What Happened to ‘Pro-life’ Bob Casey Jr.?

T he late Bob Casey Sr., former governor of Pennsylvania, was one of the most prominent pro-life Democrats in American history. The “Casey” in Planned Parenthood v. Casey, he was denied a speaking spot at the 1992 Democratic convention over his pro-life stance.

Casey’s son, Bob Casey Jr., who has served as a U.S. senator from Pennsylvania since 2007, has claimed the “pro-life” label during each of his campaigns, but he was never the stalwart his father was. For example, Casey Jr. rolled over without a fight to vote for Obamacare in 2010 when it expanded taxpayer subsidies for elective abortion.

Casey Jr. has, however, consistently been one of just a few Democrats in Congress to vote for a bill that banned most abortions later than 20 weeks of pregnancy. So it was a more than a little surprising when Casey did not join pro-life Democrat Joe Manchin (and all Republican senators) in filibustering a radical abortion bill last month that would enshrine in federal law a right to abortion through all nine months of pregnancy in all 50 states.

Ahead of the vote, Casey said in a written statement:

The question before the U.S. Senate on this vote is whether the Senate will proceed to debate the Women’s Health Protection Act. Given the recent Supreme Court rulings, potential rulings this year, and the Republican Party’s clear and unrelenting use of this issue as a political weapon, I will vote “yes” to allow debate on this bill. I have long worked to reduce the number of unintended pregnancies and abortions, and I hope that as part of this debate we will also focus on new and substantial funding for pregnant women, infants, and children.

Casey’s statement didn’t indicate whether he actually supports the underlying bill, and the Los Angeles Times reported that Casey’s “office did not answer follow-up questions on whether Casey would also support final passage of the legislation, or whether he has changed his position on abortion rights.”

I recently caught up with Casey in a Capitol hallway but was similarly unable to get the Pennsylvania senator to spell out his views on abortion law.

Asked if he supported passage of the WHPA, Casey simply said: “We have to debate it.”

Does he think there should be a core legal right to abortion? “Look, I think the debate is something we should have,” Casey said. “We’ll see what the [Supreme] Court does. We don’t know what we’re going to be left with after the Court determination. It seems like they’re ready to make major change in abortion policy.”

Does he still support the 20-week limit on abortion? “I’ve always supported that,” he replied.

Would Casey vote for a bill prohibiting abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy? “I’d take a look at any bill that gets proposed,” he said.

It’s unclear whether Casey’s position on the WHPA is the result of changing principles or changing politics in the Democratic Party. When Casey was recruited by Chuck Schumer in 2006 to run against incumbent Republican Rick Santorum, Casey’s pro-life stance was seen as an asset. But the 61-year-old Casey is up for reelection in 2024, and it’s not clear that he could win a Democratic primary as a pro-life candidate. The only House Democrat who voted against the WHPA in 2021, Henry Cuellar of Texas, is currently in the fight of his political life against a progressive primary challenger.

In 2018, Casey told Politico he still considered himself a pro-life Democrat. “I think it’s clear to most people that the description of pro-life Democrat is accurate. I’ve been very consistent.” But when I asked Casey last month if he considers himself pro-life or pro-choice, he didn’t answer one way or the other. “A lot of those terms have come to mean a lot of different things the last couple of years,” Casey said. It’s just one of the many things Bob Casey Jr. apparently no longer knows about himself.