McCormick grills cheesesteaks and talks campaign issues at Geno’s in Philadelphia
By John Cole, Pennsylvania Capital-Star
PHILADELPHIA— His campaign bus apparently got stuck attempting to make a turn a block away on a narrow street, so GOP U.S. Senate candidate David McCormick hoofed it to Geno’s Steaks on Wednesday, where, after first mistakenly walking up to the French fry window, ordered a few whiz wits for supporters outside in the rain and took a turn at the famed eatery’s grill.
Even though some locals consider them tourist spots, politicians seeking statewide or national office in Pennsylvania are all but required to visit Geno’s or nearby Pat’s King of Steaks for cheesesteaks to show off their bonafides in the City of Brotherly Love. Mehmet Oz stopped by both during his run for U.S. Senate in 2022 (although Pat’s threw some shade his way on social media). Former President Donald Trump visited Pat’s last year and went to Geno’s during his 2016 campaign. Barack Obama stopped by Pat’s during his first bid for the White House in 2008, and Pennsylvania native and then-Vice President Joe Biden grabbed a whiz without at Pat’s in 2010.
On Wednesday, McCormick was joined by U.S. Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT), Chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), former U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.), and other Pennsylvania Republican officials.
“He thinks Pennsylvania is so damn important he wanted to come here and be in the rain,” McCormick said, as he stood with his arm around Daines as they arrived at Geno’s.
Following his meal and stint at the grill, McCormick took questions from reporters inside the restaurant.
He was asked about the decision by the Florida Supreme Court to greenlight a six week abortion ban and whether he’d like to see a similar ban in Pennsylvania. McCormick said he wasn’t going to comment on other states. “I think this is an issue that’s very polarizing and we need to find common ground in Pennsylvania,” McCormick said. Democrats have blasted McCormick for what they view as his shifting stance on abortion rights.
Abortion is legal up to 24 weeks of pregnancy in Pennsylvania. McCormick called for “common ground” on contraception, broad support for adoption services, and restrictions on “late-term” abortions.
McCormick has called his Democratic opponent, U.S. Sen. Bob Casey “extreme” on abortion rights. When pressed Wednesday, McCormick declined to say how late into pregnancy he thinks abortion should be legal.
“Pennsylvanians have to decide, they’ve decided with their legislation,” McCormick said. “I don’t expect that’s going to change anytime soon.”
McCormick also said Wednesday that mail-in ballots would be important in the upcoming election. Politico reported last week that McCormick said he was “really worried” about the Democratic Party’s “built-in advantage” on mail-in ballots, even as former President Donald Trump has railed against it repeatedly over the years, including on the 2024 campaign trail.
GOP backs voting by mail, yet turns to courts to restrict it in battleground states
McCormick formally endorsed Trump on March 6, following the news that former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley was suspending her campaign for the GOP nomination for president.
“We’ve got to embrace mail-in ballots across Pennsylvania. We need to close that gap,” McCormick said Wednesday. “And I think there’s a lot of momentum to do that, a lot of support across the Republican Party to do that. I know President Trump’s team is very focused on that as well and so I’m optimistic that we’re going to be able to make up a lot of ground on that.”
As recently as February, Trump called mail-in voting “totally corrupt.”
President Joe Biden’s campaign along with the Pennsylvania Democratic Party recently opened 14 campaign offices across the state. McCormick shrugged off concerns about Trump’s campaign having less of a footprint in Pennsylvania right now, saying there’s a “great coordinated effort” from Trump in the state, as well as coordination with his campaign and the Pennsylvania Republican Party, although he didn’t elaborate.
In 2016, Trump became the first Republican candidate for president to carry the Keystone State since 1988. He lost the state to Biden in 2020.
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McCormick said he believes that his and Trump’s campaigns can complement each other in Pennsylvania this year.
“President Trump’s gonna get out folks in those Republican counties. He’s got a great turnout in the base. He’s proven that in ‘16 and ‘20, so I think he’s going to help me in that respect,” McCormick said. “And I think I can help him because I think it can appeal to voters across Pennsylvania, so I think the two of us are very aligned. And I think his campaign can help mine and mine can help his.”
While Trump carried Pennsylvania in 2016, Toomey secured reelection, beating Democratic challenger Katie McGinty, the last time a Republican won a race for U.S. Senate in the Keystone State.
Toomey said Wednesday he believes McCormick is up to the challenge of facing the three-term Casey, although Casey is currently leading McCormick in the polls. “Senator Casey has been elected three times, so nobody running against him would take that lightly and Dave certainly doesn’t take that lightly,” Toomey said. “It’s going to be a tough race.”
Toomey agreed that Trump can help McCormick’s campaign in rural areas of the commonwealth, and McCormick will have stronger appeal to suburban voters.
During the 2024 campaign, Toomey backed Haley’s campaign for president over Trump before she dropped out after Super Tuesday. In 2021, Toomey voted to convict Trump following the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol in Washington D.C.
He told reporters on Wednesday that his personal views of Trump have not changed.
An Emerson College Poll conducted March 10-13 showed Casey leading McCormick by 4 points, while Trump leads Biden by 4 points in the Keystone State. The Cook Political Report, a national ratings outlet, describes the race as Leans Democratic.
Earlier in the day, McCormick held a campaign event in Shavertown, alongside former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum and U.S. Rep. Dan Meuser (R-9th District).
McCormick’s campaign announced on Wednesday that it raised $6.2 million in the first three months of the year, which included $1 million of his own money. This would be slightly behind his fourth quarter haul, when his campaign raised $6.4 million, which also included a $1 million loan from the candidate to the campaign.
Casey’s campaign raised $3.6 million in the final quarter of 2023, but has not announced the totals for his first quarter of the year.
McCormick is slated to speak at the Pennsylvania Leadership Conference on Friday in Harrisburg.
Pennsylvania Capital-Star is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Pennsylvania Capital-Star maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Kim Lyons for questions: info@penncapital-star.com. Follow Pennsylvania Capital-Star on Facebook and Twitter.
