Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA), once a self-proclaimed "pro-life Democrat," now believes that the term is "antiquated."
In a recent interview, Casey said that the ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, which reversed the precedent set by Roe v. Wade, altered the conversation. “I don't believe that the terminologies we used before Dobbs make much sense anymore,” he told the Messenger.
FIVE SUPREME COURT CASES TO WATCH WHEN JUSTICES RETURN FROM SUMMER RECESS
“It's almost the terminology of pre-Dobbs is antiquated," he said.
For the Pennsylvania Democrat, the debate now revolves around support for or opposition to limitations on abortion.
“It's what kind of country you're going to be: Are we going to be a country that bans abortion?” Casey asked. “That's where I think Dobbs, really in so many ways, it was not just the overturning of a 49-year right, but it completely changed the conversation about the way forward, which is to kind of split people into two lanes — you are either going to support banning abortion or not.”
Since Dobbs was decided in 2022, 20 states across the country have imposed limits on abortion prior to viability, ranging from absolute bans to an 18-week limitation.
“It's really a basic question," he said. "We are either going to be a country that recognizes a right and does not support a ban, or you're going to go in the direction” of states passing and enforcing strict limits, and “an entire political party trying to pass some type of national ban."
Several of the candidates for the Republican presidential nomination in 2024 have vowed to sign a federal limit on abortion or acknowledged the need for a federal role in governing the procedure.
Casey is vying for reelection in 2024 in Pennsylvania, a key battleground state. The state currently has a Democratic governor as well as two Democratic senators.
Republican David McCormick, who ran for Senate in 2022 but was bested in the primary by Trump-endorsed candidate Dr. Mehmet Oz, is considering challenging Casey. He has described himself as "staunchly pro-life."
Ultimately, Oz was defeated by progressive Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA), securing the open seat as Democratic.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
In the 2022 midterm elections, Pennsylvanians cited abortion as one of their motivating issues, alongside the economy. Further, in a 2022 Franklin and Marshall College poll, more than half of the state supported abortion "under certain circumstances," however the circumstances were not specified. Only 37% supported abortion under any circumstances.
Casey's father, Robert Patrick Casey Sr., was known for his anti-abortion stance in the Democratic Party and famously opposed the Supreme Court's decision in Planned Parenthood v. Casey.