Senator Arlen Specter (D-PA):
The Philadelphia Inquirer is reporting that Senator Arlen Specter will switch from the Republican to the Democratic Party. This will have interesting implications for judicial nominations and the confirmation of some of President Obama's more controversial executive branch nominees. Related Posts (on one page): Sen. Arlen Specter to Switch Parties, Give Democrats 60 Seats and Thus the Ability To Block Filibusters:
The Washington Post's The Fix blog reports. (The 60-seat majority assumes that Franken will be seated as the Minnesota senator, but that seems very likely.) Sen. Specter will be running for reelection in 2010. Rick Hasen notes that, "Whether or not Specter formally caucuses with the Democrats, if he actually hopes to win a Democratic primary and be elected, he's going to have to go along with the Democratic program this term," though also that "some conservative Democrats (such as Senator Ben Nelson) likely will hold the Democrats back from enacting a fuller agenda." Related Posts (on one page):
Specter's Switch:
Senator Specter certainly has good political reasons to switch parties, given the uphill battle he has been facing in the Pennsylvania GOP primary. Still, his departure strikes me as a significant blow for the GOP; a party that can't keep the middle is going to have a hard time getting a majority. On that score, I recommend Ross Douthat's excellent debut New York Times column, out today: Cheney for President.
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