Keystone Today

Dr. Clifford Chen, primary physician for John Fetterman, has donated thousands of dollars to DNC campaigns, including Fetterman’s campaign this year. Dr. Chen recently announced John Fetterman was fit for office in a letter. After the first and only debate between Dr. Oz and John Fetterman, critics say Fetterman’s performance contradicts Dr. Chen’s letter marking Fetterman without any cognitive disabilities.

Dr. Clifford Chen has donated $22,281 to Democratic campaigns since 2014, according to Federal Election Commission Campaign finance data, he has donated to John Fetterman’s campaign, the DNC fund, ACTBLUE, and donated to both Senators Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff’s campaign in the Georgia Senate runoffs last year. Dr. Chen also contributed to Biden’s presidential campaign multiple times, Nancy Pelosi’s campaign, and Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign in 2015.

According to a letter from Dr. Chen reporting on John Fetterman’s health, Fetterman sustained a few lingering effects that his campaign has released to the public, including an auditory processing disorder “which can come across as hearing difficulty” where he can “miss” occasional words. Dr. Chen also said Fetterman’s communication has significantly improved after working with a speech therapist. According to the letter, Fetterman "spoke intelligently without cognitive deficits. 

"His speech was normal" and "he has no work restrictions and can work full duty in public office," Chen wrote in his letter.

After Fetterman suffered a stroke in May, his office released a letter saying he was recovering well after Fetterman said, “I almost died” according to PBS. Fetterman has since used closed captioning at rallies and at the most recent debate with his opponent Dr. Oz. Dr. Chen explained Fetterman has no cognitive deficits and assessed his “ability to reason”. PBS reports Fetterman has not released his medical records or given access to reporters. Dr. Oz has accused Fetterman of being incapable of serving in the Senate due to his health.

At the Pennsylvania Senate debate, Fetterman requested a closed captioning system to process the questions. According to Andrew Stiles at the Washington Free Beacon, Fetterman’s opening statement “Hi. Goodnight everybody” led to further fumbles throughout the night. Stiles mentioned Dr. Chen’s letter suggesting Fetterman was fit for duty while Dr. Chen’s campaign finance records show him donating $830 to Fetterman’s campaign since July. Dr. Chen also donated $3,000 to Hillary Clinton’s campaign in 2015.