• Arlen Specter,  Joe Sestak,  Pat Toomey

    Pennsylvania Senate Poll Watch: Republican Pat Toomey Beating Democrat Senator Arlen Specter by 12 Points

    August 13, 2009 /

    United States Senator and newly switched party Democrat Arlen Specter is in trouble in his 2010 re-election campaign.

    Uncomfortable town hall meetings are just the tip of the iceberg for Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Specter. He now trails Republican Pat Toomey by double digits in his bid for reelection next year and is viewed unfavorably by a majority of the state’s voters.

    The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of Pennsylvania voters shows 48% would vote for Toomey if the election were held today. Just 36% would vote for Specter while four percent (4%) prefer a third option, and 12% are not sure.

    These figures reflect a dramatic reversal since June. At that time, before the public health care debate began, Specter led Toomey by eleven.

    Just 43% now have a favorable opinion of Specter while 54% offer an unfavorable assessment of the longtime GOP senator who became a Democrat rather than face Toomey in a party primary. Those numbers have reversed since June when 53% had a favorable opinion of him.

    The current figures include 15% with a Very Favorable opinion of Specter and 36% with a Very Unfavorable view.

    And, Republican Pat Toomey is beating left-wing Democrat Congressman Joe Sestak who is challenging Specter in the Democrat primary election.

    After watching Specter in action at a health care town hall a couple of days ago, is there any doubt that the near octogenarian may be too old and feeble to succeed in his re-election efforts?

    I doubt Specter wins the primary election and Toomey then mops the floor with Sestak.

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  • Arlen Specter,  Barack Obama,  Joe Sestak,  Pat Toomey,  Polling

    Poll Watch: Republican Pat Toomey Gaining Ground on Arlen Specter

    May 28, 2009 /
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    Pat Toomey, left, is interviewed by news anchor Rob Vaughn at the WFMZ TV studio in Allentown, Pa. on Tuesday, April 28, 2009.. Toomey, was asked about the decision of Sen. Arlen Specter who switched from the Republican to the Democratic party. Toomey was set to challenge Specter for the Republican nomination

    The latest Quinnipiac poll shows former Pennsylvania Congressman Pat Toomey trailing incumbent U.S. Senator Arlen Specter by 9 points, 37-46 per cent.

    That’s better than Toomey’s showing in a May 4 poll, in which he trailed Specter by 20 points immediately following Specter’s party switch — a switch Specter decided to make in large part because polls showed Toomey beating him in the GOP primary race.

    The numbers and candidates in the Pennsylvania race are still in a state of flux. Former Republican Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge was considered a possible challenger, but he opted not to run earlier this month despite a Quinnipiac survey showing him competitive against Specter in a general election.

    Now Toomey is the leading GOP candidate. Another potential Democratic challenger recently dropped out of the race against Specter as well.

    And though Rep. Joe Sestak, D-Pa., is expected to challenge Specter in the Democratic primary, the latest Quinnipiac poll shows the lesser known congressman trailing the five-term senator by nearly 30 points.

    The GOP must be heartened with this poll since it appears that Rep. Joe Sestak will be running against Specter in a contested Democratic Party primary election. The negatives of this primary campaign undoubtedly will help Toomey who has a clear field now that Tom Ridge has declared he will not be running.

    Now, will President Obama who has promised to support Specter for re-election place pressure on Rep. Sestak to withdraw and/or will he campaign directly for the incumbent Senator?

    Stay tuned……

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  • Arlen Specter,  Tom Ridge

    Former Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge Continues to Own Home and Registered to Vote In Pennsylvania

    May 7, 2009 /
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    Tom Ridge, former secretary of Homeland Security and former Pennsylvania governor, speaks during the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minn. The chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee says, Tuesday, May 5, 2009, that Tom Ridge might run against Sen. Arlen Specter in Pennsylvania next year

    Yesterday, I reported that Tom Ridge would have to move his official residence back to Pennsylvania if he was going to challenge Senator Arlen Specter in 2010.

    Well, former Governor Ridge never changed his official residence although he currently resides in Maryland, where it is a short commute to Washington.

