Dave McCormick has done this before, he’s walked this path and nearly met his goal.
But, he said Wednesday, this time things are different.
McCormick, speaking to members of the Latino community gathered in Wyomissing, said he has learned a thing or two since he campaigned for a spot in the U.S. Senate in 2022. That was a race for the Republican nomination that he narrowly lost to Mehmet Oz by less than 950 votes.
Now, he’s running for the Senate once again. This time around he’s become the Republican nominee and is facing off against three-term Democrat U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, which will help determine control of the chamber.
He said he’s changed between the two campaigns.
“Last time I ran, I was kind of shy and said ‘I hope you vote for me,’” he said, explaining that he’s pursuing his goal more confidently and aggressively now. “I’m putting it all out there. I need more than that. I need you to tell your friends, I need you to register people to vote, I need you to tell your neighbors. Every vote is going to count.”
The reason for the change, McCormick said, is his belief that the 2024 election is perhaps the most consequential of his lifetime.
“This election isn’t about me, this isn’t about most of you — it’s about our kids,” he said, saying he fears for their future. “Those kids are not going to be OK.
“You’ve got to treat this election like their life depends on it, because it does.”
McCormick said he believes he’s the person to help guide the country on a better course. And, he added, he feels compelled to take on that challenge.
“I’m just running to be a great leader on behalf of Pennsylvania,” he said. “I don’t owe anybody anything. I’m not trying to get a better job. I’m doing this out of love for this country.”
McCormick spoke with 16 people invited to attend a roundtable discussion at Keller Williams Platinum Realty based on their outreach to the campaign and their involvement in the local political scene.
The 58-year-old was a longtime executive at Bridgewater Associates, which is considered the largest hedge fund in the world. He worked there for more than a decade before leaving to pursue the vacant Senate seat left by outgoing Republican Sen. Pat Toomey.
After failing in that effort two years ago, he said his desire to serve the country has led him to try again.
“You’re probably here for the same reason I’m running, which is this fear that the America we love is slipping away and that if we don’t get the right people in office then the country that we love will not be here for our kids,” he told the group.
McCormick, who has been endorsed by former President Donald Trump, said his race is all about deciding what kind of leadership is needed in Washington.
“What kind of policies do we want?” he asked.
McCormick claimed that under the Biden/Harris administration national debt has run out of control, that taxpayers have been put on the hook to satisfy billions in student loan debt and that the southern border has remained open to a flood of illegal fentanyl.
He asserted that crime has worsened under the current administration, that law enforcement is not supported and that there has been a “war” on the energy industry.
“It’s a very scary time and this is a choice between the kind of leadership we want for the future and the kind of leadership that we have had for the last three-and-a-half years,” he said.
McCormick said the policies of Democratic Party do not align with what Pennsylvanians want. He said people across the state want economic policies that don’t create inflation, want to decide what kind of cars they can drive, want to have their Second Amendment rights, want to have secure borders.
“That’s what the choices are,” he said.
McCormick also said that what happens in Pennsylvania is vital to the strength of the entire nation.
“This is the most important state in the country,” he said. “Voters here will determine who wins the presidency and this will determine the majority in the Senate. So I come to you as a proud American, as a veteran, as someone who has been a business person, as someone who has lived in Pennsylvania the majority of his life and someone who has lived the American Dream and wants to make sure it’s available for all of our kids.”
Following his remarks, McCormick took a few questions from the crowd.
Rick Olmos, a Shillington resident and a member of the Pennsylvania Commission on Latino Affairs, said that grants that are available at both the federal and state levels for small businesses usually don’t help the Latino community because the community typically owns microbusinesses. He asked McCormick if he would support changing policies to make sure microbusinesses are included.
McCormick said without knowing the specifics he would have to take a closer look at the issue, but it seems like something he would be able to support.
“About 80% of the jobs in Pennsylvania are created by small businesses — they are the driver of our economy and we have to do everything we can to help them grow,” he said. “As a former business owner myself, I’m very open to those kinds of policies.”
Ramon Melecil, a business owner from Wyomissing, said rising health insurance costs for his 15 employees is becoming a major problem. He asked McCormick what can be done to ease that burden without passing it on to his employees.
“I come from a humble beginning so money is not the most important thing to me, I would rather help the people who are working for me and make sure they can take care of their families,” Melecil said. “But sometimes it’s really hard.”
McCormick said he wants to give tax credits to people so that they can take tax-free income and put it aside for their health care. That way, if someone has an emergency that creates costs their plan doesn’t cover it won’t bankrupt them.
McCormick closed Wednesday’s session by pushing back on a handful of attacks his opponent has made on him.
“Sen. Casey is telling all kinds of lies about me,” he said.
He said that reports that he isn’t a Pennsylvania are false, explaining that he grew up in the state. He left to attend West Point and serve five years in the military, but then came back to start a business here.
“Then I went into government for a while, and then went to work for a big company in Connecticut for 12 years,” he said. “But I kept my family farm during that time and now I live in Pittsburgh.”
McCormick also fought back against accusations that a company he ran invested in a Chinese company responsible for the production of fentanyl that has found its way into the U.S.
He said that when he worked for Bridgewater Associates the company only had about 3% of its investment in China, and claimed that financial documents show that Casey has a mutual fund with a stake in the same Chinese company.
Finally, McCormick said his stance on abortion has been misrepresented.
“I’m not for banning abortion,” he said. “I’m not for national legislation. I believe the people in a state should decide through their legislators.”
McCormick said he supports exceptions in the cases of rape, incest and saving the life of the mother.
The visit by McCormick to Berks County follows a campaign stop last week made by Casey in Reading.
Polls show that McCormick is currently trailing Casey. RealClearPolling, which provides an average of various statewide polls, have him behind by seven percentage points.
Source: Berkshire mont