Did anyone pay attention to Specter's statements on Chafee? He wants to help the GOP

[Juche]

Specter started waxing poetic about how the club for growth put up a radical and as a result Chafee lost in 2006. Then he talked about how if Chafee had won in 2006 the GOP would've still controlled the senate (50-50 with Cheney as the tie breaker). Then he started talking about judicial appointments.

So this new 'democrat' who only joined the democrats so he can win the 2010 election just spent part of his speech lamenting the fact that the radical right wingers are making it harder for right wingers like himself to pass right wing legislation. He doesn't disagree with the radical right wing, he disagrees with the fact that the radicals are making it harder for republicans to get their agenda passed. He lamented that the club for growth cost the GOP the senate in 2006. That isn't very democratic of him.

Either way, I hope he still loses the 2010 primary to a real democrat.

[slackmaster]

1. His change of party is obviously to serve his own self-interest

I don't think he gives a rat's ass about the GOP.

[Jakes Progress]

3. The rat's ass he cares for

is his own.

[VeraAgnes]

10. Well, I have to tell you

that I'm glad he has a spiritual awakening and switches to the Democrats Team! He made an informed decision based upon several issues.

[Raine]

41. Looking after your own self-interest isn't such a bad thing

most reTHUGS are so far gone they don't even pay attention to what or who would serve them well. I'll take someone any day who cares about what's best for them over someone who doesn't know or care in the least.

[tan guera]

2. link please

[Juche]

5. I am looking for the text of his Q&A session

When I find it I'll post it.

[WI_DEM]

4. I don't think anybody can dispute that switched for political reasons

he knows he can't win in a GOP primary because he is too much of a moderate for them. But the plusses are 1) I believe he will not support any GOP filibuster efforts 2) If he is going to run as a Democrat in the primary in 2010 he can't move more to the right and he may even move left of center. 3) No matter what, this gives the National GOP a big black eye that one of the longest serving and moderate GOP senators left the party.

[Juche]

6. He said he would support a filibuster against EFCA

And he is opposed to using budget reconciliation to get healthcare passed.

[backwoodsbob]

37. yep

he was 15-20 down in the repuke polls so he switches.

Don't get me wrong..we can pressure him now but don't count on this long term.All he did was piss off the repukes in Pa.

He's got a SMALL snowballs chance next election

[LynneSin]

7. Chafee didn't lose his primary

Not sure what was going on there and Specter is hardly a right-wing republican. If he was he would have lost Pennsylvania ages ago.

[Juche]

8. Specter said he spent all his funds on the primary, then lost the general

Then he talked about how if Chafee had won the GOP would've controlled the senate in the 110th congress and been able to appoint judges.

[LynneSin]

11. Rendell and Obama spent a ton of money on their primaries....

...and to be honest I think it helped both of them because they were always in the limelight.

Chafee was a good guy but I'm so digging Whitehouse.

[Juche]

25. The point is that he was upset the GOP lost the senate

He was upset that the club for growth is more concerned with party purity than with winning general elections. So we now have a democrat in the senate who wants the GOP to control the country.

[LynneSin]

27. huh?

:shrug:

[Juche]

36. I cannot find the text of the Q&A session after his press conference

But he was upset that the club for growth 'cost' Chafee the election in 2006 by making him spend all his money in the primary. Then he said the GOP could've controlled the congress had Chafee stayed on as senator and he started talking about all the judges who didn't get nominated because the GOP didn't control the senate.

So basically everyone is getting excited about a 'democrat' who will not change his votes, will not vote to end filibusters, and who wanted the GOP to control the senate in the 110th congress.

[MADem]

15. And Chafee is now an INDEPENDENT. As well as a private citizen...! nt

[JVS]

9. I hope he loses the primary to his cancer. Until then I hope to see him voting for cloture.

[jsamuel]

12. do we have any assurances at all that Specter won't just switch back after winning in 2010?

[mikelgb]

13. his loyalty is to his buddies in the senate of both party.

no, not parties

[nichomachus]

14. The best way to think of this

is as the corporate VP in Procter and Gamble who moves from the Tide division to the Ivory Snow division.

At the end of the day, he's still selling soap for the same people.

Big whoop!

[rhett o rick]

16. This is bad. It would be easier to defeat a republiCon in that seat and put in a true

Democrat than to unseat an incumbent DINO. The DINO's are taking over the party. WE don't want him.

[Xolodno]

17. Probably have the quote wrong...but...

"In order to save my country I must betray it"

In this case, substitute party for country.

[ColbertWatcher]

18. I think that was just Specter the moderate lamenting how his party fucked over his friends.

He sounded betrayed when he talked about how radical right wing groups decided elections (instead of voters).

Oh, and yes, he's doing it to stay in office.

[Froward69]

19. after looking at it the

freepers and this thread are correct... he jumped ship to save his own ass. he is a wolf in sheep's clothing.

he will most likely spy on us more so than work with us.

