Several officials say veteran Republican Sen. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania intends to switch parties, advancing his own hopes of winning a new term next year while pushing Democrats one step closer to a 60-vote filibuster-resistant majority.
The sources said an announcement could come later in the day — or Wednesday. The officials who provided the information did so on condition of anonymity, saying they were not authorized to discuss his plans.
Specter is a 79-year-old veteran of five Senate terms, and one of only a handful of moderate Republicans left in Congress in a party made up largely of conservatives.
I could see him legitimately running as an independent if he lost the primary.
But any one who would switch parties rather than run in a primary and accept the will of the voters isn't really much of a member of that party to begin with.
whomod User some RKMB'ers are Obsessed with Black People Hmmm? 5000+ posts 04/28/09 02:46 PM Reading a post Forum: Politics and Current Events Thread: Sen. Arlen Specter D(?)-Penn.
"A lot of people said, well Specter, take McCain with you, and his daughter. Take McCain and his daughter with you," talk show host Rush Limbaugh declared during the early hour of his Tuesday program.
So really? Rush Limbaugh wants the magic number to go up to 61 now? He really does want to be the leader of the Fascist party, that control NOTHING (well besides the deep south) but is pure in their extremism?
Michael Steele now has to warm up the crazed extremists that control his party even more to save his ineffective ass, so he had THIS to say:
Quote:
"Let's be honest," read a statement from RNC Chairman Michael Steele. "Senator Specter didn't leave the GOP based on principles of any kind. He left to further his personal political interests because he knew that he was going to lose a Republican primary due to his left-wing voting record."
Yeah, that big "left winger" Arlen Specter.
Keep up the extremism guys, it's helping The Democratic Party day by day.
Here's what conservative host Michael Smirconish had to say:
Quote:
"This is a sad day for the GOP," Michael Smerconish, a longtime conservative radio host in Philadelphia, told the Huffington Post. "He is what the party needed to be. They need to cultivate more Specters instead of deriding him as a RINO [Republican In Name Only].... The fact that Michael Steele is deriding him for his left wing record is just the same type of bullshit of playing to the base."
He sees it as a bad thing, i however love it.
Like I say, keep up the extremism guys.
*******************************************
Hardball, right now with Smerconish and Matthews:
"the death of the Republican party" - Chris Matthews
But any one who would switch parties rather than run in a primary and accept the will of the voters isn't really much of a member of that party to begin with.
"A lot of people said, well Specter, take McCain with you, and his daughter. Take McCain and his daughter with you," talk show host Rush Limbaugh declared during the early hour of his Tuesday program.
So really? Rush Limbaugh wants the magic number to go up to 61 now? He really does want to be the leader of the Fascist party, that control NOTHING (well besides the deep south) but is pure in their extremism?
Michael Steele now has to warm up the crazed extremists that control his party even more to save his ineffective ass, so he had THIS to say:
Quote:
"Let's be honest," read a statement from RNC Chairman Michael Steele. "Senator Specter didn't leave the GOP based on principles of any kind. He left to further his personal political interests because he knew that he was going to lose a Republican primary due to his left-wing voting record."
Yeah, that big "left winger" Arlen Specter.
Keep up the extremism guys, it's helping The Democratic Party day by day.
Here's what conservative host Michael Smirconish had to say:
Quote:
"This is a sad day for the GOP," Michael Smerconish, a longtime conservative radio host in Philadelphia, told the Huffington Post. "He is what the party needed to be. They need to cultivate more Specters instead of deriding him as a RINO [Republican In Name Only].... The fact that Michael Steele is deriding him for his left wing record is just the same type of bullshit of playing to the base."
He sees it as a bad thing, i however love it.
Like I say, keep up the extremism guys.
*******************************************
Hardball, right now with Smerconish and Matthews:
"the death of the Republican party" - Chris Matthews
I see you can still use smileys properly.
Where's the rest of the herd? You know, like zzap and all of them? They gonna show up again? They gonna register new ids or use the ones we know?
Specter's always carried a Liberal philosophy and been republican in name alone.
This is especially demonstrated by his desire to circumvent an eventual loss to Toomey. He's so desperate and hungry for power in the senate that he's taken the decision-making out of the hands of the voters who gave him his position.
Gauging the expected reaction of the extremist party and it's complete failure to get a simple message, we'll probably be seeing a 61 seat majority any day now.
