Dave interviews with CNN's Manu Raju in Pennsylvania

Democrats are in the middle of a tough battle to hold on to control of the Senate this fall with Democratic senators and red and purple States across the country fighting to keep their seats and that includes Bob Casey of Pennsylvania he's being challenged by Republican Dave McCormack and new CNN pulling out this week shows it is neck and neck M's not here with us in person today obviously uh but he did traveled to the Keystone State this past week where he hit the trail with both candidates and brought back this report about their critical race hello Pittsburgh Senator Bob Casey is sounding the alarm I need your help in this race as a three-term Democrat campaigns with vice president kamla Harris Casey is locked in a dead Heat against Republican David McCormack hey how are you and about to get swamped by a GOP bombardment on the airwaves if the Border was Secure chances are my son will be alive today Harris and Casey dangerous radicals cormick and his allies are preparing to spend more than $100 million on air in just the final two months of the campaign more than half from an outside group designed solely to help the Republican all giving Republicans a roughly $40 million on ear advantage over Democrats an edge bigger than any other Senate race I think I'm the under I don't have a personal Super PAC funded by Wall Street billionaires I don't care what they they spend I'm I'm going to win this race but it's going to be a really difficult race with the West Virginia seat almost certain to turn red Democrats must hang on to Pennsylvania in seven other seats simply to keep the Senate at 5050 Bob Casey will help us do that but a new CNN SSRS poll finds a Casey McCormack race at a 4646 tie and since 2016 the GOP has cut into Democrats voter registration advantage in the state so I'm the underdog there's no doubt about that but the reason the race is closing is that Senator Casey is just out of touch with Pennsylvania he's been a weak Senator as he stumped in rural Pennsylvania last week McCormack aligned himself with Donald Trump up to a point Trump had said that he won Pennsylvania 2020 that it was stolen from him do you agree with them I don't believe the election was stolen so president Trump and I don't agree on everything uh but we agree on a lot of things do you consider yourself a magga republican you know I consider myself a Dave mccm Republican my positions are very much in line with what president Trump has said on policies I'm a guy that's put America First his whole life after serving in the military and then working in the Bush Administration McCormick ran a major hedge fund Bridgewater Associates now fodder for Democratic attack ads like this Dave McCormack got rich really rich by investing in China China China McCormack defended his tenure when you're the one of the biggest Global Investors in the world 3% of its Holdings were in China that's a lot of money that's what we're talking about there's no Global firm in the world that doesn't have exposure to China as Casey attacks McCormack's character the Republican turning his attention to Casey's ties to Harris he's voted 98% of the time for Biden Harris why are you aligning yourself with her well look in this state U her campaign already has brought a real lift to the the turnout Dynamics would you consider yourself a Biden Harris Democrat oh I don't I don't put a label on what issues do you break from her on oh there I'm I'm not going to try to itemize issues that we might have not have total agreement on in 2022 McCormack lost the Senate primary to a trump backed opponent Dr M oz Dr Oz is running against the liberal Wall Street Republican named David McCormack who I've known but now McCormack has been stumping with Trump and was about to go on stage at the July rally where Trump was nearly killed did you ever think back to that day and think that could have been you yeah I didn't think of that at the time then I got home that night and talked to all six of my daughters and they were freaked out but McCormack's positions in 2022 are inviting fresh scrutiny including comments at a debate when he did not mention a support of abortion exceptions for rape or incest I believe in the very rare instances there should be exceptions for for life of the mother Dave mccormic praised the Supreme Court now turned into a series of attack ads you only talk about life of the mother why did you always talk about that well I said uh before the debate after the debate um over and over again that I support all three exceptions in the debate I didn't say I was against the other exceptions I simply said that I was for that exception you wouldn't cify roie Wade if you had a chance to vote for it would you you know my my position is very clear I think the state should decide voters should decide Casey had previously harbored anti-abortion views including saying this in 2002 my position has always been a pro-life position my position has always been the uh favoring the one exception for the life of the mother now Casey says the do's decision overturning row has changed the dynamic but do you still consider yourself pro-life I don't think those terms mean much anymore I I really think the the choice now before the American people is if you support a ban which means you support the overturning of row and all that comes with it or you support uh this right and I do and our thanks to Manu for that story our panel is back with us now andna to start with you when you look at Bob Casey why do you think he is having a tougher time compared to other uh Democratic candidates in these tough Senate races who are outperforming the top of the ticket I think Pennsylvania is a tough state for Democrats Bob Casey is always in a tight race every single time he has advantages though the Casey name his father was in politics the fact that he's been a senator for quite a while and I think when you see what they're trying to do on attacking China and abortion those are going to be two of the big issues that Democrats play over over and over again as they try to EK into and continue to try to edge up those numbers on the voting and they're going to look to kamla Harris to actually help deliver some of those votes do you think Donald Trump is helping Dave mccormic K La Harris hurting Bob Casey a combination of both well what's interesting is this this detente right that they have because given their history in the 2022 midterms when he backed uh M Oz even though uh McCormack had a a slew of former Donald Trump Aids on the campaign it's a calculation I I think that that for Trump that uh he could bring McCormick across the Finish Line uh and just looking at some of the swing state polls most of the other de uh Republicans have been trailing Trump by about four or five points he's right there with them so they're hoping to write each other's coattails yeah I mean Pennsylvania is so key uh proving to be key to just not just control the Senate but also the White House yes and I I should declare a conflict of interest here I'm actually a good friend of David mcor's wife DEA pal who was as you know National Deputy National Security adviser to Donald Trump in his first year um but I do think the fenel deaths play into this a lot there've been 4,000 in Pennsylvania alone in the last year which is incredibly high and I know that one of David's ads has really gone viral it's a local policeman talking about his own son dying from it and these are really difficult issues to resolve and you saw there that Bob Casey's got low energy around this he's talking quite I mean I mean he's just he's got a squirly position on abortion and he's low energy all right than