    By making two, simple phone calls to the Erie County courthouse, we were able to determine that:

    1. The Ridges still own a home in Millcreek Township, Erie County and have since 1990. The 10-room manse on Westwood Estates Drive sits on 2.1 acres, has five bedrooms, two full bathrooms, one half-bathroom and a cheery fireplace. It’s assessed at $460,990. And a county and municipal tax bill totaling $3,416.16 was sent to the Ridges’ Chevy Chase address in March. The 2009 school tax bill has not yet been sent out, but officials told us Mr. and Mrs. Ridge paid $6,518.40 in school taxes in 2008.

    2. County Election Director Sharon Drayer told us that Gov. Ridge remains registered to vote in Erie County and voted by absentee ballot in last November’s general election.

    Looks like Ridge is good to go in his run against Specter. He has said he will announce his decision as to whether he will run in two weeks.

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  • Arlen Specter,  Harry Reid

    Arlen Specter: But, But, Harry Reid Promised Me Seniority

    May 6, 2009 /
    Obama Specter

    Veteran Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania discusses his conversion to the Democratic Party at the White House with President Barack Obama, left, in Washington, Wednesday, April 29, 2009

    Well, Democrat Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and your new Democrat Caucus friends screwed you, Arlen.

    You will not be able to argue you that by re-electing you in 2010 that the voters of Pennsylvania will be getting a Senator with seniority. At best you will get a vote.

    “Senator Reid assured me that I would keep my committee assignments and that I would have the same seniority as if I had been elected as a Democrat in 1980. It was understood that the issue of subcommittee chairmanships would not be decided until after the 2010 election. Some members of the caucus have raised concerns about my seniority, so the caucus will vote on my seniority at the same time subcommittee chairmanships are confirmed after the 2010 election. I am confident my seniority will be maintained under the arrangement I worked out with Senator Reid. I am eager to continue my work with my colleagues on the various committees on which I serve and will continue to be a staunch and effective advocate for Pennsylvania’s and the Nation’s priorities.”

    No respect for the traitor and Specter will likely draw a Democrat opponent in a primary election from the NUTROOTS.

    Sucker……

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  • Arlen Specter,  Pat Toomey,  Tom Ridge

    Former Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge Would Have to Move Official Residence Back to Pennsylvania

    May 6, 2009 /

    So, does anyone think this is a disqualifier for the former Pennsylvnia Governor, Tom Ridge to take on U.S. Senator Arlen Specter?

    Political Wire has learned that former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge (R) listed his residence as Chevy Chase, MD on a recent foreign agents registration filing with the U. S. Department of Justice. He reported he was representing the Government of Albania.

    No…..well, maybe…….

    Specter’s age, switch of political parties, lack of Senate seniority and votes on spending will do more to harm his candidacy.

    But, Pat Toomey, on the other hand, could beat Ridge over the head with it in a contentious GOP primary.

    Tom Ridge has said he will decide on whether to run in two weeks.

    Stay tuned…….

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  • Arlen Specter,  Pat Toomey,  Tom Ridge

    Poll Watch Pennsylvania Senate: Tom Ridge 39 Vs. Arlen Specter 38

    May 5, 2009 /

    A new Pennsylvania poll has GOP conservative  Pat Toomey in better shape against U.S. Senator Arlen Specter but former Pennsylvania GOP Governor Tom Ridge is beating him ourtight.

    Former Governor Tom Ridge and US Senator Arlen Specter are neck-and-neck across Pennsylvania in an election poll conducted for a state business group. Conservative former Congressman Pat Toomey, while potentially viable, trails Specter in most regions of the state.

    PEG PAC, Pennsylvania’s oldest pro-business political action committee and the affiliated PAC of the Pennsylvania Business Council (PBC), today announced the results of a statewide poll that tested whether a well known conservative Republican or a well known right-of-center Republican can best challenge incumbent US Senator Arlen Specter who recently joined the Democrat Party.

