DISQUS

howardx · 8 months ago

good! now we can get on with the gun confiscation and reeducation camps for conservatives! this is truly a fantastic day for liberals~!

Dave Wielenga · 8 months ago

Well, after Al Franken is seated.

lbresident · 8 months ago

I wouldn't call him a moderate republican. He's going to fit in much better with the dems. What a power hungry guy. He knows he can't win the republican primary coming up so he changes parties.

howardx · 8 months ago

how did you feel when leiberman did it? be honest now.

lbresident · 8 months ago

I don't really care that much that either did. Though Leiberman switched to independent I think, not the other party so it's a bit different. and his support for mccain was personal support for the man not the party. I think apples to oranges.

honestly, it is isn't good to lose members to another party so it's not great for republicans that specter switched. But the guy never could be counted on to do the right thing anyway. hopefully a real repub can win the seat in 2010.

HighHat · 8 months ago

Pat Toomey? BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Obama won PA by TEN POINTS!

Specter was TOAST as a Republican OR as in Independent in the 2010 election. He'll be right there with Ben Nelson on the right wing of the Democratic Party, but we're happy to have him!

The GOP has indeed become a regional party. Couldn't happen to a nicer bunch of thugs!

Note to Snowe and Collins: Come on in! The water's FINE!

howardx · 8 months ago

other than feeling a bit of shadenfruede im not all that happy about it, we dont need another blue dog slowing things down. i think you guys might lose snowe and/or collins if the repubs dont quit throwing a purity ball. i expect you'll be recieving some urgent fundraising pleas now LB, give till it hurts!

wrongbeachJohn · 8 months ago

Maybe we'll see o'donnell switch to the GOP.

Mike Ruehle · 8 months ago

What do you mean switch?

wrongbeachJohn · 8 months ago

Officially switch; as in he'll discard his "cover" as a democrat and come out of the closet.I know what you mean though, the exposure of his anti-environment anti-open government program had already identified him as GOP.

lbresident · 8 months ago

the GOP is neither anti-environment nor anti- open government.

howardx · 8 months ago

if thats the case then their messaging sucks because thats what most people think.

lbresident · 8 months ago

no, that is what most liberals think. and that is what the liberal media pushes. That said, the GOP messaging does suck.

JuneVox · 8 months ago

Since there are far more "liberals" (as you say) in the USA than there are GOP, howardx is right... MOST people do think that the GOP is anti-environment and anti-open government.

I'm convinced that's why there's suck a stink, pardon the pun, about global warming. Most of us "liberals" don't care if you believe in global warming, or if you believe there are human causes. Just stop peeing in the punch bowl, okay? We can't go on polluting our air and water! We are all getting sick because of it, and the GOP would rather keep the regulations lax so their vile, polluting, big corporate buddies don't have to spend any money on being clean and respectful of the human race.

lbresident · 8 months ago

the country is primarily center right. the obama socialism movement is but a blip enabled by fake republicans such as w. and the fools in congress. Give it a few years and we'll be back to a era more closely related to Reagan. We just need to see the negative effects of obama's policies take place first. Here comes inflation, etc.

as far as the environment, most of us GOP types support efforts to clean it.

howardx · 8 months ago

what could you possibly be basing this on "the country is primarily center right"?

JuneVox · 8 months ago

No one is going to blame Obama for anything remotely related to the economy; W broke everything so blatantly, and most people understand that fact. If we turn around even slightly over the next four years, it will be a miracle... and it will be duly credited to Obama and his team. Furthermore, most of us understand that Reagonomics didn't work for Reagan, and they haven't worked for any administration since that time. We're dead sick of those failed policies, hence, change. Center right? I highly doubt that. I've not seen any proof of that, and quite frankly, the only time I ever hear that phrase is from extreme RW talking points and the RW political analysts who write them. No where else is it evident.

HighHat · 8 months ago

Reagan was a terrible president, but W was complete nightmare. We have moved so far to the right in this country that Nixon would be considered a LIBERAL by your standards. I mean, Clinton was far to the right of Nixon and you guys portray him as some fire-breathing liberal. Obama is a center-left corporate Democrat. I would prefer a TRUE progressive, but Obama will do for now . . .

JuneVox · 8 months ago

I'm really liking what Goldwater stood for... sadly, the GOP is not my father's party anymore.

howardx · 8 months ago

the first things the gop needs to do is quit blaming the nonexistant "liberal media" for their problems, which are quite self inflicted. why should anyone support a party who wont take responsibility for their own actions and constantly seeks a scapegoat to blame their problems on?

wrongbeachJohn · 8 months ago

Here in wrong beach, we suffer with an extremely influential right-wing gop chamber of commerce that fights fair and inexpensive clean air legislation, even with the following reporting of fact:

http://www.presstelegram.com/ci_12250511?source...

Not only do we also suffer with a right-wing gop councilmember from the third district who fights attempts at open government in matters concerning his district and constituents, but also his like-minded fellow right-wing gop cartel members (one operating undercover) on the city council.

Ironically, not only do they not want us to know what the hell is going on, they don't want to know themselves what the hell is going on!

