Dr. Mehmet Oz’s 2016 interview with Donald Trump “disturbed” staffers, according to a new report from Business Insider.

Former producers speaking anonymously said the Trump sit-down changed the direction of the show and many staffers felt it helped sell Trump to Middle America.

“It felt like a lap-dog interview,” one former producer for The Dr. Oz Show said, accusing their former boss of letting Trump “lie about his weight and height.” When discussing his weight at the time, Trump said he could stand to lose about 20 pounds.

“It’s tough because of the way I live, but the one thing I’d like to do is drop 15, 20 pounds,” Trump said after Oz asked if his family gave him a “hard time” about his weight.

During the interview, Trump handed Oz two letters based on recent physical exams, which Oz read aloud for his audience.

The producer went on to say that “morale” went down behind the scenes at the series after the interview as staff felt Oz was more and more focused on politics.

“It really did have an impact on morale because we felt we had made him more palatable to Middle America and given him a seal of approval,” the producer said.

Today Oz is a Republican Senate candidate in Pennsylvania, his campaign boosted by an endorsement for Trump. The former president even campaigned for Oz in the state.

Producers speaking to Business Insider said staff have been equally triggered by Oz’s hardline conservative stances and his raging at “elites” as he moves from TV doctor to politician.

“He’s saying this stuff about elites,” one producer said. I’m like, ‘Dude, you’ve got a basketball court in your house.'”

Another person involved in the beginnings of Dr. Oz’s show said the entire program may have been a way to build Oz’s profile so he could eventually pursue politics.

“I think part of the reason he came on TV was so he could ramp up his profile so at some point he could go into politics,” the unidentified person said.

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