But any one who would switch parties rather than run in a primary and accept the will of the voters isn't really much of a member of that party to begin with.
See also: Lieberman, Joseph
Incorrect, as usual, Snarf. Lieberman ran in the primary. He became an independent when he didn't win the party nomination and won the general election against both parties' candidates.
This probably doesn't change things all that much. I doubt that Specter is going to be voting the party line now that he's democrat. That isn't a bad thing either.
But any one who would switch parties rather than run in a primary and accept the will of the voters isn't really much of a member of that party to begin with.
See also: Lieberman, Joseph
Incorrect, as usual, Snarf. Lieberman ran in the primary. He became an independent when he didn't win the party nomination and won the general election against both parties' candidates.
Yes, but he didn't accept the will of the voters. And once he won, he became a Republican.
But any one who would switch parties rather than run in a primary and accept the will of the voters isn't really much of a member of that party to begin with.
See also: Lieberman, Joseph
Incorrect, as usual, Snarf. Lieberman ran in the primary. He became an independent when he didn't win the party nomination and won the general election against both parties' candidates.
Yes, but he didn't accept the will of the voters. And once he won, he became a Republican.
As bsams pointed out, Lieberman never became a Republican. He's an independent who caucuses with the Dems still. He did accept the will of the Democrat voters and left their party. He then accepted the will of the voters of the entire state of Conn. and remained their Senator. Facts, Snarf. Facts.
It's understandable that somebody could mistake Lieberman for being a republican. During the election he campaigned for McCain and there were upset democrats calling him all sorts of things.
It's understandable that somebody could mistake Lieberman for being a republican. During the election he campaigned for McCain and there were upset democrats calling him all sorts of things.
yeah I remember you were pretty pissy about that...
It's understandable that somebody could mistake Lieberman for being a republican. During the election he campaigned for McCain and there were upset democrats calling him all sorts of things.
yeah I remember you were pretty pissy about that...
Originally Posted By: Matter-eater Man
....
Lieberman did a great job endorsing McCain. He doesn't have much clout as a democrat these days but less than 8yrs ago he was running for the VP slot himself. He did it without sounding like he was crazy but as an old friend stepping across party lines to endorse somebody he really respects & likes.
It didn't take long for Sen. Arlen Specter to let his new colleagues in the Democratic Party know that his vote won't be taken for granted.
A day after abandoning the Republican Party for the Democrats, saying the latter better represented his political philosophy, Specter voted against President Obama's budget.
Whomod really got to BASAMS I see. Anyhoo I called this one correctly. Specter isn't going to be voting a strict party line just like he didn't as a republican.
Specter isn't going to be voting a strict party line just like he didn't as a republican.
btw thats why i and everyone else were laughing at whomod. it's not a big deal. Specter has never voted party line, it doesnt really change anything, he'll vote for whatever he feels is in his best interests regardless of party affiliation. most intelligent people understand this was strictly a shrewd re-election move. his state does not have open primaries so he picked the party that he stood the best chance winning in. i expect to still agree and disagree with him on the same issues regardless of his affiliation, like i do all politicians.
how far has whomod fallen when MEM is forced to come to the rescue?
Ooops sorry I shouldn't have pointed out how your obsessed with him. Please continue on with whatever you think your doing. I'm sure it's upsetting whomod something terrible
how far has whomod fallen when MEM is forced to come to the rescue?
Ooops sorry I shouldn't have pointed out how your obsessed with him. Please continue on with whatever you think your doing. I'm sure it's upsetting whomod something terrible
Specter isn't going to be voting a strict party line just like he didn't as a republican.
btw thats why i and everyone else were laughing at whomod. it's not a big deal. Specter has never voted party line, it doesnt really change anything, he'll vote for whatever he feels is in his best interests regardless of party affiliation. most intelligent people understand this was strictly a shrewd re-election move. his state does not have open primaries so he picked the party that he stood the best chance winning in. i expect to still agree and disagree with him on the same issues regardless of his affiliation, like i do all politicians.
He could have just voted party line more if it was all just about his self interest. There are benefits to running with the herd you may have noticed.
And it's not a given that he won't have some competition in the next democratic primary either.
At first glance, with Democrats a hair away from a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate, one would expect President Obama to have no trouble hand-picking a replacement for retiring Supreme Court Justice David Souter.
