Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA) told The Hill that he will not become a Democrat — but he might become an independent.
“I’m staying a Republican because I think I have a more important role to play there,” he said. “I think the United States very desperately needs a two-party system. … And I’m afraid that we’re becoming a one-party system, with Republicans becoming just a regional party.”
On the other hand, Specter left the door open to the idea of running as an independent, though he would continue to caucus as a Republican.
“It’s pretty hard to run without a party,” he said. “It’s always something that could be a possibility. But then I wouldn’t be in the Republican caucus — wouldn’t have quite the standing as a Republican.”
Another thing to consider is that Pennsylvania has a “sore-loser law” that prevents someone who lost a primary from pulling a Lieberman and running as an independent. So if Specter were to run as an independent, he would have to declare this well beforehand and leave the Republican nomination to a right-winger, setting up a three-way race with the Democrats involved, too.
On top of that, Joe Lieberman told The Hill: “I’d be delighted to have him in my caucus.” Where do we even begin with this one?
