GOP Senator Specter switches to Democrat

We are living in interesting times.

 

What a convenient time to switch parties.

 

Im not terribly surprised about it. He was more to the left than the other GOP Senators

 

Not surprising. All of the early polling indicated that he would have lost in the Republican primary next year. He's just desperate to keep his seat.

 

He's been an ultra-liberal for years. It's about time he moved to the other side of the aisle. Good riddance.

 

senator specatator is stupid!!!

 

I actually broke out laughing when I first read this article earlier.:mrgreen:

What was even funnier was RNC Chairman Michael Steele's response to all of this.

I was wondering when Steele would re-surface in the news after Rush Limbaugh publicly pulled his hoe-card.:smt043

 

This is quite momentous for Obama as it appears that Al Franken will hold on to take the Senate seat in Minnesota, which gives the Democrats a filibuster proof majority in Congress. This gives Obama a level of power rarely seen at the presidential level. If he remains wise, he'll secure a wide base of congressional support through the entire tenure of his presidency.

Kathleen Sibelius was also approved as the Secretary of Health and Human Services today. This sets the stage for Obama to push through healthcare and other reforms with little no resistance from Republicans in the House and Senate. Truly a major coup for him and the Democratic party.

 

No big surprises here.

 

Spector's not gonna be and automatic 60th vote on everything Obama wants in Congress

 

Even though I like Specter as a person, even Stevie Wonder can see through the blatant self-interest involved in this move. Specter was lagging behind Pat Toomey in the polls, and the Pennsylvania GOP Primary is open only to Republicans. Of course, Democrats and independents have been voting for Specter for years now but that was in the general election.

With Specter looking like he was toast, he probably figured that the only way to save his political skin was to jump aboard the Democratic freight train. Dems in PA have liked Specter for years and have voted for him as a Republican, so why wont they do it now he's a Democrat?

It doesn't take a genius to figure that out. Of course, he's entitled to do it and i support his decision by the way. If he stayed in the Republican Party, they would have pulled a Lincoln Chafee on his ass i.e. back his primary opponent and leave him dead in the waters in the general (if he makes it out of course).

Of course, to say the Republicans won't be pleased by all of this is probably the biggest understatement in this still very young century. The reaction from the GOP establishment was comical. The House and Senate Republicans (rightly) noted the astute nature of the political advantageousness, but rather than bitching about it, they should go back, have a serious soul-searching and come to a decision about whether they want to be a "big tent" party or the party of Southern white males, war-mongering neocons and pseudo-theologians only.

Who knows, Snowe and Collins could be next.

 

Best analysis yet.

 

They were already doing that. Toomey is getting a lot of support from Grover Norquist and The Club for Growth. If those idiots have their way, they'll run all of the moderate Republicans out of Congress. At this rate, the GOP is going to end up being nothing more than a regional party within the next couple of election cycles.

They probably will be. Besides those two and Peter King, are any other Republicans left in Congress from the Northeast? :smt017

 

It's good that the dems have control of the House, Senate and WH. Now they have an opportunity to show what it is that they as a party can do for America with little effective opposition.

After four years or so, the voters will be able to evaluate how they did.

Ain't America great?

 

Certainly it was a calculated move on Specter's part but he sees the writing on the wall. He is a dying breed: moderate on many issues and slightly right of center as a Republican. The Republicans used to be on the pulse of the nation but as they have become more extremist, the nation has moved to the other side. There are extreme liberals but if the nation is left of center, then it is much easier for a liberal to make the connection to a potential segment of the electorate.

The problem for the GOP is that instead of taking their medicine and formulating a new strategy, they are stuck using Gingrich's "Contract with America" and classic 80's Regan to revitalize an America that has moved past that line of thinking. Each step they take is akin to driving a car in quicksand...you only sink deeper. There is more pressure on Obama simply because he can not blame congressional Republicans for denying him the opportunity to pass legislation. The spotlight is on him...however, if he has a reasonable amount of success in passing effective legislation...the Democrats could see a sustained growth of power for an entire generation.

 

This is why I'm so glad that more and more brothas are following politics like myself.

Very well stated Cris, very well.:smt023

 

Voters from that area voted for a Republican and those folks probally feel cheated by Spector. Pat Toomey will win by a landslide. He also voted for this spending bill so many were fed up with him.

 

Proving once again that you know absolutely nothing about politics beyond Republican talking points. Toomey is leading by a large margin in the early primary polling, but that is because Pennsylvania has closed primaries. Therefore, he is only has a large lead among Republicans. The state has been trending heavily Democratic for the last two years. IIRC over 200,000 registered Republicans in Penn have switched party affiliation since 2007, and Rick Santorum, who was considered to be a presidential hopeful a few years back, lost by 18 points to Casey in 2006. There is no way in hell that Toomey is going to win the general election whether he faces Specter or another Democrat.

 

I know nothing about politics. (thats why Republicans have recruited me for positions) Buddy, in those past two years it was a anti- Bush vote. They were voting against Bush instead of voting for the Democrat. When Obama ran and my state governor ran they ran against Bush. Obama will not be able to Blame George Bush for his mistakes it will be on his shoulders.