News

Sanders, Clinton and Kasich speak in Pittsburgh area ahead of Pa. primary

PITTSBURGH — Three presidential candidates made campaign stops in the Pittsburgh area, one day before the Pennsylvania primary election.

Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders was the first to make a stop in the Steel City, holding a rally at the University of Pittsburgh.

Before he spoke to hundreds of his supporters at the Fitzgerald Field House on Pitt’s campus, Sanders sat down one-on-one with Channel 11 News. He focused on why public colleges should be free.

"Right now, what we're doing and saying to these young people is we're punishing you. You are being punished for getting an education. That's pretty crazy,” Sanders said.

As for the need to bring back manufacturing jobs in the United States, Sanders said he absolutely could see a rebound in the steel industry in Pittsburgh.

“We are the major consumer society in the world. We purchase a lot of products. There's no reason these products have to be produced in China, Mexico and other low-wage countries,” he said.

Polls show Sanders trailing by double digits in Pennsylvania to Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, who stopped at Westmoreland County Community College in Youngwood.

During her appearance, Clinton said the opioid epidemic, which has hit western Pennsylvania hard, is one of the issues she will address if elected president.

"I am deeply worried about the opioid crisis and the heroin crisis, and we need more treatment options and recovery options,” she said.

Clinton also focused on jobs and how to help restore the middle class.

“We have to grow this economy and that is what I'm proposing. So in addition to infrastructure jobs, I want us to do more to bring back advanced manufacturing here to western Pennsylvania,” she said.

Meanwhile, on the Republican side, Ohio Gov. John Kasich made a stop near his hometown, McKees Rocks, Monday night.

He was met with a warm welcome at Montour High School as he took the stage to hold a town hall.

"I never forgot my home here in Mckees Rocks, and they represent some of the greatest values I have,” he said.

Channel 11 News spoke one-on-one with Kasich about his plan to beat Clinton and his alliance with his opponent, Ted Cruz.

"It's about spending your resources where you know you can get the most return,” he said. “The whole purpose is to stop Hillary Clinton from being president."

Kasich touted his track record as a congressman and governor of Ohio.

“We are now up 420,000 private sector jobs that we didn't have when I came in,” he said.

He wrapped up his event by making some rather personal promises to his 900 supporters who filled the high school.

"We'll all just have a barbecue on the South Lawn, and you're all invited. How would that be?” he said.

Earlier in the day, the GOP presidential candidate was met by supporters and a swarm of media at a diner in Philadelphia. While Kasich said he’s looking forward to Tuesday’s turnout, he was hammered with questions about his newly formed alliance with Cruz.

Kasich will not campaign in Indiana, while Cruz will stay out of New Mexico and Oregon. Kasich told reporters that he’s not giving up on voters in those states, saying it’s just a strategy to spread out resources and dominate when it comes to the general election.

“This is a matter of resources, and we're running a national campaign and we want to use our resources most effectively and we want to stop Hillary Clinton,” he said.

Polls open at 7 a.m. in Pennsylvania Tuesday and close at 8 p.m.

Channel 11 will have LIVE coverage of the results, starting at 8 p.m. on PCNC, WPXI.com and the Channel 11 News app.

Cox Media Group

Most Read