It boggles the mind.
“Congressman Sestak is a flagrant hypocrite in challenging my being a real Democrat when he did not register as a Democrat until 2006 just in time to run for Congress,” Specter said in the statement. “His lame excuse for avoiding party affiliation, because he was in the [military] service, is undercut by his documented disinterest in the political process.”
His "lame excuse"? Sestak was an admiral, and the military should be an apolitical organization, at least in functioning democracies. That Specter -- the sleaziest political opportunist in the entire US Senate (a mighty accomplishment, given the bunch that inhabit that place) -- would deign insult a real Democrat for not politicizing his military service is beyond the pale. Given the nature of this attack, it's as if Specter has forgotten he switched parties, continuing to operate out of the Karl Rove playbook.
Sestak responded:
“Like Colin Powell (who was also registered as an Independent while he served), I believe that military officers should be nonpartisan,” Sestak said. “The military depends on cohesion and unity, and the defense of this nation must never be political. I’m proud that I was an Independent during my 35 years in the Navy, and I was proud to register as a Democrat as soon as I retired from active duty.”
No fucking shit.