But in an ironic twist, Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter's switch to the Democratic Party this week could give Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee the upper hand in rejecting a nominee they find unacceptable.
That's because the Judiciary Committee, where Specter was the ranking minority member, requires the consent of at least one Republican to end debate and move a nominee to the full Senate for a vote.
"I think, in narrow terms, it could present a procedural problem at the committee level, unless the Democrats are going to change the rules of the committee midstream," William Jacobson, a professor of law at Cornell University, told FOXNews.com.
"Most people presume in a controversial nomination that Arlen Specter would have been the one most likely to vote with Democrats, since he prides himself on being independent of Republicans. But now that he moves over to the Democratic side, the president and Democrats lost their most likely minority vote."
A committee aide to Sen. Patrick Leahy, chairman of the panel, declined to comment on anything connected to Souter's expected retirement or a Supreme Court nomination.
Before the Republicans on the Judiciary Committee can form an opposition strategy, they will have to elect a new committee party leader. Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, has served as chairman before and would need a waiver from members to serve again. Next in line would be Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley.
Jacobson believes the most likely Republican to help Democrats on the committee is South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, who was one of the Gang of 14, a group of seven Democrats and seven Republicans who averted a showdown on President Bush's judicial nominees in 2005.
"If Obama were to nominate someone clearly viewed as a political appointee ... then I think Lindsey Graham would be subject to pressure," Jacobson said. "On the other hand, if he were to nominate someone Republicans don't like but is qualified, like (Solicitor General) Elena Kagan, would Lindsey Graham feel compelled to go along with the gang of 14? I think that is something that remains to be seen."
Graham's office did not respond to a request for comment.
Democrats aren't powerless to stop a potential filibuster at the committee level. They could change the rules to allow the committee to vote on the nominee and send a recommendation to the full Senate without Republican consent.
But Jacobson believes that's unlikely to happen.
"The senators, as political as they can be, they have tended to put value on the rules of conduct," he said. "To change the rules to get a particular nominee confirmed would set a dangerous precedent. I doubt Democrats would want to do that."
He added that changing the rules might tick off the unpredictable Specter who has developed a strong respect for tradition.
"If Democrats were to change the rule to force through a nominee, he might vote with Republicans," Jacobson said.
The Senate dealt a blow tonight to Sen. Arlen Specter's hold on seniority in several key committees, a week after the Pennsylvanian's party switch placed Democrats on the precipice of a 60-seat majority.
Democrats placed Specter in one of the two most junior slots on each of the five committees for the remainder of this Congress, which goes through December 2010. Democrats have suggested that they will consider revisiting Specter's seniority claim at the committee level only after the midterm elections next year.
Without any assurance of seniority, Specter loses a major weapon in his campaign to win reelection in 2010: the ability to claim that his nearly 30 years of Senate service places him in key positions to benefit his constituents.
Whoopsie! Maybe he should have gotten that deal in writing before he stabbed his own party in the back.
Yes, let's mock and ridicule a man who has served his state proudly in the Senate for over 3 decades simply because he's switched parties.
God, you are stupid.
Originally Posted By: allan1
Where I'm at in PA,Sen. Specter isn't well liked anyway.....this mess just cinches it.
No, Allan. Didn't you read what King Stupid wrote? Everyone LOVED Spector until this. Now people are simply mocking and ridiculing "a man who has served his state proudly in the Senate for over 3 decades simply because he's switched parties."
Yes, let's mock and ridicule a man who has served his state proudly in the Senate for over 3 decades simply because he's switched parties.
God, you are stupid.
Originally Posted By: allan1
Where I'm at in PA,Sen. Specter isn't well liked anyway.....this mess just cinches it.
No, Allan. Didn't you read what King Stupid wrote? Everyone LOVED Spector until this. Now people are simply mocking and ridiculing "a man who has served his state proudly in the Senate for over 3 decades simply because he's switched parties."
Sen. Arlen Specter (D-Pa.) today said he was guaranteed seniority on committees by Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) in the final negotiations before his party switch last week, talks that, according to Specter, also included a pledge that he would become the next chairman of the Judiciary Committee in several years.
Specter stood by his version of the one-on-one talks with Reid, despite the Senate leader's contradictory statements on the matter and the resolution that passed last night placing Specter in the most junior slot on most committees on which he serves.
"When I talked to Senator Reid he assured me that my seniority would be as if I came in (as a Democrat) in 1980, and I relied . . . on his representation, and that's the long and short of it," Specter said in an interview in his Capitol "hideaway" office.
