Senator Bob Casey Goes On Offense Over Healthcare, Guns, Turkey, And Impeachment
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- U.S. Senator Bob Casey is usually pretty mellow, but not when he talks about some immediate issues facing the nation, especially health care.
"The Republican position, the official position, is to wipe out Medicaid expansion," Casey told KDKA Political Editor Jon Delano. "So they are basically saying, they're kind of giving the middle finger to about 750,000 people in our state who have insurance only because of Medicaid expansion."
Casey's talking about the Trump Administration's effort, through the courts and other actions, to wipe out the Affordable Care Act.
"Take away all those protections, including pre-existing conditions," Senator Casey said.
Casey worries Trump and the Republicans are succeeding.
"Census Bureau tells us 1.9 million fewer Americans have health insurance than when President Trump started, so the sabotage of the system, unfortunately, has worked," he stated.
On gun reform, Casey criticizes Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell for not allowing a vote on House-passed bills on background checks and so-called "red flag" laws.
"If we do nothing, if we take no action, if we don't even debate it in the United States Senate, we are surrendering to a problem," Casey said.
Casey says the President's green light to Turkey to kill America's Kurdish allies endangers American security
"Now we have the possibility that ISIS will be reconstituted. That's the real problem, that ISIS now could have a second act, in a sense."
Delano: Are you worried about that?
Casey: Very worried about it.
On impeachment, Casey has criticized the President for withholding military aid to Ukraine and then asking them to dig up political dirt on an American opponent.
"The evidence there is as clear as day that the President abused his power," Casey said. "I think it was a textbook case of abuse of power."
But the senator insists he will await the evidence in a Senate trial before voting to remove Trump from office.
