TIMESONLINE: Democrats today were set to secure a 60-seat super-majority in the US Senate for the first time in a generation after the dramatic defection from Republican ranks of Arlen Specter.
The five-term Pennsylvania Senator announced at lunchtime after a brief conversation with President Obama that he will run for re-election next year as a Democrat because "the Republican Party has moved far to the right".
His decision means that Democrats should now have the votes needed to overcome delaying tactics known as filibusters in the Senate if, as expected, Al Franken overcomes final legal challenges preventing him from taking his seat after a razor-thin election victory in Minnesota.
"I have decided to run for re-election in 2010 in the Democratic primary," said 79-year-old Mr Specter, in a statement. "I am ready, willing and anxious to take on all comers and have my candidacy for re-election determined in a general election."
He added: "Since my election in 1980, as part of the Reagan Big Tent, the Republican Party has moved far to the right. Last year, more than 200,000 Republicans in Pennsylvania changed their registration to become Democrats. I now find my political philosophy more in line with Democrats than Republicans." >>> Tom Baldwin in Washington | Tuesday, April 28, 2009
