Arlen Specter, Cautionary Tale

When Arlen Specter switch from the Republican party to the Democratic party in exchange for a few shiny trinkets and a chance to avoid facing Pat Toomey in the next primary for his Senate seat, he had hoped that in exchange for the changed allegiance he could extend his own political career.

Now it looks like he will likely be defeated in the next Democrat primary for the same seat. Ironic. Some would say short-sighted and moronic.

But he sold out his party. The one that threw a lot of financial support behind him in the last election for his Senate seat. Now, with the confirmation of Al Franken as the Senator from Minnesota, the Democrats have a 60 seat majority in the Senate. And the Republicans have no option for a filibuster. Meanwhile Specter looks to have no additional life in his career. Maybe it's too soon to be sure, but if things hold up the way they are now, it looks like that would be the case.

Arlen Specter serves as a cautionary tale. Two in fact.

The first and most obvious for Specter - don't sell out your allies for personal gain. It will harm you in the end.

The second cautionary tale is for the GOP - don't back weak allies so fiercely without strings attached. Better yet, you can't trust RINOs, so if they make it into the GOP past the primaries, then leave them to fend for themselves and use your war chest to back close races with quality candidates instead.