Bob Casey: Representing the People of Pennsylvania
About Bob
When he was elected in 2006, U.S. Senator Bob Casey was the first Pennsylvania Democrat elected to a full Senate term since 1962. Senator Bob Casey believes public service is a privilege and knows that he was elected to fight for Pennsylvania priorities and Pennsylvania values. Senator Casey’s top priorities are fighting to restore Pennsylvania’s economy and create jobs. As a senior member of the Foreign Relations Committee, he is a leader on national security, fighting terrorism and protecting our troops.
As Chairman of the Joint Economic Committee, Senator Casey is focused on putting Americans back to work, improving competitiveness to spur economic growth and helping families hit hard by the recession. He has supported billions of dollars in tax cuts for working families and supported small businesses so they can grow and create jobs. He led the fight to continue the payroll tax cut to put $1,000 on average into the pocket of working families. And he has focused on problems facing Pennsylvania manufacturing, especially unfair trade from countries like China.
Job Creation and Tax Cuts for Pennsylvania Families
Senator Casey led the effort in the Senate to extend the payroll tax cut that will put $1,000 into the pockets of the average family. To help spur job creation, Senator Casey has voted to provide billions for tax cuts to encourage businesses to hire workers and he voted for legislation that provided tens of billions in capital for small businesses to expand their operations.
To spur growth in Pennsylvania’s life sciences industry, Senator Casey introduced the Life Sciences Jobs and Investment Act to promote innovation and job creation in life sciences research and development. To increase funding for medical research, Senator Casey has led the effort to increase funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Senator Casey has received the Pennsylvania Federal Official of the Year award from PA BIO and the Legislator of the Year award from the national Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO).
As a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, Senator Casey secured key victories for Pennsylvania’s agriculture in the Farm Bill. For his work supporting agriculture, Senator Casey has received the Friend of Farm Bureau award from the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau and the Golden Triangle Award from the National Farmers Union.
Targeting Unfair Trade
Senator Casey has called for a crackdown on Chinese currency manipulation that allows China to cheat and put American workers at a disadvantage. He joined a bipartisan group to introduce legislation, passed by the Senate, to make it harder for the Administration to avoid taking action against China. Senator Casey also voted against new NAFTA-style trade agreements because they would put Pennsylvania jobs at risk while not doing enough to level the playing field for Pennsylvania workers. Legislation introduced by Senator Casey to extend the Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) Program was signed into law last year. TAA provides essential help to workers who lose their jobs due to unfair trade practices through no fault of their own.
Increasing Security at Home and Abroad
As Chairman of the Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Near Eastern and South and Central Asian Affairs, Senator Casey has been an outspoken critic of Iran’s nuclear program and he helped pass legislation that has been signed into law to allow tougher sanctions against Iran including his bipartisan Iran Sanctions Enabling Act to make it easier to divest investments in Iran’s oil and natural gas sector. To protect our troops in Afghanistan, Senator Casey has been the leader in the effort to stop the flow of ammonium nitrate, a key ingredient in Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), from Pakistan into Afghanistan.
Changing the Rules in Washington
Senator Casey has helped to lead the effort to end automatic pay increases for members of Congress. He called for strong changes in Senate rules to reduce obstruction and gridlock. The very first amendment introduced by Senator Casey in the Senate was signed into law as part of the landmark ethics reform legislation. Senator Casey’s law shut down the K Street Project and made wrongfully influencing hiring practices a federal crime.
Protecting and Nurturing Children
Senator Casey is a nationally recognized advocate for children because of his work to protect and expand the Children’s Health Insurance Program and to support early childhood education and child care. In recognition of this work, Senator Casey has received numerous awards including the Delaware Valley Association for the Education of Young Children (DVAEYC) Champion for Young Children Award, the Children’s Champion Award from The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and the Champion for Children award from First Focus.
Family and Career
Born and raised in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Bob Casey, 51, graduated from The College of the Holy Cross in 1982 and spent the following year teaching fifth grade and coaching eighth grade basketball in inner city Philadelphia for the Jesuit Volunteer Corps. He received his law degree from Catholic University in 1988 and entered the practice of law in Scranton.
He served two terms as Pennsylvania Auditor General from 1997 to 2005. He also served as Pennsylvania State Treasurer before being elected to the Senate in 2006. In state government, he was a fiscal watchdog who made nursing homes safer, child care more affordable and government more accountable. He led the fight to reform Megan’s Law to better protect Pennsylvania communities and children. He also aggressively fought to stop waste and fraud involving tax dollars and improve the effectiveness of government services and agencies. His efforts directly resulted in changes that saved Pennsylvania taxpayers more than $1 billion.
Senator Casey lives in Scranton with his wife Terese. They have four daughters: Elyse, Caroline, Julia and Marena.