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Specter rages against 'extremists' in GOP Republican-turned-Democratic Sen. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania said Tuesday that the "nation's business is floundering" because moderate Republicans "have fallen like flies at the hands of extremists,” calling Christine O'Donnell's primary victory in Delaware "stunning" and implying she is incompetent. In an oddly timed and strongly-worded speech, Specter took aim at the Republican Party, which he claimed has "changed the most ideologically" and took not-so-veiled shots at colleague Jim DeMint, who has emerged as the champion of the conservative electorate. "Within days of the start of the Obama administration, before the ink was dry on...

When Sen. Arlen Specter and Rep. Parker Griffith decided to switch parties, they were welcomed with open arms by their new political families in Washington. But when each returned home to face the voters of his new party, the door was slammed in his face. That both were so soundly rejected before they even got to the general election — Griffith's defeat in Alabama on Tuesday wasn't even close — illustrates the growing disconnect in both parties between the national political establishment and the grass-roots activists who typically decide primary elections, and between the conventional goals of the national parties...

U.S. Law states that it is a felony to offer a candidate for public office anything of substance, such as a job, in exchange for that candidate dropping out of a race. Pennsylvania Democrat Joe Sestak, who defeated Arlen Specter for the Democratic Senatorial nomination, claims the White House did exactly that. In explaining the law on Fox Business Network's 'Happy Hour' program, Judge Andrew Napolitano stated, Well the ramifications are potentially enormous. I mean to offer someone something of value in order to affect their official behavior as a member of Congress is a felony. We call it a...

PHILADELPHIA — Early on, Senator Arlen Specter’s supporters knew that the 80-year-old Republican-turned-Democrat was in trouble. “Turnout was terrible,” Gov. Edward G. Rendell said less than two hours before the polls closed here. And just about two hours after they had closed, he blamed the rain and the low turnout in Philadelphia for ending Mr. Specter’s 30 years in the Senate.

Quote of the Day "Well, I probably shouldn't say this. But I have thought from time to time that I might have helped the country more if I'd stayed a Republican." -- Sen. Arlen Specter (D-PA), in an interview with the Allentown Morning Call, questioning his party switch one year ago.

My gut reaction upon reading it was, “Yep, probably would have. They don’t call him Benedict Arlen for nothing.” But would he really have crossed the aisle on this? I know, I know, he voted for the stimulus, but so did Snowe and Collins and even they were afraid to buck the party line on an issue that made the base as red hot as ObamaCare. And unlike Specter, they’re not facing reelection this year. Would a guy who’s cynical and opportunistic enough to switch parties in the interest of saving his own ass have been cynical and opportunistic enough...

Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) comments on Sen. Arlen Specter (D-PA) telling her to act like a "lady" during a radio interview.

WASHINGTON -- The backing of the White House, promised after his party switch, has aided Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter's re-election campaign in several ways. President Barack Obama and Vice President Joseph R. Biden have both made fundraising appearances in Pennsylvania for Mr. Specter, and the campaign has at its disposal the legions of Organizing for America, the grass-roots arm of the Democratic National Committee. Mr. Specter also has been able to parade Cabinet secretaries around the state. In recent months, Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki and Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan both have examined their operations and met...

"I'm going to treat you like a lady," Mr. Specter shot back. "Now act like one."

Specter wants Wilson censured Sen. Arlen Specter (D-Penn.), who's looked at POTUS from both sides now, was just on the Bill Press radio show suggesting the South Carolina firebrand Joe Wilson be censured for his heckle heard round the world. Said the Republican-turned-Dem: "He apologized immediately afterward but I don't think that’s adequate... If an apology is the consequence of an outburst I think we can expect more – that’s not a sufficient penalty that’s not a sufficient price to pay.. I'm not saying the guy should be kicked out of the House… But there ought to be some rebuke,...

When Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter switched parties two months ago, he said he would issue contribution refunds "upon request." Now the Club for Growth, the conservative political group that is a longtime Specter foe, wants to help any disgruntled Republican donors take now-Democrat Specter up on his offer. The Club is asking the Federal Election Commission (FEC) if it can send a letter or make a telephone call to Specter's donors informing them that they can ask his campaign for a contribution refund. The Club would use the donor lists that Specter's campaign has filed with the FEC. Those documents...

Sen. Arlen Specter continues to pick up support from Democratic party leaders across Pennsylvania. However, a new poll indicates that the five-term incumbent has not convinced a majority of Pennsylvania voters that he should be re-elected. According to a new Franklin & Marshall poll released Thursday, only 28 percent of registered voters in Pennsylvania think Specter should be re-elected. That number is down from 40 percent in March, a month before Specter's "conversion" to the Democratic Party. Back then, roughly half the voters in each party said that Specter was doing an excellent or good job in the Senate. The...

A new Quinnipiac University poll finds that newly-minted Democratic Sen. Arlen Specter has a nine-point lead over Republican challenger Pat Toomey. Specter, who changed his party afflilation to Democrat in April, leads Toomey by 46 percent to 37 percent among registered voters, the poll found. That's a narrower lead than a May 4 poll, which found Specter's lead at 53 percent to Toomey's 33 percent. "Sen. Arlen Specter's numbers have slipped since the controversy that followed his switch to the Democratic Party, but he's still better off than he would have been if he stayed a Republican and faced a...

How appropriate that U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter finds himself at the back of the Democratic Party bus. Did he really expect a hero's welcome and continuance in chairman positions after renouncing his own party at a time of crisis? History shows that nobody trusts or respects a turncoat and a traitor. Arlen should have learned that from the treatment Benedict Arnold received from the British after changing sides in the midst of a fight. Arnold joined with the British but was never accepted or respected by his peers, many officers despised him and his military career was relegated to the...

Sen. Arlen Specter (D-Pa.) today said he was guaranteed seniority on committees by Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) in the final negotiations before his party switch last week, talks that, according to Specter, also included a pledge that he would become the next chairman of the Judiciary Committee in several years. Specter stood by his version of the one-on-one talks with Reid, despite the Senate leader's contradictory statements on the matter and the resolution that passed last night placing Specter in the most junior slot on most committees on which he serves. "When I talked to Senator Reid he...

Like Specter who complained he was "ostracized" for voting for President Obama's disgraceful $787 billion stimulus package -the biggest spending bill in the history of the Republic- Noonan treats his vote for the measure as just another vote. It's not. It was, as conservatives saw it, the Mother of All Votes, and it capped a long career of giving the finger to conservatives. That single vote - which among other things erased the landmark Clinton welfare reforms, helped lay the foundation for socialized medicine and expand Leviathan's reach- gave the nation's left a forward momentum that it hasn't had since...

Sen. Arlen Specter (Pa.) on Sunday defended his decision to join the Democratic Party this week and said Democrats did not promise him anything for switching. Appearing on NBC's "Meet the Press," Specter said his vote for President Obama's $787 billion stimulus package was a "critical factor" in his decision. "I bucked the Republican line," he said. "And that created a schism. My approval rating dropped 30 points with Republicans as a result of that vote." As a result of that vote and the GOP's reaction, Specter said he was "ostracized" from the party.

The Supreme Court's decision in Roe v. Wade -- recognizing a woman's right to choose an abortion with the consultation of her doctor -- has served as a kind of cement, bonding conservatives who are opposed to the decision. The ruling brought together evangelical Christians, Catholics, and Orthodox Jews into a novel political marriage. And in turn, their united power led to a revolution within the Republican Party. In the course of this revolution, the party was transformed from one identified primarily with fiscal conservatism and libertarian principles, to one primarily identified with the evangelical Christians who rose to their...