Winning is More Important Than Being Right

Arlen Specter is announcing that after 30 years with the Republican party he is switching to the Democratic party and will run as a Dem in the next election. Is this due to ideological changes? Is this due to changes in the Republican party? Nope. This is due to him being in serious danger of losing his Republican primary. So he's changing parties not for support of his principles, but for support of his career. A far too common issue in our Congress.

According to the Pittsburgh Post Gazette Mr. Specter calls Republicans who seek to eliminate him in the primary "cannibals," who insist on being "right" rather than winning.

OK. So what he's really saying is that it is more important to win than to stand up for what you believe. He says that they insist on being "right", which is probably a comment on the right wing of the political party, at the expense of winning, and he says it like it's a bad thing. So if there was any question at all on why Sen Specter switched sides, he's made it pretty clear. According to Sen Specter, winning re-election is the more important than any pesky principles.

Have we seen a clearer expression of politician priorities. I have long argued that Congressional priorities put their re-election campaign fund raising first, re-election second, the party third and the country a far distant last. Sen Specter has just illustrated this with a crystal clarity that can not be denied.

Shame on Sen Specter. Not for switching parties, but for the reasons behind it.