McCormick and Casey disagree on abortion, guns and energy in their latest debate

Democratic U.S. Sen. Bob Casey and his Republican challenger David McCormick disagreed over clean energy policies, gun laws and abortion rights in a heated debate Tuesday night as they accused each other of lying and stood together for the last time before the election were on the stage.

The 60-minute debate was her second in two weeks as mail-in voting increases in Pennsylvania and tens of millions of dollars flow into the swing state race each week. Control of the Senate is at stake and the race is on track to become the second most expensive race in the country in this year’s election.

They continued the themes from their combative first debate: McCormick accused Casey of being a weak, idle and unworldly career politician, and Casey accused McCormick of being a wealthy, hard-working ex-hedge fund CEO who got rich at the expense of Americans.

“When he talks about his record compared to my record, his record is that of a hedge fund CEO who invests in China and our adversaries,” Casey said from the WPVI-TV studio in Philadelphia. “That’s his record. My work in the Senate is bipartisan work.”

McCormick once responded that he wouldn’t take any “preachings” from Casey and said he went to Iraq with the Army in the Gulf War “in the first wave, when it looked like there were going to be tens of thousands of casualties.”

McCormick also accused Casey of “spreading lies that are completely unworthy of you, your family and your service.”

Casey responded, “This is not about his ministry or what we did at that age. It’s about my work in the U.S. Senate and his work as a hedge fund CEO.”

In response to a question about U.S. support for Israel amid a widening war in the Middle East, the candidates actually agreed, saying the U.S. must continue its support for Israel and that Israel — not the U.S. — is best positioned to to decide how to deal with opponents like Iran.

They disagreed on almost every other point. They had to explain discrepancies in their positions on the issue of abortion.

Casey – a former self-described “pro-life Democrat” – voted for abortion rights after Roe v. Wade standard after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned its landmark 1973 abortion rights decision.

Casey said most Americans believe daughters should have no fewer rights than their mothers.

No senator “has disagreed more on this issue,” McCormick said.

McCormick, who supported the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision to end federal protections for abortion rights, sought to moderate his opposition to abortion rights.

Now, he said, voters — not courts — can decide whether a state protects the right to abortion, even if it means some women don’t have that right, and he reiterated that he would not vote for a federal ban would become the topic of abortion.

On clean energy policy, Casey said billions of dollars from President Joe Biden’s 2021 infrastructure bill would accelerate the nation’s clean energy economy and create jobs. McCormick said it makes the U.S. more dependent on Chinese technology instead of exporting American natural gas to encourage countries to shut down coal-fired power plants that emit more greenhouse gases to warm the planet.

On the filibuster, which requires 60 out of 100 senators to advance legislation in the Senate, McCormick said he supports it because it prevents the passage of extreme bills. Casey said it prevents the passage of popular laws, including expanding background checks for gun purchases.

“We can do so much to move the country forward, but he wants to hide behind this rule,” Casey said.

McCormick, meanwhile, opposed stricter gun laws, saying most violent gun crimes are committed with illegal weapons and restricting gun ownership cannot solve the problem.

Casey, 64, is a former state comptroller and treasurer and Pennsylvania’s longest-serving Democrat in the Senate. He is seeking a fourth term, which he says will be his most difficult re-election challenge yet.

McCormick, 59, is running for the Senate for the second time after a narrow defeat in the 2022 Republican primary. Mehmet Oz had lost. He was CEO of Bridgewater Associates, the world’s largest hedge fund, served on former President Donald Trump’s defense advisory board and held top positions under President George W. Bush.

Democrats currently have a narrow majority in the Senate but face a difficult Senate map in 2024.

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