Governor Casey's Revenge

I have become increasingly frightened by the possibility of an Obama presidency. Nevertheless, seeing the Clintons unable to get their way has provided some perverse moments of satisfaction. Also, I have been quite disappointed with Pennsylvania Senator Bob Casey Jr. who has not lived up to his father's legacy. Gov. Bob Casey Sr. provided a model of what a faithful Catholic Democrat would look like. So while Casey Jr.'s endorsement of Obama does not thrill me it does provide one satisfying result: Revenge form the grave for Casey Sr. Remember that in 1992 Bill Clinton kept the good governor (whose victory in a big state over a pro-choice Republican was quite an upset and should have made him a star in the party) from speaking at the Democratic National Convention because of his strong pro-life position. But Kathy Taylor, a pro-choice Republican --from Pennsylvania no less -- did address the convention. From the NYT story:

Mr. Casey’s father, the state’s former governor, had a chilly relationship with Mrs. Clinton’s husband dating from Mr. Clinton’s first campaign for president in 1992. The elder Mr. Casey was strongly against abortion rights and did not approve of Mr. Clinton, who in turn shut Mr. Casey out of the Democratic convention. Another long-time Casey ally said that during the 1992 campaign, Mr. Casey refused to attend a dinner in his home county, Lackawanna, where Mrs. Clinton was campaigning for her husband. On election night in 1992, Mrs. Clinton closely tracked the results in Lackawanna, which her husband won.

A Casey endorsement is huge in Pennsylvania -- whether from father or son. I can't help but think that Gov. Casey is looking down from heaven and thoroughly enjoying the fact that 16 years after he was shut out of the convention, the Clintons really need a favor from his family -- and they aren't going to get it.