Bob Casey Jr.

Robert Patrick Casey, Jr. (born April 13, 1960 in Scranton, Pennsylvania) also known as Bob Casey, Jr. or simply Bob Casey, is an American politician who belongs to the Democratic Party. He is the son of a former Governor of Pennsylvania, and he currently serves as State Treasurer of Pennsylvania. He assumed that office in January, 2005.

Background and Family

Casey is a 1982 graduate of The College of the Holy Cross, and he received a law degree from Catholic University in 1988. Between college and law school, Casey spent a year teaching 5th grade and coaching basketball in inner city Philadelphia.

Following law school, Casey practiced law in Scranton, until he was elected Pennsylvania State Auditor General in 1996. He served in this capacity for two terms, from 1997 to 2005. In 2002 he attempted to follow in his father's footsteps by running for Governor. However, he lost the Democratic primary to Ed Rendell, who went on to win the election.

In 2004, Casey ran for the position of State Treasurer. He won that race with more votes than any other candidate for statewide office in Pennsylvania history.

On March 5, 2005, Casey announced he would seek the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate in 2006 to face Senator Rick Santorum in the general election.

Casey is the son of the late Robert P. Casey, the 41st Governor of Pennsylvania. He married Terese in 1985, and they have four daughters: Elyse, Caroline, Julia, Marena.

Entrance into U.S. Senate race

Casey's entrance into the 2006 United States Senate election followed months of active recruiting efforts by many within the Democratic Party establishment. His candidacy has been well received by many party insiders.

Following his 2004 victory in the race for State Treasurer, for example, Casey received calls from U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY), the chair of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, as well as U.S. Senator Harry Reid (D-NV). Both men asked him to run.

After he announced that he would run, Casey was almost immediately endorsed by Governor Rendell, his 2002 primary opponent. He would later be endorsed by two Democrats who had been mentioned as possible nominees: former Congressman Joe Hoeffel, who in 2004 had been the Democratic candidate for the state's other Senate seat, losing to Arlen Specter; and former State Treasurer Barbara Hafer, whom many in the pro-choice movement attempted to convince to run against Casey in the Democratic primary. Several months after Casey began his campaign, he was joined at a fundraiser by DNC Chair Howard Dean.

Political views

Casey, like his father, is a devout Catholic and opposes abortion. However, he has drawn fire from some Catholics over his support of capital punishment, which his father opposed. In addition, Casey parts ways with the national Democratic Party over a few other social issues, such as gun control.

Casey is more favorable towards stem cell research than the Catholic Church. He is also more supportive of birth control and gay rights than his father was as governor. On economic issues, Casey is more in line with the views commonly accepted for the Democratic Party. He is a critic of President George W. Bush for cutting many social aid programs, and he opposes privatizing Social Security. He is also a skeptic of what he refers to as "unfair federal trade policies that are causing us to hemorrhage jobs."

The controversial candidate

Because Casey holds some social views that are to the right of most Democratic activists and politicians, his U.S. Senate candidacy has not been without controversy.

Many pro-choice activists are unhappy with the fact that the Democratic establishment was so quick to support a pro-life candidate. Many progressive Democrats also claim that Casey will alienate much of the Democratic base if he is nominated. This, they say, could not only cost him votes, but also hurt his fund raising efforts with major Democratic contributors. A similar situation occured with former Congressman Ron Klink when he ran a losing campaign against Santorum in 2000. Klink had social views similar to Casey's, and some political analyists attribute these views with difficulties he encountered raising money. However, Casey's views on abortion will help him gain the votes of moderate Republicans in the Philadelphia suburbs. Such moderate Republicans have played a pivotal role in many of the Democrats recent victories in Pennsylvania.

Supporters of Casey agree with this, claiming that Santorum is disliked enough by Democrats and even many moderate Republicans that they will support Casey, and that Casey has enough cross-over appeal with Republicans in the central part of Pennsylvania to win the race. They also claim that Casey is popular with blue collar Democrats who have, in recent years, been increasingly voting for Republicans. Casey appeals to many of these Democrats because of his conservative views on issues like abortion and gun control, and also because many of them have fond memories of his father. Many of Casey's supporters feel his last name gives him an advantage against Santorum that Ron Klink never had.

Nevertheless, Casey has attracted two Democratic primary opponents with more liberal views: Dr. Chuck Pennacchio and attorney Alan Sandals.

Standing in the polls

As of July 25th, 2005, all polls released on the Senatoral race between Casey and Santorum thus far have shown Casey leading.

External links

• Bob Casey for U.S. Senate
• Pennsylvania Treasury Website
• Casey reportedly in "excellent physical condition"