A video of far-right commentator Ben Shapiro appearing to endorse Pennsylvania Democratic Senate candidate John Fetterman had Twitter users practically convinced Shapiro had retracted his support for Mehmet Oz, Fetterman's Republican rival.
The video made the rounds almost immediately after the first and only debate between Oz and Fetterman and shows Shapiro declaring that Oz "is very bad, really, really bad" and urging viewers to vote for Fetterman "because after all, Dr. Mehmet Oz is a loser and also a giant loser."
But Shapiro did not actually endorse Fetterman; the video was edited by Twitter user JustinTBrown (@JuuustinBrown), who has garnered a small following with his friend Chris Lee by making satirical political videos for social media
You can watch the video below.
\u201cBREAKING: Conservative commentator Ben Shapiro endorses John Fetterman (D) for US Senate\n\n"John Fetterman is THE MAN" - Ben Shapiro\n\nmade by me and @christoflee and @benshapiro\u201d— JustinTBrown (@JustinTBrown) 1666704991
The video shows Shapiro "saying":
"I'd like to introduce you to John Fetterman. John Fetterman is the Democrats' Pennsylvania Senate candidate, leading his race against Dr. Mehmet Oz. John Fetterman is the man."
"Shapiro" then launches into a short list of Fetterman's accomplishments, noting that he was "the full-time mayor of Braddock, Pennsylvania from 2016 to 2019," is tattooed, well over six feet tall, and "authentic."
He then blasts Oz as "inauthentic," pointing to a now-infamous video in which Oz cluelessly attempted to buy groceries for his wife and complained that $20 was too high a price to pay for ingredients to make crudité.
He proceeds to note that Oz has chosen to run in Pennsylvania's Senate race despite living in New Jersey, a fact that formed the crux of social media efforts on the part of the Fetterman campaign that have emphasized Oz's ties to New Jersey and minimal ties to Pennsylvania.
Many were convinced the video was legitimate.
\u201cRare video: A full minute of @benshapiro finally telling the truth.\u201d— The Daily Beans Podcast (@The Daily Beans Podcast) 1666797076
\u201cBroken clocks are right more often than Ben Shapiro but here he is nailing it. Bravo based Ben\u201d— \u2b55\ufe0f Kieran (@\u2b55\ufe0f Kieran) 1666752063
\u201cWhat planet am I on? I can\u2019t complain though.\u201d— Haley Ana \ud83c\udf53 (@Haley Ana \ud83c\udf53) 1666749062
\u201cThanks, @benshapiro! We also agree that @JohnFetterman is the man. Good to see you've finally come around. \ud83e\udd23\u201d— The Great Gig in the Sky (@The Great Gig in the Sky) 1666745415
Others caught on to the joke though, and lauded its effectiveness.
\u201cThis is incredible I cannot possible love this more\u201d— Vanessa Lamers, MESc, MPH (@Vanessa Lamers, MESc, MPH) 1666744136
\u201cThis looks so real\u201d— zanyfen\ud83c\udf3b\ud83d\udcc8 (@zanyfen\ud83c\udf3b\ud83d\udcc8) 1666795743
\u201cTHIS is art. \ud83e\udd79\u201d— Charlie Vela died 19 years ago on this very road\ud83d\udc7b (@Charlie Vela died 19 years ago on this very road\ud83d\udc7b) 1666749168
\u201cOne of the greats I deeply admire made this gem @christoflee coming in clutch w/ his \u201cimmaculate editing\u201d skills #BREAKING\u201d— RubesDS (@RubesDS) 1666751636
\u201cThis is such an impressive edit!\u201d— Bryce Greene (@Bryce Greene) 1666739144
The race between Oz and Fetterman has narrowed considerably as Democrats and Republicans alike consolidate around their candidates.
A CBS News Battleground Tracker showed Fetterman leading Oz by just two points heading into last night's debate, which was noteworthy for Oz's admission that the decision about whether to terminate a pregnancy should be left to women, their doctors and "local political leaders."
@sydney_sweeney/Instagram
@HawleyMO/X