The 2009 Specter
Pennsylvania voters woke up one morning recently and found a new Senator sitting in their driveway. Actually, it wasn’t a totally new legislator, but rather one of the old ones with a new label. By old, I mean he’s used with a lot of miles under his belt. Of course, I am referring to Arlen Specter.
The senior Senator from Pennsylvania had come under increasing attack from the Republican Party since the last election due to his support of President Obama’s stimulus package. Then there were the polls that showed he didn’t have a white-tailed deer’s chance in hunting season of winning the Republican primary next year against the more conservative Pat Toomey. Specter finally put all the rumors to rest by proving them correct: he jumped from the GOP to the Democratic Party.
It’s nice to have him back with the Dems. Yes, he’s back, because he switched over to the Republican side many years ago when he ran for mayor of Philadelphia. That was quite a long time ago and apparently many in the party have forgiven him for that slight. Many high ranking Dems (including President Obama) have welcomed Specter with open arms.
Of course, it’s not a perfect marriage. Specter has made it clear that he will not vote along party lines, that he is serving the people of Pennsylvania. He is not, and never has been, beholden to any organized party of which he may be a member at any given moment. Obama is fine with this, but Specter needn’t have stated this fact. He already has a long independent voting record.
As stated, he supported the President’s stimulus package, but voted against the Democratic favored union check card legislation. He has long been a friend of Amtrak when his Republican colleagues were content to let it die. Then there is the single bullet theory...on second thought, let’s just let this one fade away. This is no time to open old wounds. It is a time for reconciliation and celebration.
Oddly, I feel bad for the Republicans. If Spector were in sports and not politics, then the Democrats could offer them some sort of compensation. Perhaps another retired pitcher for Kentucky...oh, wait, they already have one of those. Well, looking over the field...hmmm. At the moment we can offer the GOP Bill Clinton (yeah, like they really want him in their ranks), and an intern with the Keith Olberman show to be named at a later date. Sorry, but I’m afraid that’s the best we can do right now.
Unfortunately, he won’t have an easy time with his new party. Majority Leader Harry Reid promised Specter that he could keep his senior positions on the Senate committees when he jumped parties. Reid spoke too soon because the Democratic Caucus nixed that idea. Specter will have to work his way up to those senior positions again, at the tender age of 79!
That’s the spirit! The hell with all those years of experience in the well! Make the old man work like he's a freshman! Oh well, this political cycle just got more interesting. Let’s hope that these people we’ve elected to rule over us will eventually fix our economy once they get done jumping parties.
The senior Senator from Pennsylvania had come under increasing attack from the Republican Party since the last election due to his support of President Obama’s stimulus package. Then there were the polls that showed he didn’t have a white-tailed deer’s chance in hunting season of winning the Republican primary next year against the more conservative Pat Toomey. Specter finally put all the rumors to rest by proving them correct: he jumped from the GOP to the Democratic Party.
It’s nice to have him back with the Dems. Yes, he’s back, because he switched over to the Republican side many years ago when he ran for mayor of Philadelphia. That was quite a long time ago and apparently many in the party have forgiven him for that slight. Many high ranking Dems (including President Obama) have welcomed Specter with open arms.
Of course, it’s not a perfect marriage. Specter has made it clear that he will not vote along party lines, that he is serving the people of Pennsylvania. He is not, and never has been, beholden to any organized party of which he may be a member at any given moment. Obama is fine with this, but Specter needn’t have stated this fact. He already has a long independent voting record.
As stated, he supported the President’s stimulus package, but voted against the Democratic favored union check card legislation. He has long been a friend of Amtrak when his Republican colleagues were content to let it die. Then there is the single bullet theory...on second thought, let’s just let this one fade away. This is no time to open old wounds. It is a time for reconciliation and celebration.
Oddly, I feel bad for the Republicans. If Spector were in sports and not politics, then the Democrats could offer them some sort of compensation. Perhaps another retired pitcher for Kentucky...oh, wait, they already have one of those. Well, looking over the field...hmmm. At the moment we can offer the GOP Bill Clinton (yeah, like they really want him in their ranks), and an intern with the Keith Olberman show to be named at a later date. Sorry, but I’m afraid that’s the best we can do right now.
Unfortunately, he won’t have an easy time with his new party. Majority Leader Harry Reid promised Specter that he could keep his senior positions on the Senate committees when he jumped parties. Reid spoke too soon because the Democratic Caucus nixed that idea. Specter will have to work his way up to those senior positions again, at the tender age of 79!
That’s the spirit! The hell with all those years of experience in the well! Make the old man work like he's a freshman! Oh well, this political cycle just got more interesting. Let’s hope that these people we’ve elected to rule over us will eventually fix our economy once they get done jumping parties.
posted by todd gunther | 6:15 AM
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