Specter said he understood that he would not vault into any committee or subcommittee chairmanships in the midst of this two-year 111th Congress, but he remained confident that Reid would live up to his commitment by 2011, because Reid will convince the other Democrats to go along with their gentleman's agreement. The issue of seniority -- usually an arcane internal Senate matter -- is essential to the political rationale behind Specter's bid for re-election in 2010. Upon making the switch last week, Specter cited his nearly 30-year tenure as evidence of his ability to deliver projects for his constituents and, in fact, cited that seniority as the main purpose driving him to remain in the Senate.
Now, he'll be relegated to the most junior end of the committee tables without even a subcommittee chairmanship, and no guarantee of claiming seniority any time soon. This could give an opening to potential Democratic primary challengers and GOP challengers, who may try to portray Specter as nothing more than a 79-year-old freshman.
In a brief interview, Reid said today he never gave any guarantees to Specter, saying that the issue was always going to be left up to the rest of the Democratic caucus after the 2010 midterm elections. "Senator Specter and his chief of staff, we thought, understood. . . . It's up to the caucus," Reid said.
That statement is contradicted by Reid's own comments to reporters last Tuesday, when he said Specter's seniority on committees would definitely apply after the 2010 elections. Specter also has a printed out copy of the transcript from that Reid press conference, with key phrases placed in bold fonts.
But senior Democrats said that over the past week Reid faced a rebellion from veterans in his caucus who were infuriated that Specter would jump in front of them in the race for key chairmanships, particularly those serving on the powerful Appropriations Committee. If granted his more than 20 years as a Republican on that committee, Specter would vault to the fourth most senior slot, ahead of 13 other colleagues, and have his pick of critical subcommittee chairmanships that dole out tens of billions of dollars each year.
Specter acknowledged the "concerns" from other Democrats but said that was never an issue Reid raised in their discussions.
"There was no mention of the caucus when we talked. We talked more particularly about if Leahy became chairman of Appropriations, I would become chairman of the Judiciary. Ask him about that. That was the arrangement," Specter said.
Sen. Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.) currently chairs the Judiciary Committee, but is next in line to take the gavel on the Appropriations Committee. If Specter were given his seniority, he would be in line to chair Judiciary if Leahy were to leave, a prospect liberal Democratic activists might find a bit uncomfortable given Specter's outspoken support of the Bush White House's judicial nominees.
Specter's discussions with Reid included two face-to-face meetings in the majority leader's office -- one on the evening of April 27, and then a sitdown with the two senators and their chiefs of staff April 28, the day the switch was announced. "We made the deal on Monday," Specter said, adding that the follow-up talk was to assure that his staff would get committee jobs.
Specter said Reid called him this morning to clear the air, and that the two are on good terms. A Reid spokesman said the leader "looks forward to doing whatever he can for Senator Specter's re-election effort."
Assuming he wins that reelection, Specter is confident Reid will convince the Democrats to stand down from their concerns and give him his seniority back.
"I think Senator Reid speaks for the caucus, he's a very strong leader," Specter said.
Specter is almost as big a dumbass as Snarf. The liberals always eat their own when they dissent, he should have known he couldn't keep his mouth shut for 1 1/2 years. Punished for speaking out, this is rich!
I'm sorry, but I thought this was America, where I had the constitutional right to voice my opinion without fear of reprisals or discrimination. So sorry, Comrades bsams and G-Man, I'll return to the state-sponsored work farms.
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."
There's nothing in there about not making fun of idiots.
I'm sorry, but I thought this was America, where I had the constitutional right to voice my opinion without fear of reprisals or discrimination. So sorry, Comrades bsams and G-Man, I'll return to the state-sponsored work farms.
Yes, let's mock and ridicule a man who has served his state proudly in the Senate for over 3 decades simply because he's switched parties.
God, you are stupid.
Originally Posted By: allan1
Where I'm at in PA,Sen. Specter isn't well liked anyway.....this mess just cinches it.
No, Allan. Didn't you read what King Stupid wrote? Everyone LOVED Spector until this. Now people are simply mocking and ridiculing "a man who has served his state proudly in the Senate for over 3 decades simply because he's switched parties."
