On Politics 4/29/09: Not The Time To Switch

Arlen Specter, Senator from Pennsylvania announced that he would be switching from the Republican Party over to the Democratic Party, effective immediately. Forgetting all the political mumbo-jumbo surrounding this, I'd like to discuss the timing of it.

Senator Specter has decided, while serving his current term, to go ahead and switch teams. Continuing the sports analogy further, imagine if your favorite player on your favorite team decided during the course of his game to suddenly switch over to the other squad. We've had baseball players traded between games of a doubleheader, but they did not make that choice, that was done to them by the general managers of the teams. Think of seeing someone you're cheering removing his jersey (the "laundry", as Jerry Seinfeld refers to it) in front of you, then donning the colors of the other squad as the action of the game occurs around him.

Unfathomable, and unfair.

Perhaps this is someone enacting the political version of the transformation of Saul to Paul on the road to Damascus. Perhaps this is someone staring straight down the barrel of a losing election in November. Perhaps this is someone jumping a sinking ship like the rats do (rats never go down with the ship - LOL). Perhaps this is someone who really, really believes in what he is doing.

It may be one, all, or none of the above. I can tell you what it damn well sure is; it's wrong. You cannot place yourself for election as a member of one party, be elected by those constituents surely, in part, by association with that particular party, and then leave that party when it suits you. Tired of being a Republican? Fair enough; then change your party affiliation when your term ends, then put yourself forward as a candidate for your new party. And if the timing doesn't work out, oh well! Do not sell out those who sent you for your own political expediency.

Oh wait, I forgot.....how dumb of me to think of a politician putting the people first, not themselves. When will we ever learn?