This article is one of a series of opinion articles the Post-Gazette will be running until the election, addressing the issues at stake from a diversity of views.
Calling an opposing politician a “carpetbagger” is an old political attack. Originally employed by southerners to critique northerners who moved south to seek political office after the Civil War — they carried their belongings in bags made of carpet — it’s since been used on candidates seen as unconnected to the district or state which they wish to represent.
In Pennsylvania’s senatorial race, Democratic Lt. Gov. John Fetterman is accusing Republican Mehmet Oz of carpetbagging from New Jersey.
Mr. Oz, the child of Turkish immigrants, is associated with a few places: Ohio, where he was born; Pennsylvania, where he studied at medical school and business school, and where he met his wife; New Jersey, where he lived until recently; and of course, Turkey. There is nothing disqualifying with having been partially raised in another country, and Mr. Fetterman has rightly not made much hay of this.
He has however made lots of hay about Mr. Oz being from New Jersey. In fact, much of Mr. Fetterman’s entire campaign has been based around accusing Mr. Oz of carpetbagging.
Such criticism obscures the fact that movement between Pennsylvania and New Jersey is extraordinarily common. The 2010 census showed that out of all new Pennsylvania residents that year, 80% were from New Jersey. Ten years later, the 2020 census revealed that 43,000 New Jerseyians moved to Pennsylvania that year, second only to New Yorkers. Pennsylvania’s incumbent junior senator, Pat Toomey, was himself born outside of Pennsylvania and only moved to the state a few years before entering government service.
Those who claim Mr. Oz is a carpetbagger will counter with the fact that Pennsylvania is one of the states with the highest number of residents who were born in the state, essentially arguing that being a “true Pennsylvanian” is a not-easily-obtained badge of honor. While it is true that being Pennsylvanian is an honor, we are hardly unique for our area of the country in terms of having a high native-born population.
Ohio is ranked 3rd, ahead of Pennsylvania, and much of the Midwest (a region which much of Pennsylvania culturally resembles) has a high retention rate. Of the top 10 states with native-born residents, six are from the Midwest and five are only a state away from Pennsylvania. If there are grades of “being Pennsylvanian,” how long must one reside here to truly call the state home? A year? Five? A decade?
Some statements circulating about Mr. Oz’s Pennsylvanian connections are simply false. For example, CNN recently called out commentators for wrongly accusing Mr. Oz of not being registered to vote in Pennsylvania. He’s a legal resident with a Pennsylvania medical license, gun permit and driver’s license.
Finally, while “carpetbagger” may be a useful political attack, like all negative campaigning it doesn’t inform voters about a candidate’s views. Debates do that. Unfortunately, Mr. Fetterman has agreed to only one, and that one too short to really explore the issues.
It likewise says nothing about whether or not a candidate matches a state’s political orientation. A born-and-bred democratic socialist running in Texas is not inherently a better fit for the state than a Republican who recently moved there. Ditto for a native-born MAGA Republican in California.
Pennsylvania is a purple state which prides itself on political moderation. Both incumbent senators Bob Casey and Mr. Toomey have had independent voices, with the former adopting an anti-abortion rights position for much of his career and the latter reaching across the aisle on gun rights.
Mr. Toomey’s predecessor, Sen. Arlen Specter, was perhaps the most centrist member of the U.S. Senate and was so untied to party that he switched back and forth twice, once as a sitting senator. For Mr. Toomey’s replacement, it is likely that Pennsylvania voters will want someone in that mold.
And those voters will never be able to decide who is the best fit policy-wise if the entire campaign is devoted to the subject of carpetbagging. Voters want a serious, policy-filled campaign. The candidates should oblige them.
Anthony J. Constantini, a native Pennsylvanian, is writing his PhD at the University of Vienna on the development of American democracy and previously worked at the National Republican Senatorial Committee.
First Published: October 14, 2022, 4:00 a.m.