You all know, of course, that this was Spector's **second** party switch, right?

[Stinky The Clown]

He switched from Dem to repub in the 60s, when he ran for DA in Philadelphia. For similar reasons, actually ...... to be where he had a better chance to win.

He's no stalwart, principled man. He's a political whore.

[nadinbrzezinski]

1. You mean he is a more "honest" politician than most?

:evilgrin:

[TahitiNut]

2. If he's a whore then the parties are bordellos.

:shrug:

[Tangerine LaBamba]

5. You new here?

I mean, on this planet?

:hi:

[TahitiNut]

10. Yup. Every morning. (I wonder where the piano players are.)

:silly:

[Tangerine LaBamba]

12. So, sailor ..............

I'll let you know where the party is - as soon as I find it myself -------------------------------->

[Stinky The Clown]

9. Huh?

A "Cloak Room" (wink wink) near a North American national capitol.

[Bucky]

13. Whoa... most of those ladies are in their underwear!

Frankly, I'm shocked that our women senators are willing to put up with that kind of dress code!

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

3. Arlen Sphincter is interested only in his own career,

so he's no great catch for the Dems. On the other hand, the mere fact that he felt compelled to switch (again) to try to save his sorry old ass is further evidence that the Republicans are in bad shape. I do like that part.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

4. Remember the Unicorn Killer in Philadelphia?

Back in the sixties, before he ran for DA, Arlen Specter was Ira Einhorn's defense attorney. Got him released on an incredibly low bail, which Einhorn promptly jumped.

It was an especially heinous crime, and, many years later, Einhorn was caught in France, I think it was, and brought back to the US to serve his sentence.

Specter was a Democrat then, I think ................

[proud2BlibKansan]

20. That was Specter?

Wow. I remember that case very well. It was a horrific murder. IIRC, he stashed his girlfriend's body in a trunk.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

22. In a trunk?

And then he put the trunk inside a fireplace and bricked it up.

Oh, really horrendous, but Specter wasn't representing him by the time of the trial, as I recall.

They got the guy in 2002 - her sisters never relented - and he's now serving a life term..............

[proud2BlibKansan]

23. A very horrific case:

Neighbors below Einhorn's flat had been complaining for some time that that they were detecting a terrible stench coming through the floorboards, accompanied by an occasional oozing of putrid brown matter that stained their ceiling. They tried to paint it out and sanitize the smell with disinfectants. But, the odor increased. And the oozing continued. When the building foreman investigated the problem, Einhorn refused to let the man check the closet from which the smell seemed to be coming.

The city police got wind of this occurrence, they started wondering if maybe — just maybe — it had something to do with a body they had been unable to find for the last 18 months. That is, what might be left of Holly Maddux, Einhorn's old flame, who had disappeared one day into the ether.

<skip>

Newspapers dating from September15, 1977, and earlier covered what was underneath. A second layer consisted of packing styrofoam and plastic Sears bags, crumpled up. "He slowly scooped the foam aside," Levy goes on. "After three scoops, he saw something. At first he could not make out what it was, because it was so wrinkled and tough. But then he saw the shape of it — wrist, palm, and five fingers, curled and frozen in their stillness...He dug just a little deeper, following the shriveled, rawhide-like hand, down the wrist, saw an arm, still clothed in a flannel shirt. And he had seen enough."

http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/famous/einhorn/index_1.html

[Tangerine LaBamba]

24. If you scroll down,

you get a look at Einhorn's mug shots.

http://tinyurl.com/cxl28c

I love that they got him. "Law and Order" even did a show based on this case, starring Mandy Patemkin - good one.

http://tinyurl.com/32l473

[proud2BlibKansan]

26. Ira and Abby Hoffman:

[Tangerine LaBamba]

27. Whoa.............

Two tragic figures. The missing Jerry Rubin would complete that hat trick, no?

[Booster]

6. Which ever way the wind blows - there's Arlen.

[Deja Q]

7. He and Norm Coleman could get married.

He's a switch-hitter too. Not to give bis a bad name, of course... or centrists, maybe there's a reason Spector is playing the field and not remaining true to one... party.

(in short, while you're likely correct, it's also possible he's sincere in his moves. I just lack sufficient evidence right now.)

[Bucky]

14. They're not from Iowa, Qbert.

[muntrv]

8. He swerves like the magic bullet.

[Bucky]

11. Justice like Winston Churchill !

Churchill jumped parties twice in his career. It wasn't at 43 year intervals like Specter. His two defections (Tory to Liberal, then back to Tory again) were about 20 years apart. By your definition, Winston was twice the whore Specter is.

But realistically, is it really beyond your acceptance that a man can change his views over 40 years--or that he simply got fed up with the GOP shenanigans as an irresponsible opposition? I doubt I'd support him for "re"-nomination if I lived in Pennsylvania, but most men's motives are lot more complicated that what you make it sound like here.

[Stinky The Clown]

16. Anything is possible

Sorry my views are unacceptable to you .......

[quiller4]

15. Actually it was after he had won convictions against members

of the Democratic machine. He was already a DA when he made the switch.

[Bucky]

17. I don't agree with too much of what Specter thinks, but...

... it sure seems like arguments trying to dismiss him as craven or a flake don't hold up under scrutiny. I just don't see Joe Biden going to all that effort to recruit a man who has no principles.

[Stinky The Clown]

18. Its all about numbers

Specter was an easy mark. He needed to switch and the Dems went after low hanging fruit. That's all very plausible and nowhere on either side of the equation is the word "principle" needed.

[spanone]

19. 'political whore' from the department of redundancy department

[Muttocracy]

21. I wonder when Norm Coleman is switching back - will he primary Franken in 6 yrs? nt

[Hannah Bell]

25. not a whore, he's more serious trouble, he's a made man.

[WhiteTara]

28. I just like that GOPers are going

crazy. Specter himself is a disappointment of a human being.