An insurance broker goes to Cleveland

Pennsylvania agency owner Barry Casper loved his experience at the Republican National Convention last week, representing the state’s 8th Congressional District

Insurance News

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When Barry Casper first met Donald Trump, he wasn’t necessarily a supporter. The Telford, Pennsylvania insurance agency owner had voted for both Democrats and Republicans in the past, and was undecided on which candidate he would support in the 2016 election.

But Trump impressed him.

“I was at a rally of his and he paused to ask me a couple of questions – how I thought the race was going, which way I thought Pennsylvania would vote. And he listened to my answer. I was stunned that he was listening to me,” said Casper. “That was my first, personal interaction with him, and it wasn’t fake. I know fakes.”

Casper, owner of Barry Casper Insurance, has an Air Force background and a lifelong interest in the political process, as well as in community involvement in general. His agency, which he has run since 2008, provides insurance solutions specifically for churches and ministries in the region.

Through those connections, Casper came to hear of Donald Trump’s involvement in the nonprofit world – donating a home here, paying off college debt there, and sending his private plane to bring home members of the US Military at Christmas.

With that foundation, Casper came to support Trump as both a successful businessman and as a politician. His role as an insurance agency owner also played into his decision to support Trump, he said.

“I like his ideas of paring down bureaucracy. There is more and more regulation creeping into the insurance business every minute, and we just don’t need anymore,” said Casper. “It’s hard enough the way it is now.”

He feels strongly about a number of other issues in the election, but for insurance professionals, he believes there is one that dominates all others – the economy.

“When there’s less business, it means fewer policies we get to write,” he said simply.

So, when Casper received an email seeking delegates to represent Pennsylvania’s 8th Congressional District at the Republican National Convention, he replied.

“I was one of three delegates chosen out of an original 178 applicants after a series of interviews, so I really lucked out,” he said.

And so Casper, along with his daughter – another delegate from Pennsylvania – headed to Cleveland to vote for their chosen candidate. Both had a wonderful experience, he said.

“Listening to the passion, the energy in the room was just incredible,” he said. “We met delegates from across the nation, including some from Guam, and everyone was very positive. It felt like we were there, carrying on the dream of the initial Congress.”

And he cheered particularly hard when Trump took the stage.

“I hope he heard my voice over the others,” Casper said. “I was right there at the front.”




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