Scoop: McCormick PAC launches big ad buy in Pennsylvania Senate race

Driving the news: Keystone Renewal PAC's first ad focuses on McCormick's time at West Point and his earning a Bronze Star while serving in the Gulf War.

• The ad promoting the former hedge fund CEO will run for four weeks beginning on cable, broadcast and digital platforms in the Pittsburgh, Scranton, Harrisburg and Johnstown markets.
• McMormick's campaign aims to make his military service a constant theme in his campaign against Casey, who's seeking his fourth six-year term in the Senate.
• McCormick is making his second run for the Senate. In 2022 he lost in the GOP primary to Mehmet Oz, who went on to lose to Democrat John Fetterman in the midterm election.

Between the lines: The McCormick ad's focus on "duty, honor and country" echoes an ad his official campaign put out last week.

• The PAC announced in January that it had raised $18 million, setting up one of the most expensive elections in the country this year.
• Casey has backing from the Democratic Party's Senate-focused super PAC and ended the first quarter of this year with $11 million cash on hand, compared to $6.4 million for McCormick.
• McCormick — a former CEO of the Bridgewater Associates hedge fund — spent millions of his personal fortune on his 2022 campaign and can self-fund his campaign this time as well.