Fox News host Will Cain clashed with television’s Dr. Oz on Wednesday, challenging his conservative credentials — and the video quickly went viral.
Oz is running for the Republican Senate nomination in Pennsylvania, and has announced his retirement from his popular daytime television show to pursue the public office.
Fans of television’s Dr. Oz may not want to watch this.
Cain started the segment expressing doubts about Oz’s conservativism — and got the would-be Republican senator stuck when asking about pro-life issues.
“I watched you last night. I’ll be honest, I didn’t know that you held conservative beliefs. I didn’t know that, should you run for office, you would run as a Republican,” Cain said to start the interview. “And to be quite honest, I don’t know if many people knew what your political core was or what your principles might be.”
“There are some out there that are concerned,” Cain said. “Are you truly a principled conservative?”
Cain pointed out that previous statements by Oz regarding the Second Amendment and other political issues aren’t consistent with the values of many Republican voters.
“What are your principles?”
Oz replied that controversial guests that were repeatedly given a platform on his show didn’t make him non-conservative
“I’m pro-life. I’m pro-Second Amendment,” Oz claimed. “There are many other examples where I am conservative. These are the values I was raised with, and when I came home to Pennsylvania last year I knew darn well exactly how I would campaign. Because I align very closely with Republican primary voters in this state.”
But Cain trapped Oz in his stance on abortion and when life begins.
“As a senator, how would you vote?” Cain asked. “What do you think the laws should be on abortion?”
Dr. Oz said he was pro-life but supported abortion in certain circumstances: “The health for the mother being the primary one, but rape and incest as well.”
“And I would vote to ensure that if the judiciary is reviewing an abortion law that they follow the Constitution, it’s quite clear,” Oz said. “That Alabama case is in point did not include those exceptions.”
“Dr. Oz, that’s currently being debated at the Supreme Court,” Cain replied. “So, setting aside the exceptions … what is your position as both a doctor and a senatorial candidate on when life begins? When should we draw the line when abortion is legal?”
“As a doctor, I appreciate the sanctity of life. For that reason, I’m strongly pro-life with the three exceptions I’ve mentioned,” Oz said. “That’s how I would vote.”
“When does that life begin?” Cain asked bluntly.
“If I’m pro-life, then that’s a decision that comes back to the sanctity of when you think life does begin, and I believe it begins when you’re in the mother’s womb,” Oz responded.
“When you’re in the mother’s womb?” Cain shot back. “But that that carries you all the way up to nine months of pregnancy!”
“No, of course not. Life’s already started when you’re in your mother’s womb,” Oz responded before deflecting.
“It’s a rathole to get trapped into different ways of talking about it. We need as a nation to make sure the Constitution is appropriately followed,” he said. “People like me and you may be in the same camp, who are pro-life, have our feelings respected. This is something that should not be taken away from us by judiciary legislating from the bench.”
“But that’s also something that’s going to have to be legislated and that answer is going to have to be given specifically,” Cain replied. “Listen, I appreciate the opportunity to talk to you tonight to get to know you.”
“As I said, I didn’t know that you were conservative, that you’re a Republican, and I want to learn more about what your positions might be.”
You can watch the exchange below —
Fox News host Will Cain grills U.S. Senate candidate Dr. Oz (R-PA) on what his political beliefs are on key conservative issues. pic.twitter.com/g8FU1NtGQC
— Jason Rantz on KTTH Radio (@jasonrantz) December 16, 2021
The Horn editorial team