Pennsylvanian Republican senate candidate Dave McCormick campaigned with about three dozen veterans on Thursday, telling the Pittsburgh crowd that he is the needed change to improve the U.S. Senate.
McCormick, a former hedge fund CEO and Army veteran, held an intimate campaign event at the VFW hall in the city’s Morningside neighborhood.
“If you believe America is the greatest country in the world, the most exceptional country in terms of lifting people out of poverty, in terms of individual freedom and religious freedom, and if you believe the America you love is in trouble, spiritually and economically, … if you believe those things then you gotta do it,” McCormick said to the veterans, reference their service to the country.
He said he was motivated to return to the campaign trail after a close defeat in the 2022 Republican primary to help turn the country around.
McCormick was joined by Alaska Sen. Dan Sullivan, a Republican. Sullivan said he has been McCormick’s friend for 20 years, tracing back their time together serving in the administration of former President George W. Bush.
“We need more veterans in the United States Senate,” said Sullivan, a Marine veteran and two-term senator. “Dave is a fighter and a patriot.”
McCormick, who lives in Pittsburgh, spoke about his roots in Bloomsburg and his time at West Point military academy. He joined the Army after, and then after serving in the Iraq War moved into private finance and worked with Republican administrations.
He spoke to the crowd of mostly older veterans about the future of the country, and said the college kids protesting issues around the Israel/Hamas war “don’t know the difference between right and wrong.”
“There is a lack of courage and moral clarity,” McCormick said.
He slammed his opponent, Democratic incumbent Sen. Bob Casey, and said that Casey was ineffective despite serving three terms in the Senate.
“You know how in the military, people say ‘run to the guns,’ [Casey] ducks,” McCormick said. “When the time comes to lead, he runs.”
According to the bipartisan Center for Effective Lawmaking, Casey was the most effective senator in passing legislation related to housing and welfare in the last full session of Congress from 2021-2023. Casey’s campaign has touted his work on the PACT Act, a law that increased veteran’s benefits to account for toxic burn pit exposure of service members.
Pennsylvania Democratic Party spokesperson TaNisha Cameron fired back at McCormick.
“David McCormick invested millions in Chinese military companies – and now new reporting shows he invested hundreds of millions in Russian government bonds, while he bet against Pennsylvania companies, including U.S. Steel,” she said. “McCormick will always put his bottom line ahead of our safety and national security.”
Polling has shown Casey consistently in the lead versus McCormick, but some polls of late have shown the Army veteran in striking distance. The two recently faced on in a debate in Harrisburg.
McCormick believes he has the momentum to close the gap and come ahead on Election Day.
“Everything is moving in my direction, but I am the underdog,” he said. “The thing I have to do is reach the undecided voters that still don’t know who I am. I have to use these last days to let them know who Dave McCormick is.”
Ryan Deto is a TribLive reporter covering politics, Pittsburgh and Allegheny County news. A native of California’s Bay Area, he joined the Trib in 2022 after spending more than six years covering Pittsburgh at the Pittsburgh City Paper, including serving as managing editor. He can be reached at rdeto@triblive.com.
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Publish date : 2024-10-10 08:45:00
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