Nazareth’s Gracedale Nursing Home, often referred to as the jewel of Northampton County, is home to about 670 senior citizens. They had a special visitor July 20, when U.S. Sen. Bob Casey stopped by to meet with them and speak with workers. One of them gave him a box filled with tiny Moravian stars, and another provided a Nazareth baseball cap. Casey made sure he greeted every resident he could and then spoke to the staff from a pavilion on the campus.

He described a strong America in which people help each other.

“We’re America,” he said. “We’re a strong country. We have the strongest economy in the world. We have the strongest military in the world. But that same strong country will take care of people. That’s what we do.”

Medicaid helps fund nursing homes like Gracedale. Casey said Medicaid provides complete health coverage for 700,000 Pennsylvanians and assists another 400,000 to acquire health insurance. He warns that “hard right ideologues” plan to undermine the Medicaid program and end Medicaid expansion. Republicans in Congress, he said, plan to cut Medicaid by $1 trillion over the next 10 years. He vowed to fight these cuts.

“We’re not going back to the days where we shortchange health care for people who need it,” he said.

Casey also slammed a GOP lawsuit seeking to invalidate medical coverage for persons who have pre-existing conditions. He pointed out that 133 million Americans have pre-existing conditions, including 5.2 million Pennsylvanians and 643,000 children.

“Are we going to go back to those dark days when someone does not get coverage or treatment because they have a pre-existing condition?” he asked. “My answer is no. We’re going to fight to make sure we never go back to those dark days when your life is controlled by an insurance company.”

Casey had kind words for the Pennsylvania workers and the unions. He said when his father was governor, he commissioned a sculpture of a steelworker installing a bean to remind future governors of the “sweat and blood” of working men and women in Pennsylvania who built our state.

“We’ve allowed the corporate right to denigrate unions, to rob you of your dignity,” he lamented. “Never let them take that dignity away from you. You contribute so much to our country. You protect us, you serve us, you strengthen us, and you work on our behalf. We’ve got to have policies that support you.”

In an interview after his speech, Casey said some of President Donald Trump’s Democratic supporters must be wondering by now why he keeps governing to the right. He is particularly concerned about the Supreme Court’s swing to the right, which may have already dealt a death blow to public sector unions. He is concerned about Trump’s deference to Russian President Vladimir Putin and said Congress needs to take steps to guarantee election security and protect Robert Mueller, special prosecutor.

Casey is seeking re-election in November. His Republican opponent is Congressman Lou Barletta.