Casey swats at McCormick during campaign stop in Bethlehem

BETHLEHEM, Pa. — A day after securing the Democratic nomination in his reelection bid, U.S. Sen. Bob Casey stopped at the Hispanic Center of the Lehigh Valley as he geared up for the November general election.

Casey made his case for a fourth term in Washington to about 15 center staffers and state Rep. Steve Samuelson, D-Northampton, pointing to money he's brought to Northampton County and laws he's passed to support working families. At the same time, he criticized his opponent, Republican David McCormick, without mentioning him by name.

In the past three years, Congress has invested a $1 trillion in infrastructure, passed child tax credits to help working families, allowed Medicare to negotiate the cost of drugs and capped insulin prices from Medicare recipients at $35 a month. Casey took credit for all of these accomplishments, noting that with razor thin margins in the Senate, many of the bills would not have passed into law without his support.

"I've delivered for the people of our state, for the people of Northampton County, Lehigh County as well — for the whole Valley," he said.

Examples on his Senate website and a campaign handout included $21.1 million for pedestrian and bike paths between Allentown and Whitehall Township, $16 million to repair Route 33 bridges over the Bushkill Creek in and around Stockertown and $3 million to clean up brownfields in Northampton County.

In addition, the Infrastructure and Investment and Jobs Act delivered $1.6 billion to Pennsylvania for high-speed Internet. Casey said the money would help students in their school work, better preparing them to land quality jobs later in life.

"That connection between learnin' and earnin', as you know, is well documented," he said.

Casey's visit came two days afterMcCormick rallied supporters at Lehigh Valley Sporting Clays in North Whitehall Township. McCormick painted Casey as an extreme liberal who's enabled President Joe Biden's failed economic agenda. McCormick blamed Casey for rising inflation and a porous southern border that's allowed illegal immigrants and Fentanyl to flood into the country.

Casey in turn blasted McCormick as another Republican looking to cut benefits to working families in favor of cutting taxes for millionaires and corporations. If elected, McCormick would try to undo the $35 insulin cap and would never support Casey's efforts to crack down on price gauging, he said.

He also took McCormick to task for how he's presented himself to voters. While McCormick grew up in Pennsylvania and currently resides in Pittsburgh, he lived in Connecticut as recently as last spring and went 16 years without voting in the Keystone State.

Casey also pointed to a New York Times article that scrutinized McCormick's claims that he grew up from nothing on a family farm. The report noted while he worked summers baling hay and that his family owned a farm in Columbia County, McCormick grew up on the campus of what's now Bloomsburg University. His father served as the college's president and earned the current equivalent of about $200,000.

"When a candidate is not being straight with you about where they live or who they are, you can't trust them. Workers and working families cannot trust my opponent," Casey said.

McCormick has criticized the New York Times report as frivolous hairsplitting of his past comments.

The stop in South Side Bethlehem was one of three Casey had across the state Wednesday. He arrived 30 minutes late from Wilkes-Barre and was scheduled to speak at State College later in the evening. The trip followed a late night in Washington after the Senate approved a bill Tuesday that is sending $95 billion in aid to Ukraine, Taiwan and Israel.

The matchup between Casey and McCormick is among the most high-profile races in the nation. Casey's seat is one of the few in a swing state, and the outcome could determine control of the U.S. Senate. Democrats currently control a 51-49 majority, among the most razor-thin in American history.

Both men officially won their uncontested primaries Tuesday night.

Hearing the community

The Lehigh Valley is one of the fastest growing communities in Pennsylvania thanks in part to a rapidly growing Latino community. However, Latino voters and candidates have raised concerns that politicians only reach out to them in election seasons when their votes are needed.

But Raymond Santiago, the center's executive director, singled out Casey; U.S. Rep. Susan Wild, D-Lehigh Valley; and state Sen. Lisa Boscola, D-Northampton, for their regular outreach with center officials. Boscola has a staffer visit on a weekly basis to keep a pulse on the needs of the center and the community it serves, he said.

Lately, those needs have focused on the rising cost of living. Housing costs across the region have skyrocketed since COVID, making it harder for working families to make ends meet, Santiago said. He noted his first apartment on Mack Boulevard in Allentown cost him about $650 back in 2009. The same two-bedroom apartment now goes for about $1,900, he said. Food insecurity has also become a serious problem.

"We're seeing a rise in working families having to use our food pantry," Santiago said. He estimated the 605 households the center serves is about double the number from 2019.

Casey said he routinely visits places like the Lehigh Valley, Erie, Lancaster and York in part to keep in touch with their burgeoning Latino communities. He said that he's heard them talk about the need to lower the cost of food, health care, gas and child care. Casey said his party has tried to deliver but accused conservatives of being more interested in cutting taxes for corporations than working on behalf of working families.

"The cost issue is a huge issue that we have not tackled yet as a nation. Democrats have a lot of work to do, and Republicans have a lot more to do," he said.