The whole Specter deal did not turn out well for Republicancs. And not to be picky or anything, but it wasn't ME blaming evangelicals or Christians; it was noted in the article. Just one of dozens of articles that have said the same thing. Did you READ the article?
I get so sick of revisionist 2006 election history anyway. The GOP mainly lost because the President and GOP p*ssed off their base over ignoring the illegal immigration constituent outcry, the out of control spending and the Mark Foley/Duke Cunningham (& made-up Tom DeLay) corruption scandals. The GOP voter base was thoroughly disgusted and their non-action made voters think there's not a dime's worth of difference between the two parties, not to mention the relentless media bias that routinely slammed the GOP.
That's it in a nutshell and the GOP made its bed and are suffering the consequences. I really think a conservative front runner will emerge, but they'll be far, far behind Hillary and will gain ground like a snowball rolling downhill because true conservatives would rather slit their wrists than see HRC as president.