Brittany Yanick, a publicist for Dr. Oz, told ABC News that “voting in an election is not the same as being engaged in the political work inside or with the Turkey government, which Oz has never done.”
“There is zero security concern at all,” she continued. “He voted for Muharrem Ince, who tried to unseat Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and lost.”
Yanick claimed that Oz planned to vote without prior planning, but did so while he was at the consulate talking about “volunteering for humanitarian work for Syrian refugees in Turkey.”
Matt Wolking, a prominent Republican strategist, found some information raising concerns about Oz’s connections to the Turkish president.
The newly-exposed photograph is also generating controversy over his “dual loyalties.”
“Elected officials are do not have the same level of examination as civilians who apply for security clearances for high-level government work; once sworn in, politicians are allowed access to classified details unless executive leaders deny them certain facts.”
However, McClanahan adds that a background check procedure for civilians may “provide a framework for determining whether someone is trustworthy or not.” And for Kel McClanahan, the director of the National Security Counselors, which is a public interest attorney group, says voting in another nation’s election would be a “huge red light.”
Oz, who was born in Ohio, has stated that he keeps dual US-Turkish citizenship to look after his ailing mother in Turkey. He was also in the Turkish military for 60 days in the early 1980s — allegedly to hold onto his Turkish passport — and keeps real estate there, as well as an endorsement agreement with Turkish Airlines.
“Any one of those alone would be sufficient to jeopardize a security clearance,” he said. “I wouldn’t give that person very good odds of being granted a clearance anywhere.”