Haiku Frank · 8 months ago

Specter supported
Thomas, Alito, Roberts;
Now "borks G.O.P.

Mike Ruehle · 8 months ago

Don’t be surprised when Mayor Bob Foster declares he has changed parties from Democrat to Republican. Reasons why I say this include:

1. Mayor Foster’s best buddy on City Council and golfing partner is ultra-republican Councilman DeLong.

2. Mayor Foster and Republican Councilman DeLong were involved in the secret wetlands deal with developer Tom Dean per the Public Records Act emails. Other Democrat Councilmembers were excluded from knowledge of the deal.

3. The deleted wetlands deal emails are reminiscent of the Nixon’s Watergate “gap in the tapes.”

4. Mayor Foster is recruiting people to run for City Council to unseat fellow Democratic City Councilwoman Schipske.

5. Mayor Foster is leading the charge to develop a wetlands area.

6. Mayor Foster always talks about transparency. However, the city management he has put in place has been anything but transparent as indicated by recent Public Records Act emails. Under Mayor Foster’s leadership, it has become standard operating procedure to do behind closed door deals to provide gifts of public funds for friends such as developer Tom Dean.

7. Contrary to his claims of transparency, Mayor Foster led the charge to reduce public input to Council meetings regarding consent agenda items. He doesn’t need to hear from the public. He has already decided what is best for everyone in Long Beach.

8. Mayor Foster has replaced 4 of the 7 Planning Commissioners with his pro-development, pro-business at all costs friends and associates. He also promoted Development Services Director Craig Beck who has yet to find a variance that shouldn’t be granted. Zoning Codes mean nothing to these guys.

HighHat · 8 months ago

Foster is a corporatist. There are LOTS of Democrats that are corporatists--Bill Clinton being the primary example. There is no reason for Foster to become a Republican and he won't. You can say what you want about DeLong, but he appears to me to be a "true believer," a right wing Republican with that odd libertarian California bent (think: Ronald Reagan). I am sure that on major national issues Foster and DeLong disagree on much, but when it comes to local Long Beach issues, they are both firmly committed to lining the pockets of their corporate buddies.

Dennis · 8 months ago

I think it is somewhat funny that Democrats are celebrating the Specter party switch, but locally the party put out a hate-mailer against Robert Garcia for changing parties BEFORE he was elected. Irony or hypocrisy, I can't tell; but selfish self-interest either way which is shocking in the realm of politics.

As a life long Republican (and family going back generations) I am watching the party die, or already be dead in California. My thoughts on the downfall of the party and if it can regain support at www.dcsmusings.blogspot.com . Also national commentator Rich Galen, life long Republican insider, has a great piece today on whether now is the time a legitimate 3rd party can come to fruition and be in play at www.mullings.com.

As for Specter, he is a politician, his change in party has nothing to do with ideology but only self preservation. He was down 15 points in the primary and his fellow Republican Senators were lining up to support his opponent. Because the state swung so dramatically to Democrat in 2008 he knew the only way to keep his seat was to switch parties. Don't let the door hit you Arlen.

howardx · 8 months ago

"his change in party has nothing to do with ideology but only self preservation"

yep thats the RW talking point for the day about arlen, heard micheal steele say the same thing this morning.

dennis im sure you found liebermans party switch to be "self preservation" too didnt you? or did you join the rest of the gop in congratulating him for his principled act?

Dennis · 8 months ago

Lieberman did not switch parties, the Democrats abandoned him during the primary and he then quit the party and won election as an Independent who still caucuses with the Demos. In Connecticut self-preservation politically is the be Democrat, his running as an Indy without party support was a leap of faith in the voters of his state. I could care less that he switched because it did not change the math in the Senate and would not mean he was suddenly going to vote against the Democratic Caucus in Senate--so no I did not celebrate. I did shake my head and think what a foolish move was made by the DNC and the ConnDC for not supporting him, it made them look somewhat stupid. But in the neither party was hurt and a good man remained in the Senate.

You can label whatever statements you like it does not change whether they are correct or not. At the end of the day Specter was a Republican when they were the majority in the state. The tide has turned and he was down significantly in the polls and had slim chances of winning the GOP Primary, if he wants to stay in the Senate the only chance he has is to switch parties and win the Demo primary. His move was absolutely not ideological or he would have switched earlier--he did not however because he would probably have lost his seat.

So I agree with Michael Steele, and many others, with 200k+ voters switching to Democrat for the 2008 elections, with his being down almost double digits in the polls for his primary election, it does not take a lot of intelligence to see why he switched parties.

howardx · 8 months ago

"So I agree with Michael Steele, and many others"

of course you do.

wrongbeachJohn · 8 months ago

Talk about shocking selfish self-interest, garcia's switch was most probably engineered by a selfish self-interest business union's crafty unionboss. This schemer has even propositioned a strong democrat to run for an elected position (after "using" him for his well-known name in his online yellow journalism "news site"), has reportedly been heavily involved in hate mailers, and there are even whispers about a planted operative in an elected democrat's staff position.

He makes specter look like a rube. Don't let the door hit you whore.