As Classy As Ever

Former Sen. Arlen Specter Dead At 82

Longtime Republican, recently turned Democrat, and friend to the LGBT community, former Sen. Arlen Specter has died at the age of 82.

One of the few remaining Republican moderates on Capitol Hill at a time when the party had turned sharply to the right, Mr. Specter confounded fellow Republicans at every turn. He unabashedly supported Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court decision that made abortion legal, and championed biomedical and embryonic stem cell research long before he received his cancer diagnosis. When he made a bid for the White House in 1995, he denounced the Christian right as an extremist “fringe” — an unorthodox tactic for a candidate trying to win votes in a Republican primary. The campaign was short-lived; Mr. Specter ended it when he ran out of cash. Years later, he said wryly of the other candidates, “I was the only one of nine people in New Hampshire who wanted to keep the Department of Education.”

Human Rights Campaign president Chad Griffin reacts via press release:

"On behalf of the Human Rights Campaign, I extend our condolences to the family of Arlen Specter. His support for repeal of 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' and passage of the Matthew Shepard hate crimes law was critical. As was his willingness to change his mind and oppose the Federal Marriage Amendment in 2006 after voting for it in 2004. While we disagreed with his support for some conservative judicial nominees which will leave a lasting negative impact on our community, he was willing to work across party lines to get things done."

Bill Clinton Offered Rep. Joe Sestak A Job On Obama's Behalf

The Huffington Post reports that Bill Clinton acted as the president's intermediary to offer Pennsylvania Senate candidate Rep. Joe Sestak an administration job in return for dropping out of his primary battle with Sen. Arlen Specter. The GOP is contending that the offer was illegal.

Rep. Joe Sestak (D-Penn.) was offered a prominent but uncompensated, advisory position -- in the national security/foreign policy area -- if he would drop out of the Pennsylvania Senate primary race, a source with knowledge of the exchange said during a briefing on Friday morning. The offer was made by White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel through a prominent intermediary -- former President Bill Clinton -- during the months of June and July of 2009. The White House initiated the conversation, which occurred over phone. It would have allowed Sestak to remain in the House of Representatives while advising the president. The source said it would not be surprising if more than one conversation took place, though there were no other intermediaries involved. Sestak ultimately rejected the overture and went on to defeat incumbent Sen. Arlen Specter (D-Penn) in the Democratic primary election earlier this month.

The White House has issued a memo confirming the offer.

Obama Promises Answers On Sestak

Today the president promised that the White House would "very shortly" address GOP claims that he illegally offered a job to Pennsylvania Democratic Senate nominee Joe Seestak if he would drop his challenge to Arlen Specter.

UNRELATED: I always want to write "Sestak" as "sleestak." Too much Land Of The Lost as a kid!

GOP Accuses Obama Of Offering Job To Joe Sestak In Return For Quitting Senate Race

The GOP is hammering away at their accusation that the president offered Senate candidate Joe Sestak an administration job in return for quitting his ultimately successful Pennsylvania primary bid to unseat Arlen Specter.

"I think it's looking increasingly like there's something that they're trying to hide," said former Rep. Pat Toomey (R), who is running against Sestak for the Senate seat this fall, in an interview with Fox News Channel's Sean Hannity Tuesday night. "If Joe is going to be the man of principle that he says he's going to be in this campaign, I think he would be more forthcoming." Regardless of his motivations, Toomey's comments are the latest in a barrage of rhetoric coming out of the Republican National Committee and the National Republican Senatorial Committee that seeks to raise questions about a largely ignored comment -- at the time -- made by Sestak to a local television show in late February regarding White House involvement in trying to drive him from the race. "I was asked a question about something that happened months earlier, and I felt that I should answer it honestly, and that's all I had to say about it," Sestak said on "Meet the Press" on Sunday. "Anybody else has to decide on what they will say upon their role. That's their responsibility."

The Washington Post says the White House is "stonewalling" on whether a job offer was ever made. It's quite illegal for a sitting president to make such an offer during an election. Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) is calling Obama's supposed offer "an impeachable offense.'

PENN: Sen. Arlen Specter Loses Democratic Primary To Rep. Joe Sestak

Wow. Five-term Sen. Arlen Specter lost the Pennsylvania Democratic primary tonight to Rep. Joe Sestak.

Specter switched to the Democratic side of the aisle last year after casting the critical vote in the Recovery Act. But, many believed he switched parties because he would have lost a Republican primary against Pat Toomey. Now it seems Specter was done anyway. After nearly five decades in politics this loss likely spells the end for the 80-year-old Specter. Around 10:15 Specter addressed his supporters as they chanted, "Arlen, Arlen." He was gracious in his concession speech and said he would back Sestak in November. Sestak, a two-time Congressman who spent 31 years in the Navy before running for U.S. House, now faces off against Toomey for the right to replace Specter in the Senate.

Specter was depending on a strong turnout to retain his seat, but rainy weather kept many voters home. At 11PM the count was 53-47.

No Hippies At My Town Hall!

Town Hall Disruptions For Sen. Specter

Sen. Arlen Specter's town hall meeting today went as the others have, with one man screaming that "God's gonna stand before you and he's gonna judge you and the rest of your damn cronies up on the Hill!" Later Specter called out a woman in the audience for spreading "vicious, malicious rumors" when she claimed that a 75 year old man with cancer would never receive treatment under the health care reform bill because he was no longer in the workforce.

Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA) Switching Parties, Democrats Rejoicing

Moderate Republican Sen. Arlen Specter is switching to the Democratic Party, offering renewed hope of a filibuster-proof voting block for Senate Democrats.

In a statement issued about noon as the Capitol was digesting the stunning turn of events, Mr. Specter said he had concluded that his party had moved too far to the right, a fact demonstrated by the migration of 200,000 Pennsylvania Republicans to the Democratic Party. “I now find my political philosophy more in line with Democrats than Republicans,” Mr. Specter said, acknowledging that his decision was certain to disappoint colleagues and supporters. If Al Franken prevails in his ongoing court case in Minnesota and Mr. Specter begins caucusing with Democrats, Democrats would have 60 votes and the ability to deny Republicans the chance to stall legislation. Mr. Specter was one of only three Republicans to support President Obama’s economic recovery legislation.

President Obama has already called Specter, saying, "We are thrilled to have you." The GOP is stunned, stunned I tells ya, and have called an emergency meeting.