Former CIA director and secretary of state Mike Pompeo wants celeb physician, Dr. Mehmet Oz, to talk about Turkey. Speaking at an interview on May 6th, the former CIA chief stated the Pennsylvania Senate candidate owes citizens an explanation of his choice to vote in the 2018 Turkish presidential election while avoiding New Jersey’s Senate primary the exact same month.
Pompeo argued that Oz’s ties to the Turkish federal government raise severe nationwide security issues. “There are still things we don’t know about his connections to the Turkish government,” Pompeo informed press reporters at the occasion, organized by GOP prospect Dave McCormick’s project. Some nationwide security specialists state Oz’s monetary and political ties to Turkey might provide Ankara hold sway over him if chosen.
Pompeo’s remarks were available in a call with press reporters on Friday arranged by Oz’s challenger in the Pennsylvania Senate main, David McCormick.
Oz, who is running neck and neck with McCormick, has actually come under fire for serving in the Turkish military and over his interactions with Turkish strongman Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The Trump-endorsed prospect unwillingly agreed to surrender his dual Turkish citizenship, stating he would do so if elected in November.
Pompeo focused greatly on Oz’s June 2018 vote in the Turkish Presidential race, stating it raises questions about Oz’s “priorities.” Oz’s vote, which he cast at the Turkish consulate in New York City, relatively opposed his claim to have actually “never ever been politically associated with Turkey in any capability.” Pompeo likewise asserted Oz avoided a vote in a Republican primary just days prior to voting in the Turkish presidential election.
“The campaign owes the people of Pennsylvania an explanation for this,” Pompeo said.
Oz’s ballot records from New Jersey, where he lived prior to going into the Pennsylvania race, show he did not cast a vote in a primary election held on June 5, 2018. Oz voted in the Turkish election on June 13, 2018, according to a picture published on the Turkish consulate’s Facebook account.
While Pompeo concentrated on Oz’s ties to Turkey, his business activities in China have actually likewise raised warnings. Oz generated countless dollars offering rights to his tv show in China. He co-wrote a book in 2015 with the president of a Chinese university managed by the Chinese Communist Party. The job was connected to Oz’s financial investment in a Chinese health and health business. He likewise appeared on Chinese state-run tv to slam Trump-era trade policies versus China.
Oz’s campaign did not react to an ask for remark.
H/T The Washington Free Beacon
