True American) 1658972356
\u201cI love this from @StevieVanZandt! Ridicule and humor are the most powerful weapons in politics. More of this, please.\u201d— Paul Begala (@Paul Begala) 1658948008
\u201cTake Oz to da Bada Bing!!!!\u201d— Jack Denali (@Jack Denali) 1658961971
\u201cThe trolling is next-level. Brilliant.\u201d— George Hahn (@George Hahn) 1658953772
The race between Oz and Fetterman has grown heated in recent days and Oz hit back at Fetterman and the Democratic Party at large during an appearance on Fox News in which he said that Democrats have "cleverly" roused support over issues related to reproductive rights and gun control.
Oz's remarks came not long after The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported Fetterman has raised $9.9 million to Oz’s $1.1 million and has five times more cash on hand.
Fetterman, who suffered a near-fatal stroke in May, has generated support in his time off the campaign trail by launching social media campaigns that have emphasized Oz's ties to New Jersey and minimal ties to Pennsylvania.
Earlier, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported Oz lived in North Jersey for more than three decades. And while Oz has said he moved to Pennsylvania in 2020 to live with his in-laws, his social media posts and campaign ads have showed him still in New Jersey.
These facts prompted Fetterman to enlist none other than Nicole "Snooki" LaValle—best known for starring on the reality series Jersey Shore—to troll him for living in the state.
The video received millions of views after Fetterman uploaded it to Twitter and has been generally lauded as an example of creative and effective social media outreach.
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