Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey (D.) has said he will "work across the aisle" for Pennsylvania’s senior citizens. His pick to lead his "Seniors for Casey" coalition has likened Republicans to Nazis and called for treason charges against GOP lawmakers who blocked a Supreme Court nomination.
Brad Kirsch has compared the Jan. 6 riot to Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor, which killed 2,403 American soldiers. He’s repeatedly compared conservatives to Nazis and urged jail time for Americans who refused to wear masks during the coronavirus pandemic. And he’s called for treason charges against Republican senators who blocked President Barack Obama’s nomination of Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court.
That’s just a small sample of the combative social media missives from Kirsch, whom Casey tapped to chair his "Seniors for Casey" coalition last week.
"I have known and trusted Bob Casey long before he first ran for U.S. Senator," Kirsch said in a Casey campaign press release announcing the coalition. "We should never abandon this foundational support that has served our needs and the re-election of Senator Casey will assure its continuity."
By picking Kirsch, Casey could alienate conservative or moderate senior voters in the commonwealth. And Casey will need those votes in what promises to be the toughest election fight of his 17-year career. Casey narrowly leads Republican Dave McCormick in recent polls, but he faces a deficit among voters over 50. That cohort supports McCormick over Casey by a 48-47 margin, according to an AARP poll last month.
Kirsch, a member of the Pennsylvania Democratic State Committee, has leveled extreme charges against Republicans. In 2021, he compared the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol to Pearl Harbor, declaring that both should "be declared a day of infamy."
In 2016, he accused Republicans of "treason" and "mutiny against our Constitutional process" for refusing to vote on the Supreme Court nomination of Merrick Garland, and said it provides justification to "overturn every Senator who refuses to do their sworn duty."
In January 2021, he proposed "assault charge[s] on those who refuse to wear masks" during the pandemic.
Comparing Republicans to Nazis is a common theme on Kirsch’s Facebook feed. In February 2023, Kirsch said "Fox propagandists are as dangerous as Nazi Goebles [sic]," a reference to the Nazi Party’s chief propagandist Joseph Goebbels. He decried Elon Musk’s ownership of X, formerly Twitter, which he called "as dangerous as Goebbels propaganda."
In announcing the seniors coalition, Casey’s campaign said he has "championed" issues affecting seniors, including protection for Medicare and Social Security, protection from financial scams, and "hold[ing] long-term care facilities accountable."
That hasn’t always been the case for Casey. As state auditor more than two decades ago, Casey faced criticism from some in his own party for failing to uncover extreme financial mismanagement at a nursing home that employed his brother-in-law as a lobbyist.
The Casey campaign did not respond to a request for comment.