In Pennsylvania, the race for a United States Senate seat is heating up as Election Day nears, with both incumbent Democrat Bob Casey and Republican Dave McCormick looking to garner the Jewish vote in a state with huge national implications.
The majority of Jewish voters have historically voted with the Democratic Party in national elections. But in recent years, as anti-Israel sentiments have risen on the left, the Republican Party has jumped at the chance to try and convert a group that traditionally shows up to the polls.
Casey said in an interview with the Jewish Exponent on Oct. 14 that the evidence shows that things have not changed in this respect. As an example of his willingness to go against the interests of the more radical members of his party, Casey said he will vote against a resolution coming to the Senate floor that asks the U.S. to tie aid to Israel to various conditions related to rules of engagement. The bill is proposed by a fellow Democrat, but the senator said he will not toe the party line in this case.
In an interview with the Jewish Exponent on Oct. 14, McCormick argued that his opponent’s record shows that he is less of a friend to Pennsylvania Jews than he says.
“Summer Lee is arguably the most antisemitic member of Congress, and Bob Casey has refused to un-endorse her,” he said, referring to the representative of Pennsylvania’s 12th congressional district.
McCormick cited his strong takes on potentially antisemitic university leadership as evidence of his own reliability for Jewish constituents.
“We need to fire all the weak ones,” he said. “If leaders on college campuses can’t tame antisemitism and ensure that Jewish students can not only practice their faith but actually go to school without the threat of violence, they should be fired.”
Casey said his track record shows that he works on behalf of Jews and doesn’t just speak to them. He and Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) introduced the “Antisemitism Awareness Act” this spring, which is specifically targeted at decreasing the influence of antisemitism on college campuses.
The bill would require the U.S. Department of Education to consider the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition of antisemitism when enforcing federal anti-discrimination laws, according to a news release from Casey’s office.
The senator said the passage of that bill is the first step.
“The second step in that effort is to appropriate $280 million to the Department of Education so they can hire as many as 500 more personnel to conduct investigations on hostile environments on campus as it relates to antisemitism,” he said. “If there’s a finding of a hostile environment, that college and university [could] be sanctioned for that.”
McCormick believes that Casey’s most important contribution to the current political climate surrounding Israel was his “aye” vote cast in favor of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.
McCormick said this agreement, which former President Donald Trump withdrew from in 2018, weakened Israel’s security by giving Iran funds that it could then give to terrorist proxies.
“We need to strangle Iran and put in sanctions,” he said.
Casey cited a bill that he and other Democrats supported as evidence that the Republicans are not as behind Israel as they might indicate.
“I think it was wrong for Republicans to hold up the so-called Ukraine bill, because it had support for Israel — support that Israel needed,” he said. “They held it up for about six months, but we finally got it done.”
That bill contained more than $14 billion for Israel.
Casey added that the increase in antisemitism in the United States can be attributed to the other side of the aisle.
“A lot of the rise in antisemitism, especially in the period leading up to Oct. 7, was from white nationalists on the right,” he said. “I would hope that my counterparts in the Republican Party would condemn the antisemitism from the right just as I have condemned the antisemitism that comes from the left.”
McCormick said the Republican Party has become more attractive to voters because Democrats are the source of most of the country’s antisemitism. He said President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and Casey have all contributed to the problem.
“The Democratic Party has a real problem. They have a bunch of radical lefties that are antisemitic, anti-Israel and anti-American,” he said. “That part of their party holds real sway, and I believe that that has made their response to what’s happening in Israel much more tepid than it should be. I think it’s made their response to antisemitism on campuses more tepid than it should be.”
To make it clear, Casey is an ardent supporter of Dem Rep. Summer Lee from Pittsburgh. One of the most left-wing anti-Semitic members of Congress. He refuses to denounce her position regarding Israel.
On another issue, in all his time as our Senator from PA, he has done next to nothing for the people he’s supposed to represent. He rides his Father’s coattails’. His Father was a great Senator for PA and did his job well representing the people of this Commonwealth.