Obligatory Specter goes Democrat post – GOP did NOT move right UPDATE: Video

Sen. Arlen Specter (R/D/Who Cares-Pa.) will announce(d) that he’s going to run on the Democrat ticket in 2010 which leaves the Republican nomination open to Pat Toomey. You must give credit to Specter for one thing and one thing only. He’s not pulling this crap right after he is elected.

That said, this is decision based on his continued quest for power. He must have seen the polls or something. The last time Specter went up against Toomey, Specter got the nomination by a narrow 2 percent, and recent polls did not look good for the incumbent. From Jake Tapper at ABC News…

In a Quinnipiac poll last month among registered Pennsylvania Republicans, Specter trailed Toomey 27-41 percent. That poll showed that Specter had a 29 percent favorability rating among Republicans, compared with 60 percent among Democrats.

Uhh, yeah. What would you do?

UPDATE VIDEO (Jim): Here’s Specter in his own words. But allow me to sum it up. Who do the people of Pennsylvania think they are? How dare they? This has nothing to do with a principled stance. He was getting clobbered by the good Republican people of Pennsylvania. This is all about saving a job that he, like all other Senators, believe is theirs.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=345ErwNrzHs

We now return you back to Steve. The article continues…

The precariousness of Specter’s political position — a Republican in a Democratic-leaning state — was on display earlier this year when he was one of three GOP senators to back President Obama’s $787 billion economic stimulus plan. That vote was strongly condemned by conservative Republicans and Toomey used that vote as the launching pad for his candidacy.

The GOP moved to the right? Are you kidding? To invoke Reagan just ticks me off since Reagan left the Democrat party because the party left him. Nice try senator, I’m not buying. That stimulus porkapoluza that you voted for has nothing in common with conservative principles.

Standing question that Specter better step up and answer. Sen. Specter, can you provide specific examples where the GOP moved to the right?

specter-wikiMore at Michelle Malkin’s place, Volokh Conspiracy (noting future Obama judicial nominations), Campaign Spot, and Hot Air (no change on card check).

Damn, Wikipedia trolls are fast – but they got it wrong of course. They list him as a Democrat starting in 2009, but it will not be official until he runs in 2010 (in office 2011), at least that is how I read it.

Update: I did remember hearing that Specter ruled out switching parties earlier this year.

He [Specter] said in an interview with The Hill that the role of the Republican Party in Washington is too vital for him to switch to the Democratic side.

“I’m staying a Republican because I think I have a more important role to play there,” he said. “I think the United States very desperately needs a two-party system. … And I’m afraid that we’re becoming a one-party system, with Republicans becoming just a regional party.”

At the same time, Specter said he is open to the possibility of running as an Independent with the understanding that he would caucus with Republicans, just as Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) did with Democrats in 2006.

Though he left that option on the table, he suggested it would be a last resort.

Last resort huh? What a liar. “I’m staying a Republican because I think I have a more important role to play there”?

It’s all about him and the power. No convictions at all.

Posted in

Steve McGough

Steve's a part-time conservative blogger. Steve grew up in Connecticut and has lived in Washington, D.C. and the Bahamas. He resides in Connecticut, where he’s comfortable six months of the year.

5 Comments

  1. Darlene on April 28, 2009 at 6:53 am

    This doesn't surprise me.  Actually … after all that has happened in the first 100 days, I wonder if anything will surprise me in the coming months.  



  2. Wyndeward on April 28, 2009 at 6:54 am

    It is a refreshing breath of fresh air to see a man more in love with his position of power than his own integrity to be honest about his failing.



  3. Wayne SW on April 29, 2009 at 3:58 am

    Lets be honest here,  Benedict Arlen is what he is.  A rhino turned Traitor.

    We need to get rid of McCain, Snow, Collins, Graham and all the others that have hijacked the Republican Party because their own self serving interests were their # 1 priority.

    There is no denying, Politicians thrive and strive to become Permanent fixtures.  We must THROW THEM OUT!



  4. Dom Rosa on April 29, 2009 at 5:00 am

    Arlen Specter, following in the footsteps of Joe Lieberman, is one more  example that demonstrates the addictive nature of political power. The current sad state of the Republican party falls squarely in the laps of the establishment Republicans, headed by George Schultz, who handpicked G. W. Bush as their presidential canditate. For more details, see my comment under The Party Of Southern White Men .



  5. Steve in Norfolk on April 29, 2009 at 2:35 pm

    "You must give credit to Specter for one thing and one thing only. He’s not pulling this crap right after he is elected."

    If the good folks in PA have any sense they'll kick him out with the rest of the incumbents.

     



The website's content and articles were migrated to a new framework in October 2023. You may see [shortcodes in brackets] that do not make any sense. Please ignore that stuff. We may fix it at some point, but we do not have the time now.

You'll also note comments migrated over may have misplaced question marks and missing spaces. All comments were migrated, but trackbacks may not show.

The site is not broken.