The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines the word specter as "a visible, disembodied spirit." That almost might have applied to Sen. Arlen Specter on Wednesday.
Specter was the hot topic in the halls of the U.S. Capitol, after Democrats had basically thanked him for switching parties by demoting him to freshman status, ranking him last on all five committees that he serves on.
Gone in a flash was all the seniority he has accumulated since being elected to the Senate.
One day he is the ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, the next day his nameplate is so far down the dais that he might need a new area code.
Specter didn't even show up at a meeting of the Judiciary panel, where Senators questioned the Homeland Security chief on a range of issues, though no one asked her about the now infamous internal intelligence review on right wing extremists.
What happened? Well, senior Democrats basically balked at the idea - worked out by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid - that Specter would jump into the Democratic fold and be seated with full seniority.
In other words, a number of senior Democrats didn't want to give up their subcommittee chairmanships and committee seniority to the Interloper from the Keystone State.
Specter tried his best to be upbeat about the demotion.
"Some members of the caucus have raised concerns about my seniority, so the caucus will vote on my seniority at the same time subcommittee chairmanships are confirmed after the 2010 election," he said in a written statement issued by his office.
"I am confident my seniority will be maintained under the arrangement I worked out with Senator Reid," Specter added.
One other thing that caused problems for Specter was a New York Times interview in which the Senator said he hoped former Sen. Norm Coleman would still be declared the winner over Democrat Al Franken in Minnesota.
Specter later clarified his remarks, but that only added to the aggravation level.
The sudden announcement on Tuesday night that Specter would be the least senior Democrat on five different committees caught a lot of people by surprise, especially since Specter had talked so openly about keeping his seniority.
The newspaper Roll Call said Specter was under so much media scrutiny that he used the back door of the Senate chamber to escape reporters.
Last week he was a hero to many Democrats. This week he's just another junior Senator.
Maybe we'll finish with the second definition of specter: "something that haunts or perturbs the mind."
That one might be a keeper in the Senate.
The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines the word specter as "a visible, disembodied spirit." That almost might have applied to Sen. Arlen Specter on Wednesday. Specter was the hot topic in the halls of the U.S. Capitol, after Democrats had basically thanked him for switching parties by demoting him to freshman status, ...
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