I'm sorry, but I thought this was America, where I had the constitutional right to voice my opinion without fear of reprisals or discrimination. So sorry, Comrades bsams and G-Man, I'll return to the state-sponsored work farms.
typical liberal, you think the constitution only applies to you. your opinion okay, mine and g-man's(and the whole board btw) not allowed......
Yes, let's mock and ridicule a man who has served his state proudly in the Senate for over 3 decades simply because he's switched parties.
God, you are stupid.
Originally Posted By: allan1
Where I'm at in PA,Sen. Specter isn't well liked anyway.....this mess just cinches it.
No, Allan. Didn't you read what King Stupid wrote? Everyone LOVED Spector until this. Now people are simply mocking and ridiculing "a man who has served his state proudly in the Senate for over 3 decades simply because he's switched parties."
I must've missed the memo.
Yeeeeaaaahhhhh, you see, we're putting new cover sheets on the TPS reports. I'll get you a copy of the memo.
Hey, Allan. I'm gonna have to ask you to come in on Saturday... so if you could just get here around 9:00, that would be great. We lost a lot of people this week and are having to play catch-up.
Snarf was that one kid in High School who liked getting picked on by the bullies. He thought that negative attention was better than getting no attention at all...
Snarf was that one kid in High School who liked getting picked on by the bullies. He thought that negative attention was better than getting no attention at all...
Actually, Snarf is the guy who thought that getting called names justified Columbine. Remember?
Clearly, since the question has been dodged, I'm the only true patriot here.
I answered your question yesterday you bald dipshit. Learn to read and comprehend words.
Answering a question with a question is not an answer, especially when the question wasn't directed towards you in the first place. Perhaps it is you who is need of reading lessons, reax.
Snarf was that one kid in High School who liked getting picked on by the bullies. He thought that negative attention was better than getting no attention at all...
I couldnt place it! That's it exactly.
He'd say something moronic so that someone would call him on it then suck up the sympathy from the girls.
Of course after the sympathy fest the girls went and fucked the "bullies" and the "victim" was left with the pride of having been sympathized with!
Snarf was that one kid in High School who liked getting picked on by the bullies. He thought that negative attention was better than getting no attention at all...
I couldnt place it! That's it exactly.
He'd say something moronic so that someone would call him on it then suck up the sympathy from the girls.
Of course after the sympathy fest the girls went and fucked the "bullies" and the "victim" was left with the pride of having been sympathized with!
At first I didn't see it, but now I think you guys are on to something. That's probably also why he go so defensive about the Columbine shooters. He saw something of himself in them.
But at least the Columbine killers were only about 16 when they died virgins.
Snarf was that one kid in High School who liked getting picked on by the bullies. He thought that negative attention was better than getting no attention at all...
I'm sorry, but I thought this was America, where I had the constitutional right to voice my opinion without fear of reprisals or discrimination. So sorry, Comrades bsams and G-Man, I'll return to the state-sponsored work farms.
You are a retard. You voiced your opinion, and they voiced theirs.
Clearly, since the question has been dodged, I'm the only true patriot here.
I answered your question yesterday you bald dipshit. Learn to read and comprehend words.
Answering a question with a question is not an answer, especially when the question wasn't directed towards you in the first place. Perhaps it is you who is need of reading lessons, reax.
If he "answered" a question, as you said, then whether it was with a question, you have already admitted its an answer by saying he "answered" it (the clue is in the word). Now whether its the answer you want, is a different story.
Oh and "perhaps it is you who is need of reading lessons" would be a wonderful put down if it wasnt for the fact that the sentence makes no sense.
I fixed the spelling to it's proper, American style. Also, you're only supposed to use no more than four periods when crafting an ellipsis at the end of the sentence (....). So much for the Queen's English....
I fixed the spelling to it's proper, American style. Also, you're only supposed to use no more than four periods when crafting an ellipsis at the end of the sentence (....). So much for the Queen's English....
So you complain that using too many full stops (that is what they are called in the Queens English) is not using the Queens English, after saying I should not use the Queens English.
your missing the point, no one is taking a grammar test. your the only dumbass that even notices. we know how to read outside what the textbook says. no wonder you cant get laid.
Then show me the rule in grammar and punctuation that allows for (......).
Show me the rule in grammar? Are you fucking serious?
Who the fuck cares about how many full stops are used? I'll tell you who. A fucking anal retard, who is losing an argument so feels the need to correct a persons grammar, because that is obviously one of the most hurtful put downs to throw at someone.
