When it comes to who should be a voice for Pennsylvania in the U.S. Senate for the next six years, the world’s largest business organization has chosen Republican candidate Mehmet Oz.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday announced it was endorsing Oz in the hotly contested race against Democrat John Fetterman for the open Senate seat being vacated by Republican Pat Toomey.

Gathered inside a building at the Harrisburg area headquarters of Stephenson Equipment, a heavy equipment dealer, Ashlee Rich Stephenson said Oz’s “unwavering leadership and pro-growth, pro-business” positions are what the state needs in their next senator. Stephenson is the senior political adviser for the right-leaning U.S. Chamber.

“Dr. Oz is committed to free enterprise solutions that will help the commonwealth and nation recover from the pandemic,” Stephenson said.

Oz, in accepting the endorsement, pledged to fight “hard for the innovation that I know will allow this country to prosper.”

Gene Barr, former CEO of the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business & Industry and now an adviser, also was in attendance but was not there to announce an endorsement. He said the state chamber doesn’t endorse in federal races but for its members “there are a lot of issues that matter in this race here and they want us to inform them of these issues, which is why we’re here happy to stand with us chambers in support of Dr. Oz.”

During the 22-minute event, Oz contrasted his views from those of his opponent on a variety of issues, criticizing Fetterman for promoting big government, high taxes and being out of touch with Pennsylvanians’ values.

He also touted how having a senator with a background in medicine and science could “affect innovation and ensure that we’re making the right decisions at the right time to protect as many Americans as possible.”

Oz threw on his doctor’s “hat” mid-speech to speak of the effects that the high inflation rate and higher household bills are having on people’s health and worsening community ills.

“There’s a lot to get your blood pressure up and economic woes are number one that leads to heart disease and a whole slew of other chronic illnesses that we begin to create,” he said. “But it doesn’t just stop with the economy.”

He said it leads to young people turning to drugs and high homicide rates because of a lack of confidence the nation is heading in the right direction.

Oz said he believes the nation can turn this around by budgeting in a way that distributes money to people in need “and allows innovativeness and creativity to drive the future growth of our nation, things that the Chamber of Commerce is advocating for and allow businesses like this to continue to prosper.”

The endorsement of the U.S. Chamber is the second one Oz received Wednesday. He, along with Democratic gubernatorial candidate Josh Shapiro, also were given the endorsement of the Pennsylvania State Troopers Association.

The National Federation of Independent Businesses over the summer endorsed Oz in the Senate race. The NFIB’s Pennsylvania director Greg Moreland said its support grows out of Oz’s own experience in starting several businesses and having a deep understanding of the issues confronting small businesses including worker shortages, excessive taxes and regulations, and inflation.

While Oz can claim endorsements from the business owners and others represented by NFIB and chamber, Fetterman last week won the backing from the building trades for his stated belief that “the union way of life is sacred.”

The Pennsylvania State Building & Construction Trades Council, which represents 196,000 workers and includes more than 115 locals from 15 International Building Trades unions, spoke of Fetterman’s support for organized labor that including walking picket lines, attending rallies with striking workers and donating to unions’ strike funds.

In a statement endorsing Fetterman, Rob Bair, the president of the Pennsylvania State Building and Construction Trades, said “John’s tireless dedication to the building trades and to union workers allows our members to enjoy a middle-class living and to have healthcare and retirement benefits.”

Also competing for votes in the U.S. Senate race are Libertarian Erik Gerhardt, Green Party candidate Richard Weiss and Keystone Party candidate Daniel Wassmer.

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