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Dept. of Foregone Conclusions: Specter jumps across the aisle
Let's forget for a second how it smacks of political opportunism, given the primary challenge he's facing from Pat Toomey, and soak up the reports that Arlen Specter, Pennsylvania's pro-choice, generally sensible RINO senior U.S. Senator — the guy who was one of just three Republican senators to support President Obama's stimulus package — is, according to multiple sources, making it official and becoming a Democrat.
The move, if it comes to pass, and if Al Franken maintains his lead in the incredibly still-not-decided Minnesota Senate race, would give Democrats the filibuster-proof 60-seat Senate majority that's something like Valhalla for liberals and purgatory for conservatives.
UPDATE: It's confirmed.
"Since my election in 1980, as part of the Reagan Big Tent, the Republican Party has moved far to the right," Specter said in a statement posted by his office on PoliticsPA.com.
"Last year, more than 200,000 Republicans in Pennsylvania changed their registration to become Democrats. I now find my political philosophy more in line with Democrats than Republicans."
Specter, a five-term Senate veteran, was greeted by a loud, sustained round of applause by dozens of constituents outside his Washington office shortly after the news broke.
"I don't have to say anything to them," a smiling Specter said. "They've said it to me."
Nate Silver's take: It's more insult than injury for GOP.
But this is not necessarily an unmitigated win for the Democrats. Unlike Jim Jeffords' switch in 2001, this does not affect who controls the Senate Chamber. While it will give Democrats a nominal total of 60 votes once Al Franken is seated, the filibuster math has always been somewhat fuzzy, with a group of about a dozen moderate/centrist senators (including Specter) prepared to defect from their party on any given issue and effectively holding all the power in the Senate.
[...] Huffington Post has Specter’s full statement. Philly’s City Paper declares this an opportunistic move. Report This Post: Illegal content | Broken link | Spam | Offensive content [...]
Woo!
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