Just give up, Arlen

So it looks like Arlen Specter's blatant political opportunism is finally catching up to him. After trailing in polls against his conservative Republican primary opponent, Pat Toomey, he switched to the Democratic Party and has since become a reliably Democratic vote. This stands in contrast with his increasingly conservative voting record while a Republican senator. His current Democratic primary opponent, Joe Sestak, is running against his "false" issue stances and his coziness with both Obama and Bush.

I have never been a fan of Arlen Specter. Though I think moderate Republicans are essential to a working bipartisan coalition, Specter was becoming increasingly pressured by his base to be a reliable Republican vote. Now that he is a Democrat, he has been a reliable vote though there is nothing stopping him from resuming his "independent" voting record when the election is over. People like Arlen Specter are not the type of people we need in Washington. They respond to public pressure in the most manipulative possible way, putting their job ahead of millions of unemployed and underemployed Americans. Specter has been preserving his job since 1980, its time we elect somebody who actually represents the people of Pennsylvania.

White House, stop meddling in Dem primaries!

Anti-incumbent rage is sweeping the nation. Incumbent Utah Senator Robert Bennet just lost the Republican nominating process, after being in the senate for 18 years and earning himself a spot on the Republican leadership circle. West Virginia Rep. Alan Mollohan is now about to suffer the same fate. Arlen Specter, the Democrat turned Republican turned Democrat, is now trailing in polls against primary challenger Joe Sestak (D). Blanche Lincoln is being given a run for her money against primary challenger Bill Halter.

There is no doubt that many of these incumbents' situations were made worse by votes they cast, but there is no denying that the electorate wants new people representing them. In the case of Blanche Lincoln and Arlen Specter, the primary electorate thinks them too conservative for their constituencies. This is healthy. Strong primary challenges to incumbents is a sign of a healthy democracy. If the party/constituents are fed up with a particular officeholder, they can either vote them out of office or pressure them to represent them in a better way.

President Barack Obama clearly doesn't think so. He has shown consistent support for both Blanche Lincoln and Arlen Specter, even though they both have voted consistently against his agenda (Arlen Specter when he was a Republican). He is likely protecting them because of the personal relationships he forged with them during his time in the senate. This is wrong. The United States senate can no longer be treated like a country club. Neither can the United States government. Obama, lets allow the people decide who they want to represent them, not their former friends in the senate.