Open Left

Who says we can't primary him? (4.00 / 15)

Lamont got no support from the dem establishment, either...

With labor by our side, too, we can mount a very effective primary indeed... if nothing else, it may force Specter to actually prove he's a democrat and vote with labor again...

There's nothing here that's worth noting... This is our chance... with labor by our side, we can make the netroots a real political force to be reckoned with...

Let's get started!  Chris, you're in philly... You're the perfect point man!  Let's do it!

REID: Voting against us was never part of our arrangement!
SPECTER: I am altering the deal! Pray I don't alter it any further!
REID: This deal keeps getting worse all the time!

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by: lord_mike @ Tue Apr 28, 2009 at 13:08:47 PM CDT

Bring in labor (4.00 / 8)

  A strong netroots/labor coalition will make life much more exciting for Arlen Specter than he'd like next year.

  We just need to make sure that labor leaders don't sell out their workers as a part of this "deal".

 

"We judge ourselves by our ideals; others by their actions. It is a great convenience." -- Howard Zinn

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by: Master Jack @ Tue Apr 28, 2009 at 13:12:50 PM CDT

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Unless labor is complicit in the deal (4.00 / 2)

Specter can be made to be very uncomfortable in a primary.

My guess: since Specter is a weasal, there will be a change to EFCA as it currently is drafted that will give Specter cover to switch again.  Also, there might be wiggle room on cloture versus a final vote.

John McCain won't insure children

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by: magster @ Tue Apr 28, 2009 at 13:20:18 PM CDT

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Labor has a lot of leverage here (4.00 / 1)

 I wonder of they know it.

 Democrats have a way of not using their power.  

"We judge ourselves by our ideals; others by their actions. It is a great convenience." -- Howard Zinn

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by: Master Jack @ Tue Apr 28, 2009 at 13:26:47 PM CDT

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Harry can't carry his own balls and Mendenez of DSCC has none. (4.00 / 2)

Nationalism is not the same thing as terrorism, and an adversary is not the same thing as an enemy.

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by: worldlymother @ Tue Apr 28, 2009 at 13:51:35 PM CDT

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Lamont had something else ... (4.00 / 1)

... a very large bank account.

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by: Adam B. @ Tue Apr 28, 2009 at 14:09:11 PM CDT

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And a single, extremely salient issue. (4.00 / 1)

Generic millionaire challenger won't have that this time.  "I'm running to support Obama's agenda" ("support Obama" being the only super-salient political issue right now) won't work when Obama is appearing onstage with your opponent and endorsing him.

The next 12 months might produce a single salient issue on which to run against Specter, but a generic "I'm more of a Dem than he is" won't work I think.  In particular because most of the proven, real Democrats (meaning people in high elective office with records, rather than millionaire Lamont-type outsiders) won't run.

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by: texas dem @ Tue Apr 28, 2009 at 17:41:19 PM CDT

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