Biden's Big Role (regarding Specter switching parties, from Politico)

[Jennicut]

In the Democratic Party’s courtship of Arlen Specter, no one may have played a bigger role than Vice President Joe Biden.

Biden has been trying to convince Specter to switch parties for at least the past five years, but those efforts were stepped up once he was sworn in as vice president, a senior White House official said.

Biden has met or spoken on the phone with Specter an average of once a week since the Inauguration. And after Specter became one of three Senate Republicans to support the administration’s stimulus package, those conversations were stepped up.

In the past 10 weeks, Biden has spoken with Specter 14 times — six in person and eight on the phone, according to the senior official.

"The vice president feels that this is a great thing, that Sen. Specter is going to be more at home as a Democrat," said the official.

Biden's argument over the past two months was plain: “Your party has left you.”

In a sign of the critical role Biden played in convincing Specter to cross the aisle, the Pennsylvania party-switcher placed his first call this morning not to the president, but to Biden.

Biden received a call from Specter at 8:45 a.m., but because the vice president was traveling, the two former colleagues did not speak until 10:58 — after Specter spoke with Obama.http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0409/21824.html

[jillan]

1. Andrea Mitchell and Howard Fineman were saying Biden has been bugging him for years, as has Rendell.

[Clio the Leo]

2. I'd jump off of a bridge...

... if Joe Biden encouraged me to.

I dont know what took Specter THIS long.

[sonias]

4. Joe's good

And Specter's not dumb either. He wanted to stay in the Senate and the opportunity to stay was to walk through the door Joe was holding open for him.

Sonia

[livefreest]

7. LOL. you need to temper your love for Biden. and i like him a bunch

[Clio the Leo]

8. "temper" and "Biden" are two words that dont belong together...

.... like the man himself, my adoration for our Vice President MUST be over the top!

[Jennicut]

10. LOL! That second pic always cracks me up.

He IS over the top but that is why some of us here love him.

[Clio the Leo]

11. fire and ice....

.... you gotta love 'em

[PatSeg]

3. Matthews said something about Joe today

Basically, the more important things he does are the things you don't hear about. Once again he was working quietly behind the scenes to get something done and we all know he is VERY persistent.

[Jennicut]

5. Yup. He quietly was trying to persuade Specter this whole time.

He really is an asset to the Prez.

[PatSeg]

9. And a great gift to the country

[Muttocracy]

6. we should have seen it coming:

Vice President Joe Biden, center right, and Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa. , center left, shake hands as Rep. Patrick Murphy, D-Pa. , left and Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa. , applaud during a reception at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Friday, Feb. 27, 2009. The reception was held to honor Specter for his vote for the economic stimulus package. (AP Photo)



Vice President Joe Biden, left, Rep. Chaka Fattah, D-Pa. , Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell, Agriculture Secretary Thomas Vilsack, Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa. , Mayor Michael Nutter, Rep. Bob Brady, D-Pa. , and Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa. , look at a model of the campus as they tour a utilities operations control center at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Friday, Feb. 27, 2009. Biden is scheduled to chair a task force on middle-class working families to discuss green jobs.(AP Photo)

[jillan]

13. Great pics, Muttocracy!

[Cha]

12. Imagine what those private

conversations were like since VP Biden knew he had a chance to bring Arlen in.