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7:25 PM ET, April 28, 2009

memeorandum

 Top Items: 
Chris Cillizza / The Fix:
Specter To Switch Parties  —  UPDATED, 2:10 p.m. Continue following the story here.  —  Original Post  —  Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter will switch his party affiliation from Republican to Democrat and announced today that he will run in 2010 as a Democrat, according to a statement he released this morning.
RELATED:
PoliticsPA:
Statement by Senator Arlen Specter  —  I have been a Republican since 1966.  I have been working extremely hard for the Party, for its candidates and for the ideals of a Republican Party whose tent is big enough to welcome diverse points of view.  While I have been comfortable being a Republican, my Party has not defined who I am.
Lisa Lerer / The Politico:
Two Republicans blame conservatives  —  Two leading Republicans say Sen. Arlen Specter's decision to become a Democrat highlights the hostility moderates feel from an increasingly conservative GOP.  —  “You haven't certainly heard warm encouraging words about how [the GOP] views moderates …
The New Republic:
Unprincipled Hack (D-PA)  —  When a politician switches parties, it's customary for the party he's abandoned to denounce him as an unprincipled hack, and the party he's joined to praise him as a brave convert who's genuinely seen the light.  But I think it's pretty clear that Specter is an unprincipled hack.
Discussion: Commentary and Newshoggers.com
CNN:
Veteran GOP Sen. Specter becomes Democrat  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) — Veteran Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter switched from the Republican to the Democratic Party on Tuesday, saying he has found himself increasingly “at odds with the Republican philosophy.”  —  “This is a painful decision.
Carl Hulse / The Caucus:
Specter Switches Parties  —  Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania said on Tuesday he would switch to the Democratic party, presenting Democrats with a possible 60th vote and the power to break Senate filibusters as they try to advance the Obama administration's new agenda.
The Huffington Post:
Snowe: GOP Has Abandoned Principles; Specter Switch “Devastating”  —  Sen. Olympia Snowe of Maine, one of the few remaining moderate Republicans in the Senate, said Tuesday that Arlen Specter's abandonment of the GOP is “devastating,” both “personally and I think for the party.”
The New Majority:
Another Triumph for the Club for Growth  —  With Arlen Specter's defection, all that stands between the Democrats and a 60-seat Senate majority are Norman Coleman's lawyers.  I wish them every success - but they have not exactly been on an winning streak to date.
Discussion: The Caucus, Hot Air, AmSpecBlog and CNN
Amanda Terkel / Think Progress:
CNN's Rick Sanchez calls out DeMint's vapid talking point: ‘What the hell does that mean?’  —  Today, Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) appeared on CNN to talk about Sen. Arlen Specter's switch to the Democratic party.  Host Rick Sanchez asked DeMint about Specter's statement that the Republican party …
Discussion: Washington Monthly
Ben Smith / Ben Smith's Blog:
Specter switching parties  —  A source involved in the talks confirms that Senator Arlen Specter will switch to the Democratic Party, a dramatic move putting the Democrats within reach of two votes in the Senate.  —  The move stands to put the White House's agenda on a fast-track …
Glenn Greenwald / Salon:
What Specter's switch says about him, the Democrats and our political spectrum  —  (updated below - Update II)  —  I just contributed my thoughts on Arlen Specter's party switch to the New York Times' “Room for Debate” segment, so I'll post the link to that once that is available (see Update II) …
CNN:
Snowe calls Specter move ‘devastating’
Discussion: Ben Smith's Blog
Alexander Bolton / The Hill:
Specter move caught GOP leaders by surprise
The Huffington Post:
Limbaugh To Specter: Take McCain And His Daughter With You
Eric Kleefeld / TPMDC:
Why Specter Did It — And Had To Do It
CNN:
Limbaugh to Specter: Please take McCain with you
Discussion: Salon and Hot Air
David Waldman / Daily Kos:
Memo to GOP: Seat Franken or we'll keep Specter's committee seats
Discussion: AMERICAblog News
The Politico:
GOP is Specter of its old self
Discussion: Townhall.com
Timothy P. Carney / www.washingtonexaminer.com:
Did DeMint's endorsement of Toomey set off Specter?
Discussion: Power Line and Eschaton
The Politico:   Specter: I'm not an automatic 60th vote
Myglesias / Matthew Yglesias:
Specter and the Flat Tax
Discussion: Open Left
David Weigel / The Washington Independent:   Club for Growth Speechless on Specter Switch
Steve Benen / Washington Monthly:
WHY SPECTER'S SWITCH MATTERS.... Following up on the last item …
CNN:
Specter to face a Democratic primary
Alex Isenstadt / The Politico:
GOP leaders: It's not our fault
Discussion: nrsc.org and PERRspectives
Kos / Daily Kos:
The RNC responds  —  Not a bad response from RNC Chairman Michael Steele:
Discussion: Scorecard's Blog and MyDD
Jonathan Cohn / The New Republic:
What a Specter Shift Means—and Doesn't Mean
Emily Kaiser / City Pages:
Bachmann: ‘Interesting coincidence’ that Dems in power during swine flu outbreak  —  Rep. Michele Bachmann came up with another doozy during her interview Monday with Pajamas TV.  Does anyone think it's “interesting” that the last time we saw swine flu was during another Democratic president?
RELATED:
Declan McCullagh / CBS News:   DHS Sets Guidelines For Possible Swine Flu Quarantines
Spencer S. Hsu / Washington Post:
With Eye on Industry, Ag Secretary Stops Calling Outbreak ‘Swine Flu’
Discussion: The New Republic
Andrew Blankstein / L.A. Now:
Two L.A. County deaths possibly related to swine flu, coroner says [Updated]
Andie Coller / The Politico:
Dems put swine flu to good use
Discussion: The Swamp
Ryan Powers / Think Progress:   Bachmann: It's ‘interesting’ …
Joseph Abrams / Fox News:
Despite Reports, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed Was Not Waterboarded 183 Times  —  The number of times Khalid Sheikh Mohammed was waterboarded was the focus of major media attention — and highly misleading.  —  FOXNews.com  —  The New York Times reported last week that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed …
RELATED:
Ramesh Ponnuru / The Corner:
Specter on Jeffords  —  When Jim Jeffords became an “Independent” in 2001, Specter wasn't happy.  He said, “I intend to propose a rule change which would preclude a future recurrence of a Senator's change in parties, in midsession, organizing with the opposition, to cause the upheaval which is now resulting.”
Discussion: Weekly Standard
RELATED:
Glenn Thrush / Glenn Thrush's Blog:   Specter tried to block party switching
WDBJ-TV:
News7 Poll: Terry McAuliffe holds double digit lead over Brian Moran & Creigh Deeds  —  A new poll gives Terry McAuliffe a double digit lead over Brian Moran and Creigh Deeds, his Democratic rivals for Governor.  —  But a majority of likely Democratic voters who responded to the News7 SurveyUSA poll …
Sylvia A Smith / The Journal Gazette:
Lugar to support IU law professor's nomination  —  First in GOP to back Obama's pick to head internal law office  —  WASHINGTON - Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Ind., said Tuesday he will support the nomination of an Indiana University law professor to head the Obama administration's internal law office.
Discussion: TalkLeft and TPMDC
WCBS-TV:
FAA Memo: Feds Knew NYC Flyover Would Cause Panic  —  Threatened Federal Sanctions Against NYPD, Secret Service, FBI & Mayor's Office If Secret Ever Got Out  —  Furious Obama Apologizes: “It Will Never Happen Again”  —  CBS News Interactive: Sept. 11 And Since
Discussion: The Strata-Sphere
 
 
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