Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Specter Defection Refects Seismic Shift in US Politics

AP, CNN and the Washington Post are all reporting the head-spinning news that Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter will switch from the Republican to the Democratic Party.

Conservatives, of course, will note that the pro-choice Specter has voted for years with the Democrats on social issues. I would agree.

But what strikes me as most important about this news is what it portends for the 2010 elections and the future of American politics. Quite obviously, Senator Specter does not want to run for re-election in the swing state of Pennsylvania as a Republican -- even though in an off-year election, the President's party usually loses Congressional seats.

In 1968, the election of Richard Nixon started a forty-year era of Republican dominance in American politics. Could it be that the 2008 election of Barack Obama has done the same for the Democrats?

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