    In an automated poll of 1,019 households of registered voters taken at the end of last week, announced PBC President and CEO David W. Patti, “PEG PAC found that if the election for US Senate were held today, Tom Ridge could defeat Arlen Specter by a margin of 39 percent to 38 percent. The poll also shows Specter would defeat Pat Toomey by a margin of 42 percent to 36 percent.” The number of undecided voters in the survey is over 20 percent cautioned Patti, and the margin of error is +/- 2.8 percent, so the association leader said the results are not conclusive.

    This is the second poll in the last week that shows Tom Ridge as a very strong contender for this seat. Pro-life conservatives may not like Ridge since he is pro-choice but in this Republican Party climate , it is electability that will sway the donors and the National Repuiblican Senatorial Committee.

    If Tom Ridge wants to be a U.S. Senator, then he will likely be one.

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  • Arlen Specter,  Pat Toomey,  Tom Ridge

    Poll Watch: Tom Ridge Better to Beat Democrat Arlen Specter in Pennsylvania Senate Race

    May 4, 2009 /
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    Pat Toomey, left, is interviewed by news anchor Rob Vaughn at the WFMZ TV studio in Allentown, Pa. on Tuesday, April 28, 2009.. Toomey, was asked about the decision of Sen. Arlen Specter who switched from the Republican to the Democratic party. Toomey was set to challenge Specter for the Republican nomination

    At least initially it looks like former Pennsylvania Tom Ridge has a better chance to win Pennsyvania’s Senate seat.

    Specter, who announced April 28 he was changing his party affiliation from Republican to Democrat, leads likely Republican contender Toomey by a 53 percent to 33 percent margin, the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute found.

    But if former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge throws his hat into the ring, he might give Specter a run for his money, the poll found. A Specter-Ridge showdown only has the sitting senator leading 46 percent to 43 percent.

    And independent voters, who back Specter over Toomey, 45 percent to 36 percent, switch to Ridge by a 47 percent to 37 percent margin if Ridge becomes a candidate.

    “A former Republican Senator running as a Democrat against a popular former Republican governor seeking to make a political comeback would be a battle royal in Pennsylvania,” Clay F. Richards, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute, said in a statement.

    But, will Tom Ridge run?

    And, would then Toomey then withdraw to spare the GOP a contested primary election?

    Stay tuned…..

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  • Arlen Specter,  Jeff Denham

    Video: Arlen Specter – The Republican Party Contributed to Jack Kemp’s Death

    May 4, 2009 /
    Democrat Pennsylvania U.S. Senator Arlen Specter on Face theNation yesterday speaking about medical research, the Republican Party and Jack Kemp

    This type of rhetoric is why Arlen Specter whether a Republican or Democrat will NOT and should NOT be re-elected to the Senat in 2010. He has simply lost his mind.

    Sen. Arlen Specter, Pennsylvania Democrat, said part of the reason he left the Republican Party last week was disillusionment with its healthcare priorities, and suggested that had the Republicans taken a more moderate track, Jack Kemp may have won his battle with cancer.

    Mr. Specter, responding to a question from CBS’s Bob Schieffer over whether he had let down Pennsylvanians who wanted a Republican to represent them, said he felt his priorities were more in line with those of the Democrats.

    “Well, I was sorry to disappoint many people. Frankly, I was disappointed that the Republican Party didn’t want me as their candidate,” Mr. Specter said on CBS’s “Face the Nation.” “But as a matter of principle, I’m becoming much more comfortable with the Democrats’ approach. And one of the items that I’m working on, Bob, is funding for medical research.”

    Key graph:

    “If we had pursued what President Nixon declared in 1970 as the war on cancer, we would have cured many strains. I think Jack Kemp would be alive today. And that research has saved or prolonged many lives, including mine.”

    How can anyone, particularly a person weilding tremendous political power, get away with saying something like this. The statement is simply absurd.

    It is way past the time that the voters of Pennsylvania retire Specter from the Senate.

    Update:

    Here are some figures from Heritage that suggest Senator Specter is just a little mistaken about health care spending.

    During Republican control of Congress, federal spending on health research and regulation increased 46% after inflation,
    from $49 billion a year to $72 billion a year, or about 7% increase
    each year.  That’s almost the same rate of increase as Defense spending
    got in the same period (48%), when we actually had a real war on our
    hands, and not a political contrivance for excusing federal spending.

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