So we all know that Arlen Specter has a pathological need to be a dick, but when he was a Republican, he'd always roll at the last minute and do the Bush Administration's bidding. It was his modus operandi -- talk a good game, and then roll.
He then realized that even talking a good game was toxic in the Republican primary, so he switched parties out of craven self-preservation. Apparently, he was given assurances of a cleared primary, so he acted like an even bigger dick as a Democrat -- voting against everything Democratic the first couple of weeks and laughing at the notion that he might be a "loyal Democrat".
Well, he suddenly faces a serious primary challenge -- assurances or no assurances -- and he's been forced to reassess whether he really wants to go down the Joe Lieberman path. The heavens know that there are plenty of us just salivating at the thought of taking him out in a primary. But, he can short-circuit efforts to take him out by simply acting like a Democrat, on EFCA, health care, and other key Democratic priorities. On both EFCA and health care, Specter is already hinting at evolving his position. Would it be enough to head off that primary? Remains to be seen, but it couldn't hurt.
Here's another test.
Will Specter vote to break the GOP filibuster of Obama’s pick to head the OLC, Dawn Johnsen, whose fierce criticism of Bush’s expansion of executive powers continues to enrage conservatives?
Specter spokesperson Kate Kelly confirms to me that he could still vote Yes on the cloture vote to break the GOP filibuster and remains undecided on the question.
Specter has said he will vote No on the straight up-or-down vote on Johnsen. But he hasn’t said publicly whether he’ll cast the earlier procedural vote to bring her vote to the floor. Reid has said he doesn’t have the 60 votes necessary to clear that higher hurdle, and the hunt is on for a GOP Senator to help put Johnsen over the top.
But Specter, now a Dem, could still be that person. His spokesperson, to be sure, is also saying that he could still vote No on cloture. But the fact that his office confirms he’s still open to a Yes vote is significant, because many Johnsen supporters have written off the possibility of Specter’s support.
Now why does Specter oppose Johnsen? I don't think anyone knows. The wingers oppose her because she was legal director of NARAL a while back, but Specter is supposedly pro-choice, so that shouldn't be a reason. Ultimately, this appears to be Arlen Specter simply being a dick (as usual), and a great way to show Barack Obama who the boss of him really is (it isn't those damn Democrats!).
While a "no" vote for final passage would be bizarre coming from Specter, the least he could do is let the nomination get that final vote.