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This is BAD news. Grover Norquist and the right wing group Americans for Tax Reform is reporting that Senator Arlen Specter will vote against the Employee Free Choice Act on in both cloture and the floor:
Senator Specter's Office has confirmed to ATR that he will vote against both cloture and passage on the Employee Free Choice Act (also known as "card check" or the employee NO choice act). His vote is critical and this a major victory for freedom, as well as a stunning defeat for the other side.
Please report any development you might have heard.
Details below the fold
Apologies for the sloppy diary - I tried to get this out as fast as possible with the essential helpful information. I'll post more as I hear it...
Last time, in 2007, Specter was the ONLY Republican to vote in favor of this important measure that will help unions organize and establish balance in the American workplace.
He is under immense pressure from both potential primary and general election challenges for 2010 and it seems lie he has cracked despite potential support from Democrats and unions in his state.
CONTACT SENATOR SPECTER and let him know he must support the EFCA! Especially you Pennsylvanians!
DC Phone: 202-224-4254
DC Fax: 202-228-1229
District Office info here:
http://www.congressmerge.com/...
UPDATE: The Hill has just confirmed and I have learned Specter is currently or just finished speaking on the Senate floor about the EFCA
h/t Paleo
I disagree that this deals a "death blow" as the Hill says, but it certainly a serious blow. We must still make a massive effort to bring Specter back on board or bring another Republican instead. We are NOT necessarily likely to pick up seats in 2010 (the incumbent party almost always LOSES seats), and we don't know what the economy will be like in 2010
What's more, this isn't simply about passing a bill, this is about a major part of the nation and President Obama's economy recovery efforts and people - real people - will suffer more than they would otherwise if this does not pass or if it has to wait 2 years.
UPDATE 2: Link to the floor speech
h/t rhutcheson
Huffington Post has picked up the story
It seems the comments are producing some popular sentiments:
- Specter has closed his remaining options for 2010. Pennsylvanians commenting below suggest voting for Toomey in the Republican primary to make the general election easier for Dems. Unless there is a particularly heated/important Dem primary that needs progressive voters, I wholeheartedly agree.
- Some suggest using the nuclear option on this issue. I have mixed feelings - while this would solve the initial problem, it could cause some serious political damage. Then again, if there was ever an issue to take some heat for in exchange for major progress, THIS IS IT. Also, if we use the nuke option and pass the EFCA with 58 or so votes, that wouldn't cause as much political damage as if we passed it and could only muster 51 votes.
Just some food for thought (or commenting). Also, can somebody find the ActBlue page for the 2010 Pennsylvania Democratic Senate nominee (whoever it would be)? Thanks!
UPDATE 3: This will probably be the last update since it appears we have fallen off the rec list (by the way, thanks for your support and attention everybody!). Some Kossacks digging deeper into the speech and story have demonstrated that Specter's announcement is more nuanced than it appears. It seems he is still trying to hedge his bets.
h/t Mariken for this link:
From The American Spectator:
"The difference between Specter's vote on the big government stimulus bill and Specter's vote on card check: a threat in the Republican primary," Pat Toomey wrote this afternoon in a statement emailed to reporters. "It's nice to see Sen. Specter reverse his position in a positive direction on card check, but I wish it didn't take primary opposition to get him to do it."
UPDATE:
More from Toomey:
"When Senator Specter does a flip flop, it's worth checking the fine print. On the senate floor today he said: "I would be willing to reconsider Employees' Free Choice legislation when the economy returns to normalcy." In other words, if he thinks his political fortunes have improved, he will deny workers a secret ballot after all."
If anything this shows that if we can demonstrate that the President's economic policies are beginning to make headway and turn up the heat (see various methods above) on Specter, we may still have his vote on this, if not the votes of 1 or 2 other Republicans.