Oz calls on Philadelphia mayor to resign

Pennsylvania Republican Senate nominee Mehmet Oz on Tuesday called on Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney (D) to resign after he said he was looking forward to not being mayor given recent gun violence.

“I’m waiting for something bad to happen all the time,” Kenney said Monday night at a press conference following a July 4 shooting in Philadelphia that injured two police officers. 

“I’ll be happy when I’m not mayor and I can enjoy some stuff,” he said.

Kenney issued a press release on Tuesday clarifying those comments.

“In a late-night, overwhelming moment of frustration, I said I was looking forward to no longer being mayor,” Kenney said. “Let me be clear, I’m incredibly grateful to be mayor of this great city and for the people who elected me to lead.”

But Oz said Kenney’s comments were enough to merit his immediate resignation.

“Mayor Kenney should resign from office,” Oz said in a statement. “Kenney’s comments about how he will be happy when he is no longer mayor is further indication he has given up on Philadelphia.”

Oz decried what he called “radical far-left policies” on crime implemented by Kenney, Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner (D) and Oz’s opponent, John Fetterman, that Oz argued are causing homicide rates to increase.

“We need to restore safety and security to Philadelphia and all of Pennsylvania – it begins by getting rid of Kenney, Krasner and Fetterman,” Oz said.

When reached for comment, Kenney’s office deferred to his clarifying statement.

Kenney at Monday’s press conference condemned the Supreme Court and conservative lawmakers, arguing that they were the ones standing in the way of reducing gun violence.

“A lot of goofballs out there with guns, and they can get them anytime they want, so this is what we have to live with,” Kenney said.

The Philadelphia police officers were shot during the city’s Fourth of July fireworks show outside the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

The incident led to mass panic in the crowd, with many running to flee the scene.

Both officers were treated and released from Jefferson University Hospital Tuesday morning, 6abc reported.