Arlen Specter's Zigzag Trajectory

Excerpt:

As a top staffer for the Warren Commission nearly a half century ago, Arlen Specter helped devise the "single bullet theory" to explain the bizarre trajectory of a shot that purportedly hit both President John Kennedy and Texas Governor John Connally. But nothing other than sheer ambition and an amazing knack for political survival explains the bizarre trajectory of Specter's own career -- which took another dizzying turn today when the five-term Pennsylvania Republican senator announced Tuesday that he was (shazam!) becoming a Democrat.

In politics, there is nothing like a primary challenge to concentrate a man's mind. Specter, who was one of only three Republican senators to vote for President Obama's stimulus package, was facing a daunting primary rematch next year against conservative challenger and former congressman Pat Toomey. In 2004, Toomey, a zealous tax-cutter, came within 17,000 votes of ousting Specter in a primary that underscored the rightward tilt of the Pennsylvania Republican Party.

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