A Challenge for Sen. Arlen Specter

On Thursday I interviewed Sen. John Cornyn, head of the National Republican Sentorial Committee. When I asked him about the NRSC running someone against Sen. Arlen Specter in 2010, given the anger many Republicans feel about Specter's vote on the stimulus bill, Cornyn's answer was basically that he would rather have someone voting with him 80% of the time, rather than a liberal Democrat who would vote with him 0% of the time.  

Well, it looks like Sen. Cornyn might be able to get someone who will vote with him more than 80% of the time. Former Congressman Pat Toomey, the current Club for Growth President, announced this morning on Bobby Gunther Walsh's 1-On-1 Show, WAEB, 790AM, that a Primary challenge to Sen. Arlen Specter is now 'back on the table."

Given Specter's abysmal poll numbers in Pennsylvania right now, this is interesting, to say the least. 

On Sunday the Associated Press reported these words from Vice President Biden:

At a reception Friday in Philadelphia with Pennsylvania's congressional delegation, Vice President Joe Biden thanked Specter for supporting the stimulus bill.

"He knows what's worth losing over and he's willing to act on it," Biden said. "In his heart, I know he's a Democrat."

Now, if that isn't enough to make you want to bang your head against the desk, the AP story also has this to say about Specter's liberal votes:

"It is that streak of independence that the fifth-term Specter flaunts and Republicans fear."

No, it's that streak of liberalism that we despise, not fear.