I really do not know if I will ever recover from such scathing critisism of my use of too many full stops.
Family Willing, ‘My Intention’ Is To Primary Specter: Congressman Joe Sestak declared his intention, family willing, to primary Arlen Specter for the Dem nomination for US Senate from Pennsylvania. That would upset Pres. Obama’s plans, who is attempting to create a smooth glide path to the nomination for Specter.
Sen. Arlen Specter told Pennsylvania’s Democratic leaders Saturday he’s “pleased and proud” to be back in the party he left shortly after launching his political career more than four decades ago. “I’m no longer a Republican in name only. I’m again a Democrat,” the fifth term senator said in an introductory speech to the Democratic State Committee at a downtown hotel.
What a weasel. Now that he's officially a democrat he's basically admitting he was never a Republican in the first place.
A new Susquehanna poll finds that only 31% of Pennsylvania voters think Sen. Arlen Specter (D-Pa.) deserves to be re-elected, a "staggering" and "near fatal" number according to pollster Jim Lee (Oct. 7-12, 700 Rv, MoE +/- 3.7%). That's down from 38 points in February, prior to Specter's switch from the Republican Party. Among Democrats, 45% say it's time for someone else to represent the state in the Senate instead of the five-term senator
A bombshell has just exploded in the 2010 elections.
For the second time in five months, the Obama White House is being accused -- by Democrats -- of offering high ranking government jobs in return for political favors....this is a violation of federal law that can lead to prison time, a fine or both, according to Title 18, Chapter 11, Section 211 of the United States Code.
The jobs in question? Secretary of the Navy and a position within the U.S. Agency for International Development.
The favor requested in return? Withdrawal from Senate challenges to two sitting United States Senators, both Democrats supported by President Obama. The Senators are Arlen Specter in Pennsylvania and Michael Bennett in Colorado.
On Friday, Pennsylvania Congressman Joe Sestak, the Democrat challenging Specter for re-nomination, launched the controversy by accusing the Obama White House of offering him a federal job in exchange for his agreeing to abandon his race against Specter.
In August of 2009, the Denver Post reported last September, Deputy White House Chief of Staff Jim Messina "offered specific suggestions" for a job in the Obama Administration to Colorado Democrat Andrew Romanoff, a former state House Speaker, if Romanoff would agree to abandon a nomination challenge to U.S. Senator Michael Bennett. Bennett was appointed to the seat upon the resignation of then-Senator Ken Salazar after Salazar was appointed by Obama to serve as Secretary of the Interior. According to the Post, the specific job mentioned was in the U.S. Agency for International Development. The Post cited "several sources who described the communication to The Denver Post."
The paper also describes Messina as "President Barack Obama's deputy chief of staff and a storied fixer in the White House political shop." Messina's immediate boss is White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel.
Sestak is standing by his story. Romanoff refused to discuss it with the Denver paper. In both instances the White House has denied the offers took place. The Sestak story in the Philadelphia Inquirer, reported by Thomas Fitzgerald, can be found here, While the Denver Post story, reported by Michael Riley, from September 27, 2009, can be read here.
In an interview with Philadelphia television anchor Larry Kane, who broke the story on Larry Kane: Voice of Reason, a Comcast Network show, Sestak says someone -- unnamed -- in the Obama White House offered him a federal job if he would quit the Senate race against Specter, the latter having the support of President Obama, Vice President Biden and, in the state itself, outgoing Democratic Governor Ed Rendell. Both Biden and Rendell are longtime friends of Specter, with Biden taking personal credit for convincing Specter to leave the Republican Party and switch to the Democrats. Rendell served as a deputy to Specter when the future senator's career began as Philadelphia's District Attorney, a job Rendell himself would eventually hold.
U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter, on tour to announce the start of 60 college campus-based campaign offices, took a moment Tuesday at the Penn State's HUB Robison Center to thank his supporters.
“I’m proud to be endorsed by the College Republicans ...” he began, and was interrupted by an aide, who sharply reminded Specter that the endorsement came from the Young College Democrats.
I guess when you're a guy like Arlen it's just too hard to keep track of which political party you belong to on any given day.
Specter Slips, Thanks 'Republican' Committee for Primary Endorsement: Sen. Arlen Specter, who switched last year from a Republican to a Democrat after 45 years with the GOP, twice Tuesday thanked the local "Republican" committee for its endorsement though the group that endorsed him was the Allegheny County Democratic Committee.
