The stars align for Sestak

Via Memeorandum


While the White House is bracing for a loss in Pennsylvania, Arlen Specter finds his last hours before the election tomorrow a little lonely:

CBS chief Washington correspondent Bob Schieffer is now saying that he has it on good authority that the White House is privately bracing for Arlen Specter to lose tomorrow.

Schieffer, to my knowledge, has not said this on national TV yet. But he made the claim in an interview with the local CBS affiliate in Philadelphia. "I have been told on background that the White House is preparing for a Specter loss here, and that the president doesn't want to be associated with that," Schieffer said.

I've also learned that Veep Joe Biden will not be doing any campaign events for Specter in the final stretch, though it's not immediately clear how significant this is. Last week, Biden said he'd be doing events for Specter "as needed."

What?  I thought Obama loved Arlen Specter.  While I clearly preferred saving Arlen now in order to defeat him in November, there is a certain amount of satisfaction in watching Arlen being abandoned by his "fair-weather" friends in the Democratic party.  Remember how they were your best friends Arlen, when you cast the votes they needed to pass their failing unpopular agenda?

A year later, on the eve of a Democratic primary, a visit from Barack Obama might serve to energize the base to the polls.  Specter's best hope for a win comes through high turnout while lower turnout favors Sestak according to a recent Franklin and Marshall poll:

The poll shows that Sestak holds a larger advantage as the pool of voters gets
smaller—meaning lower turnout favors his candidacy. Specter leads Sestak among all registered Democrats, 38% to 29%. Representative Sestak’s support among all registered Democrats has more than doubled since March when Specter led 32% to 12%.

Obama's decision to sit out the final stages of Specter's campaign is all but the final nail in the coffin of Arlen Specter's Senate career.   This says loads about Obama's character too, I might add.  Obama and Specter deserve each other.  The latest poll shows the election tomorrow a dead heat but the stars appear to have aligned for the candidate who excites the progressive base of the Democratic party.    As the progressive agenda of the Obama administration has left Pennsylvania flushing pink again, perhaps a Sestak win is what Obama and Specter both deserve.