Former Rep. Pat Toomey (R-PA) is looking to get still more mileage out of the party-switch of his long-time nemesis, Sen. Arlen Specter (D-PA) — with a new money-bomb fundraiser to commemorate the anniversary of Specter’s switch from the Republicans to the Democrats.
Toomey’s campaign has announced the online fundraising event for April 28, a year to the day since Specter crossed the aisle. The campaign has set a goal of reaching $280,000, in honor of the April 28 date.The TPM Poll Average currently gives Toomey a lead over Specter of 43.1%-39.6%.
Specter was first elected to the Senate as a Republican in 1980. As a moderate Republican, he was challenged from the right for the GOP nomination in 2004 by then-Rep. Pat Toomey, and won by only a 51%-49% margin. Specter’s support among Republicans plummeted in 2009, after he provided a crucial vote to pass President Obama’s stimulus package, and he subsequently switched parties when polls showed he would lose a primary rematch against Toomey.
