The Pennsylvania Senate race is heating up with Dave McCormick's campaign targeting the policies of Vice President Kamala Harris, which they claim could derail Senator Bob Casey's reelection bid. In a bold move, McCormick's team has launched a series of advertisements pointing out the discrepancies between Harris’s policies and the values of Pennsylvanian voters.
Dave McCormick's campaign emphasizes Kamala Harris’s liberal policies as being harmful to Senator Bob Casey's reelection odds in Pennsylvania.
According to McCormick’s strategist, Mark Harris, their campaign aims to capitalize on the perceived disconnect between Harris' policies and local voter priorities. The strategy includes focusing on several policy areas where Harris and Casey have been closely aligned, like border security, energy, and crime.
McCormick's campaign argues that Harris’s stance on issues such as border control, policing, and energy does not resonate well with key electoral groups in Pennsylvania. These groups are likely influenced by what the campaign terms as 'San Francisco liberal policies', a reference used to emphasize the perceived extremity of the policies supported by Harris and Casey.
“Harris' image is in a worse position among key groups in the election than Biden’s was,” stated Mark Harris, indicating a strategic opening for McCormick's campaign. This comparison to President Biden’s more favorable perception among these groups underlines the campaign's message regarding Harris' influence on Casey's political health.
Adding to this, the campaign has released data showing that Senator Casey has voted in line with Harris’s policies almost consistently during her tenure both as a senator and as vice president, including votes on controversial issues.
An advertisement released by McCormick's camp on Tuesday cites specific instances of Casey’s support for Harris' policies. The ad criticizes their positions on issues like the elimination of ICE, decriminalizing illegal border crossings, fracking bans, and opposition to police funding, portraying these stands as too extreme for Pennsylvania.
“This campaign is a choice between a Harris-Casey agenda that is weak on crime, soft on the border, and liberal on everything,” adds Mark Harris, thereby setting the stage for a campaign that seeks to polarize opinion on these critical issues.
One specific ad claims, “Kam!la Harris and now Bob Casey support the most radical energy plan in American history," hinting at a broader campaign narrative that aligns Casey with highly unpopular policy decisions in Pennsylvania, particularly about energy which is a significant economic factor in the state.
The McCormick campaign plans to further detail the purported failures of the Biden-Harris-Casey collaboration in upcoming digital, mail, and television ads. This multi-platform approach aims to cover a broad spectrum of voter contact points, ensuring the message reaches a diverse array of voters across Pennsylvania.
“In the days to come our campaign will release a raft of targeted digital, there will be more on, and television advertising to drive home this message,” notes the campaign memo. “All Pennsylvanians will be fully informed on the failure of the Biden-Harris-Casey agenda and will have a clear choice,” the memo continues, underscoring a strategy of comprehensive voter engagement and education.
The focus on Harris' policies and their impact on Senator Casey's campaign reflects a tactical move by McCormick's team to link local electoral outcomes to national political figures, a common strategy in tightly contested races.
As the campaign season intensifies, the McCormick campaign is positioning itself as a formidable opposition by clearly defining its stance against the Biden-Harris-Casey agenda. Through targeted advertising and strategic campaign messaging, McCormick seeks to challenge the incumbent by aligning him with unpopular policies in key areas like crime, border management, and energy.
Whether this strategy will resonate with Pennsylvania voters remains to be seen, but it certainly sets the stage for a contested race that hinges on both local and national policy impacts. The next few weeks will be crucial as McCormick's team rolls out its planned advertisements and further defines its electoral strategy.