Specter quoting scripture after spending his entire political life seeking to support the slaughter of God's most innocent creation, reminds me of Satan tempting Christ in the desert.

You're precious.

Why should they, what do they really gain. About the only advantage they have is he can give them cloture. But keeping Arlen when pretty much any democrat in PA running against him will be more liberal doesn't seem like a good reason to keep the old dinosaur around.

It is just having that magic number of 60. Personally I think they want Arlen to lose in their primary about as much as he was going to lose in the GOP primary. Nobody-democrat or republican believes Arlen switched for any reason other than keeping his seat.

I also think the right is pretty jealous that the Dems have shown a lot more willingness to stand up to Specter than their party ever did. Seriously Specter has been a dem for two weeks and he's already gotten smacked down for his antics.

I don't know about jealous, and I am not so sure he was going to get to keep his seniority even if he had been Mr. Loyal. But I do like the fact that the democrats aren't kissing his behind, and think the GOP did a little too much behind kissing in his case over the years.

Alternately maybe they've just decided not to give Arlen a chance to reform and he's being set to take a big fall.

I also think the right is pretty jealous that the Dems have shown a lot more willingness to stand up to Specter than their party ever did. Seriously Specter has been a dem for two weeks and he's already gotten smacked down for his antics.

My guess is that sooner or later a democrat that can defeat Specter will announce he/she is going to run in the primary, and I predict Specter announces his retirement when the polls start to turn to crap.

The problem for Specter is that he couldn't win in a GOP primary, but he probably can't win the democratic one either, if they run a good candidate against him. Specter is too much his own man and not enough loyal to any party, and I agree the one selling point he has always had is his seniority, and he no longer has that.

You vill say vhat ve vant you to say, you vill vote ze way we tell you..........and you vill like it!!!

So much for that filibuster proof majority. I'm thinking Specter might like to stick it to Harry in just that way.

The chances were pretty good that Specter, always a loose cannon on deck, would be a problem on tight votes anyway, even before the stripping of his seniority. With it, I figure it's a sure bet.

So much for that filibuster proof majority. I'm thinking Specter might like to stick it to Harry in just that way.

Ha ha ha ha ha.

Specter having his seniority was one of the few remaining reasons Specter had any kind of edge at all in the upcoming cycle. That gone, it'll be interesting to see how the rest of this falls out. Certainly, the polling data will shift... The most recent was taken prior to his losing that promised promised seniority. The Dems now take on the image of people who break their promises at need. Ask Bush 41 how that game gets played out.

Meanwhile, on the opposite side of the fence, Tom Ridge.... the guy the Republican leadership is pushing for over local favorite Toomey... You know... Tom Ridge.. the guy who actually voted for the 'Fairness Doctrine'... Turns out he's actually a Maryland resident, these days. OK, that's no showstopper,as James points up in his piece on the subject. Ridge obviously moved to Maryland to be closer to DC, since he's becoming more of a Washington insider of late.

But think; are the Republicans working for a Washington insider to get Specter's seat? Yeah, given the anti-Washington insider element in the Tea Parties of late, that's gonna fly, huh? That Senate seat and it's foibles and indeed the politics of the entire area, appears to me to be an issue of who can appear more out of touch with reality. Frankly, I'm hard pressed to tell you who's winning that race.