Members of the MAGA-verse are fuming over Donald Trump's endorsement of Mehmet Oz, the celebrity doctor running for U.S. Senate, claiming that Oz is a closet liberal who does not fundamentally gel with the "America First" agenda.
The cascade of outrage came last Saturday, after Trump released an official statement backing Oz as a Senate candidate to represent the state of Pennsylvania, whose Republican senator, Pat Toomey, is resigning.
"I have known Dr. Oz for many years, as have many others, even if only through his very successful television show," Trump said. "He has lived with us through the screen and has always been popular, respected and smart."
"Dr. Oz is smart, tough, and will never let you down, therefore he has my Complete and Total Endorsement," the former president added.
Trump's endorsement drew an immediate wave of fury from his loyal fanbase.
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"I have enormous respect for President Trump," tweeted Sean Parnell, who dropped out of the Pennsylvania Senate race in November over abuse allegations from his estranged wife. "But I'm disappointed by this. Oz is the antithesis of everything that made Trump the best president of my lifetime – he's the farthest thing from America First & he'd be very bad for PA."
Rep. Mo Brooks, R-Ala., claimed that Trump had endorsed Oz because the former president is "surrounded himself by staff who are on [Senate Minority Leader Mitch] McConnell's payroll & hostile to the MAGA agenda. Everybody telling Trump who to endorse in primaries works for The Swamp."
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Right-wing commentator John Cardillo also joined the chorus, calling Trump's latest imprimatur a "horrible call."
"Trump's endorsement of Dr. Oz is inexcusable," Cardillo tweeted. He just put his political capital behind an anti-gun pro-abortion open borders Hollywood liberal. Oz will be another Mitt Romney in the Senate."
Meanwhile, Breitbart News' Joel Pollak wrote went a step further, claiming that Trump "could lose America First conservatives" over the endorsement.
RELATED: Dr. Oz is officially running for U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania
The Pennsylvania Senate race is set to be officially held on May 17. Oz faces a crowded field of primary opponents, including Dave McCormick, a Republican former hedge fund executive and Republican businessman Jeff Bartos. Among those running in the Democratic primary are Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman; and U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb, D-Penn.
According to a recent poll by The Hill Pennsylvania, McCormick is currently leading Oz by a slim margin in the Republican primary.
After Oz's campaign announcement, there was a significant GOP consternation over just how aligned Oz really is with the Republican agenda. In the past, the TV personality, who hails from the liberal elite of Hollywood, has supported abortion rights as well as the Affordable Care Act
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