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Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA) is up for reelection in 2024. The Republican bench in Pennsylvania is thinly populated, so the GOP is looking out of state to find someone to run against Casey. They seem to have landed on hedge fund CEO David McCormick—again—even though he lives in Connecticut. Remember that McCormick ran against and lost to Mehmet Oz, who lives in New Jersey, in the 2022 Republican senatorial primary. Oz went on to be crushed by now-Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA). Nevertheless, McCormick is ready to go and is gearing up for a run.
McCormick was born in Washington, PA, and raised in a Pittsburgh suburb. His father was chancellor of the Penn State System of Higher Education. His mother was a college professor. McCormick went to West Point and later served in Iraq in the Army, running a unit clearing mines. After leaving the Army, he made $500 million in the software business and then became CEO of a hedge fund. He owns a house in Pennsylvania.
That all sounds pretty good. The one fly in the ointment is that he lives in a very exclusive area of Connecticut, with a magnificent view of Long Island Sound. In contrast, Casey was born in Scranton, PA, and went to Scranton Prep School there. He graduated from College of the Holy Cross in Massachusetts and from law school at the Catholic University of America in D.C. But since then he has lived in Pennsylvania, practicing law at first, then serving 8 years as auditor general and 4 more as state treasurer. He has since been elected to the Senate three times. Oh, and his father was auditor general for 8 years and governor of Pennsylvania for 8 years as well. Casey Jr. has pretty solid roots in the Keystone State.
Needless to say, having a semi-carpetbagger from Connecticut challenge a three-term senator whose family collectively has served 46 years in statewide public office in Pennsylvania doesn't put the Republicans in the strongest position, but McCormick is the best they can find. One plus for McCormick—and a big one for the NRSC—is that McCormick can self-fund his campaign. The chance of a pickup here is low and NRSC Chairman Sen. Steve Daines would rather spend his money in Montana, Ohio, and West Virginia. It remains to be seen if McCormick draws a primary challenger. He could. Is Dr. Phil interested in running for office? Unlike Oz, he might actually get Oprah's endorsement. (V)