Organizing for America, the former grass-roots campaign arm for President Obama’s 2008 campaign, is trying to rally supporters to phone bank and get out the vote in Pennsylvania for Sen. Arlen Specter, D-Penn., the former Republican locked in a tight primary race with a far more progressive Democrat, Rep. Joe Sestak, D-Penn.
Chris Bolling, the national volunteer coordinator for OFA, writes in an email that the “stakes of this election are high: ensuring that allies of the President are elected in the House and Senate to fight for change. So starting this weekend, through Tuesday’s election, there will be phone banks for OFA volunteers in D.C. We’ll call into Pennsylvania and encourage voters to support leaders who will fight for President Obama’s vision for change.”
Specter, of course, supported the presidential campaign of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and only became a Democrat when it became clear he would suffer an ignominious defeat in the GOP primary to former Rep. Pat Toomey, R-Penn.
Meanwhile, the latest poll Muhlenberg tracking poll shows the race between Sestak and fake Dem Specter to be a dead heat.
In his latest attack on Sestak, fake Dem Specter charges that Sestak supports {gasp!} gun control!
Specter is highlighting his vote against the assault weapons ban in the 90s and calling Sestak out for his “F” rating from the NRA.
Sestak is returning fire by distributing an ad Republicans used against Obama in 2008 that highlighted Obama’s “F” rating with the NRA.
I guess Specter is banking on those bitter, gun-toting Pennsylvanians to put him over the top. But are they more worked up about owning assault weapons or about the crappy economy and the lack of jobs? I guess we’ll find out on Tuesday. Personally, I’m rooting against Obama’s candidate.
This is an open thread.
Filed under: General | Tagged: Arlen Specter, Joe Sestak, Open thread, Pennsylvania Senate Democratic primary |
The Confluence 
Go, Joe, Go!!!!
Hi BB!! Just got the last of my grades in!!! I think I’m going to go eat whatever oysters there are left down here for lunch tomorrow. They just closed more beds. 😦
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/37183416/ns/local_news-new_orleans_la/
And I really don’t understand what the deal is with supporting Specter. Why can’t he just retire in peace like Dodd?
Specter suffers from Joe Liberman syndrome. I wonder if Pennsylvania law will allow him to run as an independent if he loses the primary, because if it does, I suspect we’ll have a three-way Senate race on our hands…and it will be ugly.
If they lose re-election do they get paid for the rest of their lives, or only if they retire? I rather like the idea of all of them getting booted out of their seats?
Yes, he does – he meets both the age and service requirements for a Senate pension:
http://www.senate.gov/reference/common/faq/retirement_for_members.shtml
I don’t really get why he has any incentive to get involved here at all, besides general scumbaggery and an unrelenting desire to be a dictator, make a mockery of grassroots politics, and kick his supporters in the teeth. It’s not like Specter would be grateful, and with O’s approval ratings sinking like a stone you can’t really rely on fellow opportunists or even fellow Republicans. With not a whole lot in the way of potential return, I’d stay out of it, personally.
He’s doing the same thing in Colorado. I guess with two wars, one of the worst environmental disasters in U.S. history, *and* a financial crisis that has some folks longing for 1929 he just doesn’t have enough to keep him busy.
Campaigning is his oxygen.
Doesn’t he hate campaigning? He compared the horrors of actually having to go out and meet the peons to the Bataan Death March, and that was to help someone he’s madly in love with. 😉
Comparing Hillary to the Imperial Japanese Army. Hadn’t heard that one. 😉
Yeah, he has a real sense of proportion, that guy. That’s exactly who you want taking the 3am call.
Only when it’s all set up for him to win though. Media praise and everything.
Campaigning is his drug fix.
And I really don’t understand what the deal is with supporting Specter.
I think it’s a literal deal the Dem party made with him when he switched.
Because it doesn’t make sense to support him tactically. Specter is 80 years old and a cancer survivor. Pat Toomey (the GOP candidate) is 48 years old. So tif Specter is the candidate he general election, from the GOP voters pov, will be literally “age and treachery vs. youth and skill”. And even if he manages to win that, if he dies within the next 4 years, it’s almost certain that it will be a GOP governor in PA choosing his replacement.
Specter was hoping that Obama’s magic coattails would get him re-elected; I bet he couldn’t imagine that a 1 year president’s approval ratings would be so low. Ha.
I’ve decided to vote for Sestak tomorrow (even if I suspect him of phoniness). Also voting for Joe Hoeffel for governor, long shot, but he would be a good governor.
You and me both – voting for the Joes!
It’s the Mooning of America:
I think the comparison with Lieberman is apt.
Specter, Like Obama and Joementum, is “post-partisan” (i.e for sale to the highest bidder). I also think he has some seniority in some committee or other (Judicial?). Sestak is but a retard – who needs him?
Specter, BTW had a slip of the tongue during the campaign, thanking the RNC for organizing this. Sestak is running ads with W saying he loves Specter. Fun as Jr.jr also loves him!
Please don’t use the “r” word again. It’s really offensive.
Thank you BB. It certainly is offensive on several levels.
Not to mention that all the individuals with developmental delay I met had a good sense of fair play and being nice to someone so they’ll be nice back. Specter has no such behavior.
Wasn’t Sestak a Hillary supporter?
I remember hearing him on Al Franken’s radio show — he was very impressive IMO.
From Wiki:
“On April 22, 2008, he was interviewed as part of the Colbert Report’s Better Know A District series. He said that he supports Senator Hillary Clinton for president, “because she has watched and observed the proper use of military force, not as the first step, like the Bush administration did; they walk, they clobber things with a big stick, and then we have to deal with the mess they’ve given us.”
“He served as Director for Defense Policy on the National Security Council under President Bill Clinton and, following the September 11 attacks, was selected to serve as the first Director of “Deep Blue,” the Navy’s anti-terrorism unit.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Sestak
My father can’t wait to give Arlen the boot. However, he did feel kind of bad when the rabid right wing was after Ol’ Arlen for not being “Republican enough”.
The democratic party has gone over the cliff supporting Spector. Hey what do those grass roots Obama supporters really support other than Obama. They are about as mindless as they come.