(Julianna Frieman, Headline USA) Talk radio 1210 WPHT host Rich Zeoli said Gov. Josh Shapiro, D-Pa., must have been mortified as Democrats slowwalked accepting Republican Senator-elect Dave McCormick’s win.
McCormick unseated three-term Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., who refused to concede the race days after his GOP challenger was projected as the winner.
Democrat Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer initially withheld McCormick’s invitation to Tuesday’s Senate orientation, prompting Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, to offer to “personally escort” the excluded Republican into the Capitol.
I’m willing to personally escort @DaveMcCormickPA into the Capitol for new-senator orientation
I’d like to see how they’d keep him out if he literally walked into “the room where it happens” https://t.co/6grLl0eUcf
— Mike Lee (@BasedMikeLee) November 10, 2024
Zeoli told Fox and Friends First that Democrats are trying to “milk” Casey’s name until the very end—but suggested that Shapiro fears being viewed as an election denier.
“The Casey name is a legend in Pennsylvania, right? His dad was governor back in the nineties, one of the last of the moderate Democrats,” Zeoli said. “They are trying to milk this for everything it’s possibility worth. Squeeze every dime out of the Casey name.”
Radio host Rich Zeoli says Democrat Gov. Josh Shapiro is “not happy” that Sen. Bob Casey refuses to concede.
Shapiro does not want to appear to be an election denier, @Richzeoli says.
Senator-elect Dave McCormick is set to be escorted to Senate orientation today after Chuck… pic.twitter.com/VwchaXj9qF
— Julianna Frieman (@JuliannaFrieman) November 12, 2024
Zeoli mentioned a large ballot dump Monday night that did not affect McCormick’s margin over Casey.
He said Democrats would continue to prolong McCormick’s race as long as possible, bringing up the possibility that the party could have been trying to prevent the incoming Republican from voting for the next Senate majority leader on Wednesday.
“I wonder about that right now, and I’m a little bit concerned about that,” Zeoli said in his interview that aired before Schumer changed his tune early Tuesday and decided to allow McCormick and Democrat Arizona Senator-elect Ruben Gallego to attend Senate orientation.
Looking forward to joining the Senate freshman class of 2025 for orientation this week!
I’m honored to represent the people of Pennsylvania, and will fight hard to make sure their voices are heard in Washington.
Let’s get to work!
— Dave McCormick (@DaveMcCormickPA) November 11, 2024
Zeoli speculated that Shapiro was “not happy” about McCormick’s dragged-out race because he likely intends on running for president come 2028.
Vice President Kamala Harris snubbed Shapiro for Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz when picking her running mate in a decision criticized in hindsight as a political blunder for Democrats.
“Casey’s the past, and Shapiro’s looking is looking to the future,” Zeoli said.
Zeoli said Shapiro must already be gearing up to fundraiser in Iowa and to do his “fake Barack Obama accent” in South Carolina.
“He does not want to get mired down in a dispute over whether or not that they are accepting the election results,” the radio host added. “He wants this to go away as soon as possible.”
Julianna Frieman is a freelance writer published by the Daily Caller, Headline USA, The Federalist, and The American Spectator. Follow her on Twitter at @JuliannaFrieman.
