[Cicero]

He had two reasons for doing so. One, Bush and Rove twisted his arm, hard, and said you MUST endorse Specter, so we can get some decent SCOTUS appointments. Two, he agreed to do it, because Specter had earlier endorsed him.

I did not favor the Specter business at the time, but the worst consequences was that it lost the race for Santorum, who had been reliably pro-life and pro-family.

As it happens, I also supported Perry for governor last time around, because he is less of a RINO than Kay Bailey Hutchinson, who really went off the rails. But not a whole lot less.

And in favor of the Specter choice, Arlen did actually manage to push through two incredibly good SCOTUS appointments, after that fiasco in the middle was finally put to rest. And that wasn’t Specter’s fault, that was G.W. and Laura Bush.

[pogo101]

I don't disagree with ALL of that. But regardless, I (and many other conservatives) are bewildered why Santorum has not come out and explained, now that it is crystal clear that Arlen not only has betrayed and left the GOP but also has been defeated and sent off to pasture. Why will he NOT explain [the things you pointed out], and add, indignantly, that he never thought Arlen would so horrifically betray his (Santorum's) support by switching parties, etc., etc.

Such a mea-culpa would go a long way with me -- sorta like how Newt, to his credit, rightly described his "on the sofa with Pelosi" advertisement as incredibly stupid.