Leave a Comment

Specter, fearing primary challenge, caves to far right. Will support filibuster of labor bill, when he opposed filibuster 2 years ago
AMERICAblog News| A great nation deserves the truth — Arlen Specter has never been much of a profile in courage. In fact, he's been a profile in moderate Republicanism. Claim you're a moderate, but then cave when the Rush Limbaugh wing of the party threatens to be mean to you. And he did it again today. Specter opposed filibustering the Employee Free Choice Act two years ago. Now, after being threatened with a primary challenge by the RNC after voting for the stimulus package, Specter has suddenly changed his mind and is supporting the filibuster AND voting against the bill itself. ...

Specter Stabs Unions in the Back
The Nation: Top Stories — A Democratic politician once said of Arlen Specter that he's "always there when you don't need him." Well, the Employee Free Choice Act, was one place where we did need him. He was the lone Republican co-sponsor and the lone Republican who voted or cloture last time it came up. Today he recanted . "The problems of a recession make this a particularly bad time to enact Employee's choice legislation," he said. "Employers understandably complain that adding a burden would result in further job losses. If efforts are unsuccessful to give labor sufficient bargaining power through ...

Hullabaloo — The Revenge Of The Haggis by dday Arlen Specter joins the obstructionist caucus on worker's rights. Some big news emerged Tuesday in regards to the debate over the Employee Free Choice Act, with a prominent Republican strategist declaring that Sen. Arlen Specter will vote against cloture on and passage of the bill. Americans for Tax Reform president Grover Norquist broke the news during a speech at the Capital Research Center Labor Summit, saying that Specter's chief of staff had let it be known that he would oppose the ...

Specter Announces His Intention To Vote Against Employee Free Choice Act
Think Progress — ... Today on the Senate floor, Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA) announced his intention to vote against cloture on the Employee Free Choice Act. Specter was the ...

Specter flips on EFCA?
Political Animal — SPECTER FLIPS ON EFCA?.... Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) has supported the Employee Free Choice Act in the past, and his vote on the measure this year would make passage far more likely. Of course, Specter also knows that sticking to his position on the issue will cost him dearly in a Republican primary next year, a contest he'll enter as the underdog. Apparently, Specter felt like he had no choice, so he's flipping . Some big news emerged Tuesday in regards to the debate over the Employee Free Choice Act, with a prominent Republican strategist declaring that Sen. Arlen Specter ...

Lobbyists Snap Their Fingers, Senate Jumps, Tables Employee Free Choice
Firedoglake — ... Arlen Specter crawls to Grover Norquist and says he won't vote for cloture on Employee Free Choice -- the very same bill he voted for cloture on in the last time around.  As bankers gleefully rub their hands at the prospect of their trillion dollar gift from Timothy Geithner with no limits on what they can pay themselves, the one thing that might have made a tiny dent in the huge transfer of wealth taking place in this country is tabled -- for now. ...

It Appears Arlen Specter Doesn't Want to Get Reelected
Daily Kos — ... Arlen Specter has announced that he will not vote for cloture on the Employee Free Choice Act, after co-sponsoring the bill in 2003, and voting for cloture in 2007. ...

Senator Specter Nixes Card Check
Wizbang — Arguably the least popular Republican (in name only) Senator in the caucus, Arlen Specter today deep sixed the Employee Free Choice Act by announcing that he would not vote for cloture, thus effectively ending the chances for passage of the highly controversial union organizing initiative. The most humorous part of this story is that Specter betrayed the unions by reversing a prior position on the legislation: Labor officials are incredibly distraught and, in some cases incredulous, noting the Specter co-sponsored the bill in 2003 and voted for cloture just last year. ( Note ...

Why Is Dianne Feinstein Stiffing Labor?
FiveThirtyEight: Politics Done Right — ... I've never been particularly sanguine about the prospects for EFCA's passage. That Arlen Specter has come out against it does not surprise me, given that he seems to face a ...

Arlen Specter is getting crushed by Pat Toomey in PA's GOP Senate primary
AMERICAblog News| A great nation deserves the truth — ... Republicans are really sick of Specter. He's in big trouble. This is a Republican primary re-match and Specter barely beat Toomey in 2004. Hard to see how Arlen recovers enough to keep his seat. Specter already tried veering right by flip-flopping on the Employee Free Choice Act. That strategy didn't help with the right wingers and caused him to lose support from labor. Arlen's got no friends. Maybe he should reconsider ...

The number for today, brought to you by the right wing Republicans
AMERICAblog News| A great nation deserves the truth — ... of course. Specter claims he will stick to his newfound opposition to the Employee Free Choice Act: My change in party affiliation does not mean that I will be a party-line voter any more for the Democrats that I have been for the Republicans. Unlike Senator Jeffords’ switch which changed party control, I will not be an automatic 60th vote for cloture. For example, my position on Employees Free Choice (Card Check) will not change.Specter was for the Employee Free Choice Act before he was against it. So, it's not perfect, but still... ...

Is Sestak the Right Choice for the Left?
FiveThirtyEight: Politics Done Right — ... least to keep alive the possibility of one. As Chris Bowers notes, Specter has already cast two important votes against his party in his brief tenure as a Democrat, first on mortgage bankruptcy "cramdown" legislation, and then on the budget conference report, where he was joined only by Ben Nelson, Evan Bayh and Robert Byrd joined. Nor has Specter changed his position on the Employee Free Choice Act -- a measure which he had supported in past years but revealed in March that he would attempt to filibuster. It's very early in Arlen ...

Specter Stands Behind Employee Free Choice, but Labor is Still Hobbling
The Latest on Air America — ... by bosses. Specter seemed intent on suppressing the bill earlier this year before switching to the Democratic party, citing economic turmoil as a reason not to rock the boat with big business, which has ...