The Pennsylvania Senate debate stage in Harrisburg felt crowded tonight — not only because Senator Bob Casey and his challenger Dave McCormick took the stage, but because Casey brought an invisible but powerful ally to the debate: Dave McCormick’s actual track record.
McCormick came out swinging, opening the debate by calling Senator Casey a liar and rattling off predictable right-wing talking points, straight from the GOP playbook post-2016. He checked all the boxes: attacks on immigration, crime, and he even managed to shoehorn in a swipe at transgender Americans in his closing remarks, ensuring the MAGA base knew where he stood.
But every attack McCormick launched was swiftly countered — not by Senator Casey alone, but by McCormick’s own record as the former CEO of Bridgewater Associates, one of the world’s largest hedge funds.
When McCormick criticized Casey for failing to tackle the fentanyl crisis, Casey simply pointed out that CEO McCormick had invested in China’s largest producer of fentanyl precursor chemicals. According to the DEA and the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, China is the world’s leading producer of these chemicals. These Chinese exports, funded by McCormicks’ Bridgewater, fuel the fentanyl epidemic plaguing Pennsylvania and the rest of the U.S. The uncomfortable truth? CEO McCormick profited from the very drug that’s destroying Pennsylvania communities. Now, McCormick wants us to trust him to fix the problem he helped create.
His character was on display not only in the contradictions between his private interest as a CEO and his ego-quest to be a senator. It was clear in his demeanor on the stage as well. As Senator Casey respectfully shared the heartbreaking story of a Pennsylvania mother who lost her daughter to opioid addiction, McCormick stood behind his podium smirking. It was a striking and revealing moment.
When McCormick accused Casey of not doing enough for Pennsylvania steelworkers, the senator countered with another blow: former CEO McCormick had invested hundreds of millions in Chinese steel companies while Senator Casey supported tariffs to protect U.S. steelworkers from China’s control of the global market. In fact, McCormick had placed an $84 million short bet against U.S. Steel in 2021, all while profiting off the dumping of cheap Chinese steel onto global markets, undermining the very jobs he now claims to defend.
Perhaps the most damning moment of the night came in response to the opening question about supporting Israel. Senator Casey voiced unequivocal support, reminding viewers that Hamas recently invaded Israel, killing 1,200 Israelis and abducting 200 others in a horrific terrorist attack. McCormick tried to pivot, blaming the attack on the 2022 partial waiver of sanctions against Iran, claiming the funds were used to finance the assault. What McCormick conveniently left out was that many of the weapons used by Hamas were made in China — by Chinese defense companies that CEO McCormick had invested in.
At every turn, McCormick’s own record served as a shield for Casey. It’s difficult to be credible as a defender of Pennsylvania’s working class when you’ve bet $3.2 billion on the rise of China, profiting off the very industries hurting those workers.
Meanwhile, there was only one Bob Casey on stage — steadfast and consistent, a senator with a proven record of delivering for Pennsylvanians. McCormick’s repeated claim that Casey has no record to run on fell flat in the face of reality. Casey doesn’t need to defend his record; his accomplishments speak for themselves.
In 2009, Casey played a key role in reauthorizing and expanding the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), ensuring nearly 180,000 Pennsylvania children from low- and middle-income families receive essential healthcare. My own family benefited from CHIP when I was a child, and I can say firsthand — it’s the difference between getting treatment when you’re sick and a mother taking her child to work, hoping no one complains because she couldn’t afford a doctor’s visit.
READ: Senator Bob Casey Tells Bucks County Voters ‘This Race Is About Rights and Fights’
Bob Casey has also fought for Pennsylvania’s most vulnerable. He co-sponsored the Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Act of 2014, allowing individuals with disabilities to save money in tax-advantaged accounts, ensuring greater financial independence. He stood up for seniors with the Protecting Seniors’ Access to Medicare Act in 2015 and protected consumers with the STOP Illicit Robocalls Act in 2019, cracking down on fraudulent scams that disproportionately target the elderly. In 2022, he sponsored the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, which provides crucial protections for pregnant employees, ensuring their right to reasonable workplace accommodations.
McCormick may have called Senator Casey a “career politician,” but if fighting for Pennsylvania’s children, seniors, workers, and families makes you a career politician, then we should all be grateful for Senator Casey’s service. As Pennsylvanians, we need to send him back to Washington to continue undoing the damage that McCormick’s billions of dollars in Chinese investments have wrought on our communities.