Originally Posted By: the G-man
I guess when you're a guy like Arlen it's just too hard to keep track of which political party you belong to on any given day.
The White House is seeking to distance President Barack Obama from longtime Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter as the Democrat faces shaky election prospects in Tuesday's Pennsylvania primary.
On the eve of the election, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said that while the president was following the Pennsylvania race — as well as primaries in Arkansas and Kentucky — he wasn't watching that closely.
That's a far cry from a year ago, when Obama said Specter would have his "full support" after the Republican lawmaker switched to the Democratic party. The president appeared with Specter at a rally in Pennsylvania in September, telling the crowd that Specter came to Washington "to fight for the working men and women of Pennsylvania."
That rally would be the last time Obama would make a personal appearance for Specter's campaign. Though there were reports that Specter aides asked Obama to make an 11th-hour trip to Pennsylvania, the White House made it clear last week that wouldn't be happening.
Obama aides had been hoping to avoid a repeat of the Massachusetts Senate race earlier this year, when Obama made a last minute trip to campaign for Democrat Martha Coakley, who would go on to lose the seat by Sen. Edward Kennedy. Obama also stumped on behalf of losing candidates in Virginia and New Jersey.
Specter switched parties after GOP anger over his February 2009 vote for the stimulus bill led him to the conclusion that he was unlikely to win a Republican Party primary. Specter was the only Republican in Congress facing a 2010 re-election to support the stimulus.
His challenger, U.S. Rep. Joe Sestak, bills himself as the real Democrat in the race, saying Specter left the GOP to preserve his Senate job and can't be trusted to support Obama.
While Obama has avoided stumping for Specter, Vice President Joe Biden, who was instrumental in getting Specter to switch to the Democratic party, did headline a campaign rally for his longtime Senate colleague in April. But he didn't appear with Specter on Monday, the day before the primary, despite being in Philadelphia to deliver a commencement address.
When asked Monday why Obama and Biden weren't making another appearance for him, Specter said "They've done everything we've asked them to do."
Obama did appear in a TV ad for Specter that started running in Pennsylvania last week. The 30-second spot shows footage from the September rally, where Obama touts Specter's "deciding vote in favor of a recovery act that has helped pull us back from the brink." He also taped a radio ad and recorded an automated phone call which went out Monday.
Obama spokesman Gibbs said Monday that the president's involvement had not become an issue in the primaries.
"We have supported incumbent Democratic senators and we've done a lot on behalf of each campaign," he added, referring to Specter and Arkansas Sen. Blanche Lincoln, who also faces a primary challenge Tuesday.
On the eve of the Pennsylvania primary a poll shows the race too close to call, with Sestak claiming 42 percent of support among Democrats likely to vote and Specter with 41 percent, according to the Quinnipiac University survey released Monday.
I'm sorry, but I thought this was America, where I had the constitutional right to voice my opinion without fear of reprisals or discrimination. So sorry, Comrades bsams and G-Man, I'll return to the state-sponsored work farms.
I forgot this was the thread where Snarf originally had his 'constitutional crisis.'
Another victim of the Obama bus: Arlen Specter has been defeated in a Pennsylvania primary in his bid for a sixth term after taking the risky step of switching to the Democratic Party.
the Obama White House is being accused -- by Democrats -- of offering high ranking government jobs in return for political favors....this is a violation of federal law that can lead to prison time, a fine or both, according to Title 18, Chapter 11, Section 211 of the United States Code.
The jobs in question? Secretary of the Navy and a position within the U.S. Agency for International Development.
The favor requested in return? Withdrawal from Senate challenges to two sitting United States Senators, both Democrats supported by President Obama. The Senators are Arlen Specter in Pennsylvania and Michael Bennett in Colorado.
On Friday, Pennsylvania Congressman Joe Sestak, the Democrat challenging Specter for re-nomination, launched the controversy by accusing the Obama White House of offering him a federal job in exchange for his agreeing to abandon his race against Specter...
In an interview with Philadelphia television anchor Larry Kane, who broke the story on Larry Kane: Voice of Reason, a Comcast Network show, Sestak says someone -- unnamed -- in the Obama White House offered him a federal job if he would quit the Senate race against Specter, the latter having the support of President Obama, Vice President Biden and, in the state itself, outgoing Democratic Governor Ed Rendell.