[PufPuf23]

24. Exactly - I see no benefit here in Spector - D

Arlon Spector has no business in the Senate in any case. Vile.

[Fire1]

20. Sad so few can see it.

[DainBramaged]

21. The attacks begin in ernest............

[DefenseLawyer]

22. I don't care if he votes with the republicans on everything

except procedural votes. Seriously.

[Juche]

26. What do we gain by having him?

Here is what we lost. It may be harder to get a democrat (a real one) in PA in 2010 now because it looks like it'll be Toomey vs. Specter. If Specter stayed with the GOP it'd be Toomey vs. someone on the D ticket who would've cleaned his clock and voted with the dems on labor, health care, foreign policy, etc.

Also this event may wake the GOP up and make them (fake like) they are less intolerant and radical. So we may have lost that too.

What have we gained? Specter said he is going to vote the same as he always did.

[DefenseLawyer]

29. We stop the minority's ability to procedurally prevent votes

It rarely matters what any one Senator's vote is on any particular bill. The Democrats have the votes to pass just about anything by simple majority vote. They have the luxury of letting particular Senators cast an opposing vote for local or personal reasons, those kinds of horse trades happen all the time. The Senate rarely votes along party lines on anything anyway. The republicans can't stop legislation from passing by a simple majority, however, they can filibuster (or threaten it in this day and age) to stop a bill from getting a vote. So long as Specter won't support a Republican filibuster, they are done. Then it doesn't matter how he ultimately votes on the legislation itself.

[nichomachus]

31. Who says he'll do that?

He could have stopped filibusters as a Republican - but he didn't.

Everyone seems to assume that he's going to go along with Dems on stopping filibusters. I'll believe it when I see it. Until then, it's just wishful thinking.

[DefenseLawyer]

32. If he doesn't play ball with the leadership

he'll get no committee assignments and no money. He knows how the game is played. It has very little (okay nothing) to do with what his "core values" are.

[nichomachus]

33. I'll believe it when I see it. Until then, I'll believe the Demowimps will cave in again.

[emulatorloo]

34. You forget there are a lot of Reagan Democrats in Pennsylvania. They like Specterr

because he was moderate and independent. They might not have liked a "a real democrat" that met your standards. So then they stay home. And the wack jobs come out for Toomey.

[Juche]

38. I'll take a Bob Casey over an Arlen Specter any day of the week

[October]

40. Casey is anti-choice. .nt

[Juche]

42. Nonetheless, he is more of a democrat than Specter

http://www.ontheissues.org/Senate/Bob_Casey.htm

Voted with Democratic Party 94.5% of 326 votes. (Sep 2007)



---------------

Specter probably scores a 30%.

[cascadiance]

23. I personally knew the new head of the "Club for Growth" Chris Chocola and he had a dog named Onyx!!

... when he was in high school. Was a black dog kind of looking like this dog in "the Omen" tradition...

[dem629]

28. Your argument is self-defeating.

You're arguing that he is "lamenting the fact that the radical right wingers are making it harder for right wingers like himself to pass right wing legislation. He doesn't disagree with the radical right wing, he disagrees with the fact that the radicals are making it harder for republicans to get their agenda passed."

That doesn't make much sense.

[Juche]

35. Sure it does

Hello, Mr. And Mrs....Griffin. Now, I know you've been here all day. So, if you'll sign this contract without reading it, I'll take your blank check and you won't not be not loving your time-share before you know it.



Specter seemed to lament that the GOP is losing power. He feels the GOP is losing power because groups like the club for growth are making the GOP too radical to win general elections. Specter is not a democrat, he still supports GOP agendas and legislation (in his Q&A session he named multiple times when the club for growth pulled the GOP too far to the right and as a result they lost the general election), he is just pissed that groups like the club for growth are making it harder for the GOP to win elections and get their agendas passed. From what I saw Specter would prefer a less radical GOP win the elections. I prefer a less radical GOP, but I still want them to lose to the democrats. Specter does not, he wants the GOP to win.

So why all the excitement? Why is everyone acting like he is a democrat now? He will vote the same as he always did and he will not side with the dems on filibusters or budget reconciliation.

[dem629]

39. If Specter shares their radical right agenda

why did so many on the radical right want to defeat him in the primary?

[Juche]

43. I said he was a right winger, not a radical right winger

lamenting the fact that the radical right wingers are making it harder for right wingers like himself to pass right wing legislation. He doesn't disagree with the radical right wing, he disagrees with the fact that the radicals are making it harder for republicans to get their agenda passed.


My point is I don't think Specter is so much opposed to groups like the club for growth as much as the fact that they make it harder for less radical republicans to win general elections. Specter doesn't oppose GOP or conservative agendas, he opposes the fact that right wing radicals make it harder for GOP politicians to win elections and implement them.

[SoCalDem]

30. Specter is a feather in the wind..

and no "friend" to our party..

I hope a democrat beats him in the primary, and he gets to "spend more time with his family"