McCormick seizes on Pennsylvania Senate race gap, laying border blame on Casey

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The Republican Senate candidate in Pennsylvania, Dave McCormick, is targeting Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., on his alleged lack of action to secure the southern border and the coinciding fentanyl overdose epidemic wreaking havoc on the battleground state. 

In a new ad placed after Labor Day, Blair County Sheriff Jim Ott recalled the loss of his son to a fentanyl overdose. 

"If the border was secure, chances are my son would be alive today. We can't bring back the people we've lost. But we can get rid of the weak politicians like Bob Casey who let it happen," he said.

The $2.2 million, 30-second ad buy will run on TV and digital statewide. 

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Sen. Casey is slammed for inaction on the border by a constituent in a new ad for opponent Dave McCormick. (Reuters)

Labor Day, which is less than 10 weeks from the presidential election, is traditionally considered by operatives to be when voters begin to commit to their candidate choices. And while McCormick has been trailing Casey in recent polls, GOP strategists expect voters to begin paying closer attention and get behind the Republican. 

In a poll last month by Quinnipiac University, Casey defeated his challenger 52% to 44% among likely voters in Pennsylvania. 

Quinnipiac University Polling analyst Tim Malloy explained, "McCormick battles low name recognition and a popular incumbent in a closely watched, critical Senate race."

Notably, McCormick has made some apparent progress in closing the gap with Casey, according to the RealClearPolitics Pennsylvania Senate race average, which shows the Democrat incumbent at 49.3% to McCormick's 42.8%.

Businessman and politician Dave McCormick speaks at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on July 16, 2024. (REUTERS/Mike Segar)

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However, recent Fox News polling has also demonstrated the importance of immigration as an issue not just nationally but in Pennsylvania. Immigration was considered the most important issue in the upcoming election by the second-most number of Pennsylvania voters in a July survey, with 16% saying so. The issue considered as the most important by the largest number of people was the economy at 39%. 

The presidential matchup in the coveted battleground state is further expected to influence the Senate election, putting McCormick in a position to reap the benefits of former President Trump potentially taking Pennsylvania.

The July Fox News Poll showed Trump and Vice President Harris tied in the Keystone State. 

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Bundles of blue pills containing fentanyl intercepted at the border. (U.S. Customs and Border Protection)

In response to the latest attack on Casey's immigration record, Casey campaign spokesperson Kate Smart told Fox News Digital in a statement, "Senator Casey is working hand in hand with law enforcement to stop the flow of fentanyl, and has passed bipartisan legislation to sanction Chinese fentanyl producers. Meanwhile, David McCormick invested millions in China’s largest producer of fentanyl and even opposed a bipartisan border deal that would’ve helped prevent fentanyl from being trafficked across our border." 

Smart referenced the fact that McCormick was CEO of Bridgewater Associates from 2020 to 2022, and that as of 2021, the company had a nearly $1.7 million investment in Chinese company Humanwell across seven different hedge funds, according to publicly available records with the Department of Labor.

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Dave McCormick (Getty Images)

However, the pharmaceutical manufacturing company produces medical-grade opiates and is not one of the companies the U.S. has identified as a producer of chemical fentanyl precursors, which are transported illegally through the southern border. 

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According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, "[I]llicit fentanyl, primarily manufactured in foreign clandestine labs and smuggled into the United States through Mexico, is being distributed across the country and sold on the illegal drug market." 

The agency has pointed to illicitly manufactured fentanyl as the primary cause of the substantial increase in overdose deaths due to synthetic opioids.

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.