SINCE TODAY

(pg 2)

4/28/2009 9:36:26 PM

Quote :

"This is a political move about getting reelected in '10, and it's as much of a win-win for both parties as anything. If Specter didn't switch, he would lose in the primary to another Republican that the base is happier with, but then that Republican would get trounced by a Dem candidate who would inevitably be more liberal than Specter. Now that he's switched, chances are he'll be the Democratic candidate and will beat that Republican in the general election, even though he would have lost the Republican primary. The net result is that Specter stays in office, meaning Republicans get a PA Senator who is more aligned with them than they would have otherwise gotten if he hadn't switched. "

Took the words right out of my mouth.

4/28/2009 10:56:25 PM

I don't really buy that it's a political win-win, or even that opportunistic. Being a successful politician is more than having a letter next to your name. Now that he's a Democrat, the man has to network with the same people he trounced year after year, who spent millions upon millions trying to unseat him, people on whom he will now depend for the very funding that would have been allocated to his defeat. He must now appeal to a portion of his constituency that no doubt habitually voted against him in prior elections. He will be an easy target in any Democratic primary as a black sheep, keeping in mind that generally primaries attract the ideologues and the partisans on both sides.

Personally I won't be too surprised if he just resigns after giving being a Democrat the old college try for a bit. The simplistic analysis of political opportunism ignores at least a zillion "facts on the ground."

4/29/2009 12:46:53 AM

someone told me gingrich is gonna try to build a third party of blue dog democrats, that way it'd "split" the dem vote and repubs would have enough to win

4/29/2009 12:55:54 AM

^^

Adding to the above ...

He was always baited by the ideological right in primary challenges; this is just comeuppance for him. Like in 2003 when the National Review called him (in a cover story) "The Worst Republican Senator" and the right spent a ton trying to unseat him in the primary. Switching sides now is just a big-ass Fuck You to the GOP. In that regard it might be opportunistic, but I suspect it's probably more personal than political.

[Edited on April 29, 2009 at 12:59 AM. Reason : foo]

4/29/2009 12:59:16 AM

James - I think it can mostly be summed up by the fact that the Republican party has by and large become inhospitable territory for moderates of all slants

4/29/2009 1:03:30 AM

I get the feeling from his speech that he's an old curmudgeon who is out of touch but doesn't realize it, and is desperately trying to cling to the career that he perceives as the only thing that gave his life meaning.

4/29/2009 1:05:49 AM

^^truth

4/29/2009 1:14:11 AM

Quote :

"the Republican party has by and large become inhospitable territory for moderates of all slants"

I think that's true but it doesn't account for the fact that he went Democrat instead of, say, Independent (like Jeffords did back in the day).

4/29/2009 2:19:50 AM

I'd account for that by supposing that 1) he doesn't want to be isolated by everyone in the senate and 2) probably does have a lot more in common with more moderate/conservative democrats than with republicans.

4/29/2009 10:03:03 AM

I fail to see how anyone can possibly strike this as a 'win' for the republican party.

The only prayer the GOP has right now is that Obama's ultra ambitious policies fail miserably and catastrophically, which actually is quite possible. Barring that, the can have fun being about as relevant as Libertarians for the next decade.

4/29/2009 1:15:52 PM

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/29/opinion/29snowe.html?_r=1&ref=opinion

Olympia Snowe op-ed today

4/29/2009 1:17:43 PM

There is no plausible scenario under which Republicans can grow into a majority while shrinking our ideological confines and continuing to retract into a regional party.


Took the words right out of my mouth.

4/29/2009 2:35:10 PM

Quote :

"It is for this reason that we should heed the words of President Ronald Reagan, who urged, “We should emphasize the things that unite us and make these the only ‘litmus test’ of what constitutes a Republican: our belief in restraining government spending, pro-growth policies, tax reduction, sound national defense, and maximum individual liberty.”"

- Olympia Snowe, using a tone very similar to North Korea on their latest satellite launch...

4/29/2009 5:37:51 PM

Whelp, Snowe and Specter fail about 3 out of 5 (or 4, depending on your grading) on even the more "generous" grading curve.

Again, how about that 2 for 1 sale there, Dems?

[Edited on April 29, 2009 at 6:01 PM. Reason : Yep.]

4/29/2009 6:00:56 PM

Quote :

"I fail to see how anyone can possibly strike this as a 'win' for the republican party. "

To clarify, it's more of a "cutting of losses"...but that's a win relative to the likely alternative.

4/29/2009 7:22:03 PM

Referring to multi-party systems, Lumex said:

Quote :

"They don't form permanent coalitions. They just cooperate on the issue at hand."

I know this was said a while ago, but I thought I should go ahead and point out that it is mostly incorrect. The coalitions might not be permanent, but they are long-term, legally recognized institutions that act more or less like our political parties.

4/30/2009 7:57:14 AM

The only question I have is, now that Specter is a democrat, will he continue to support the filibuster of card check legislation?

4/30/2009 8:19:15 AM

Hamilton County Republican Party of Ohio uses pic of Arlen while being treated for cancer to compare him to Dr. Evil

http://tinyurl.com/cyfgfc

[Edited on April 30, 2009 at 5:50 PM. Reason : [tiny]

4/30/2009 5:49:39 PM

Aha. I like it.


Or am I not supposed to laugh at that because he's battling cancer...?


Oh, who cares. It's funny either way.

4/30/2009 6:04:53 PM

The expression on Specter's face is great.

Joe Biden: "Hey man! Welcome to the fold!"
Arlen Specter: "Aw fuck. I'm associated with this guy now?"
Pres. Obama: "Haha, I ask that as well."

[Edited on April 30, 2009 at 9:09 PM. Reason : .]

4/30/2009 9:08:31 PM

Specter for president 2012!

5/1/2009 5:19:18 PM

no thanks...the last guy that was 83 when he was running for president was john mccain and look what happened to him

5/2/2009 1:51:48 AM