'I celebrate the demise of Roe v. Wade': Stroke victim John Fetterman mangles his words yet AGAIN as he appears to say he is against abortion at Senate race rally with Biden and Obama

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Pennsylvania Democratic Senate hopeful John Fetterman and stroke victim mangled his words yet again on the campaign trail, accidentally saying he was against abortion. 

'I run on Roe v. Wade. I celebrate the demise of Roe v. Wade,' he said.

Fetterman, who is going head-to-head with celebrity doctor Dr. Mehmet Oz, may well have been trying to say his opponent 'celebrates the demise of Roe v. Wade.'

Fetterman and his Republican rival have been neck-and-neck in the bitterly fought race, but his performance when it comes to public speaking has drawn concerns after a number of garbled answers, much of which has been blamed on his recovery from a May stroke. 

John Fetterman appeared to misspeak saying he 'celebrated the demise of Roe V Wade' during a speech to voters on Saturday night

Fetterman appeared alongside Barak Obama, Pennsylvania Governor candidate Josh Shapiro and President Biden

'I run on Roe v. Wade. I celebrate the demise of Roe v. Wade.' he could be heard stating on camera, while holding a microphone in his hand

Fetterman at the campaign rally held at Temple University Liacouras Center in Philadelphia

Last week Oz for the first time surpassed John Fetterman in polling just days before the midterms and a week after their debate where the lingering effects of his Democratic rival's stroke were on full display.

The two point gap – 48 percent to 46 percent – continues a steady improvement for Oz, whose support from likely Pennsylvanian voters has increased by 5 percentage points since September, according to polling from The Hill/Emerson College.

Real Clear Politics' average of polls has Oz with just a 0.1 per cent lead, and is projected to win - even if it is by then narrowest of margins. 

It also mirrors a national trend as Republicans surge in polls, with some tying or overtaking their Democratic challengers in the days ahead of the election after months of trailing. 

Meanwhile, Fetterman's support only ticked up by 1 percent from the September poll from the one taken October 28-31. The split between the two candidates is within the poll's plus or minus 3 percentage point margin of error.

Consistently, this particular polling has shown Fetterman, 53, ahead of Oz, 62.

A televised debate performance last month shocked some viewers and only sowed further concerns of his ability to hold political office.

'Hi, goodnight everyone,' Fetterman said, before addressing his health. 'Let's also talk about the elephant in the room: I had a stroke. [Oz] never let me forget that.'

At one point Fetterman was asked to clarify his position on fracking, as moderators pointed to a 2018 interview where the lieutenant governor expressed broad opposition to the practice, but not a ban. 

'I do support fracking - I don't, I don't - I support fracking, and I do support fracking,' he answered to the sheer confusion of voters.

Over the course of the debate, Fetterman twice demurred to release his full medical record to the public. 

'My doctor ultimately believes that I'm fit to be serving and that's what I believe,' Fetterman said.  

A new poll from The Hill/Emerson College shows Dr. Mehmet Oz pulled ahead of Democrat rival John Fetterman for the first time – with just five days until the 2022 midterms

Republican hopeful Dr. Mehmet Oz participated in the Pennsylvania Senate debate last month

Democratic Lt. Gov. John Fetterman (left) debated Republican Dr. Mehmet Oz (right) last month

It had previously been revealed how Fetterman used massive screens on the ground to help him deliver his message

Former President Barack Obama (left) and President Joe Biden (right) strolled onstage together in Philadelphia at a rally for Democrats John Fetterman and Josh Shapiro. 

At Saturday Philadelphia rally, (from left): Gubernatorial candidate Josh Shapiro, former President Barack Obama, President Joe Biden and Senate hopeful Lt. Gov. John Fetterman

In advance of the debate, Fetterman's campaign had tempered expectations, saying there would be 'awkward pauses' and 'delays and errors,' because the Democrat would be reading closed captioning due to his auditory processing issue.

When asked about small business owners who are concerned about raising the minimum wage, he said: 'We all have to make sure that everyone that works is able to- that's the most American bargain, that if you work full time you should be able to live in dignity is well true.

'We can't have businesses being subsidized by not paying individuals that just simply can't evade to pay their own way,' he said. 

After it wrapped, a CNN panel of lawmakers and pundits shared a damning assessment of Fetterman's performance. 

Charlie Dent, a former Republican congressman for Pennsylvania, said he was 'astounded' and 'stunned' by Fetterman's poor performance, while Alyssa Farah Griffin, Donald Trump's former communications director, said she found it 'painful to watch.'

Even CNN host Alisyn Camerota said she was disturbed by the spectacle.

'I've interviewed him many times as lieutenant governor,' Camerota said. 'And he sounds - he's sounded different before the stroke. In the interviews, he was much more, sort of, clear spoken than what I'm hearing.'

Dent said Fetterman was not fit to be on the debate stage.

'I thought someone should have invoked the mercy rule 20 minutes into the debate,' he said.  'I don't know if it was the stroke or he's just a lousy debater or if he doesn't understand the issues. 

'He was flustered he, was confused. He should have not been out there. 

'And I've had a number of people say why was this guy in on the ballot after that? 

'I don't know if the debates matter that much. But people watch that, they are going to question his capacity to serve. 

'The bar was set very low. It should've been set lower.'

A day later, Fetterman delivered a smooth 13-minute stump speech in Pittsburgh as his campaign tried to downplay Tuesday's performance, saying Fetterman has always been lousy at debates and that the closed-captioning system he used as an aid was faulty.