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Op-eds
The Washington Post April 29, 2009 Arlen Specter’s Switch By William S. Cohen The Post asked politicians, strategists and political observers for their first thoughts on Sen. Arlen Specter's decision to join the Democratic Party. In the United States Senate, Arlen Specter and I were both part of something called the Wednesday Group -- a regular meeting of moderate Republicans who gathered once a week over lunch and to discuss policy and plot strategy. When I first arrived in 1979, there were about 20 to 25 Senators at the lunch each week. By the time I left the Senate in 1997, there were about five regular attendees. So it does not surprise me to see that our old group has dwindled by one more member. Arlen Specter's decision to leave the Republican Party was both practical and ideological. Practically speaking, he saw that the conservative base of the Republican Party in Pennsylvania was less and less willing to accept his brand of moderate Republicanism. Ideologically, he probably felt less and less comfortable within the ranks of his own increasingly conservative party -- and more at home with the Democrats. So he decided, likely with regret, that the time had come to switch sides, and he has enhanced his chances for reelection by doing so. At this moment, many Americans are struggling with the same decision that Arlen just confronted. Polls show that Republican self-identification has dropped significantly -- though, unlike Arlen, many of those leaving the Republican Party have not yet made the jump to the Democratic side. The ranks of independents is growing -- which means that while many Americans are frustrated with the GOP's failure to practice fiscal discipline and its intolerance of social moderation, they are not quite willing to sign up with the other side. They are still apprehensive about the expansion of federal spending, the nationalization of banks and growing intrusion of government in so many aspects of our lives. These voters can still be reached by the GOP -- if Republicans choose to say more than "no" and reach out to them and show them a path home. America is still a center-right country. But to win elections, Republicans must be not just the party of the right, but the party of the center as well. William S. Cohen - Republican senator (Maine) from 1979 to 1997; secretary of defense from 1997 to 2001; chairman and CEO of the Cohen Group  Top
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