Toomey loses

One dentist in Lower Paxton calls himself a conservative and a pro-lifer, but Bush’s relentless campaigning made the dentist think Bush needed Specter if he was going to win the November election. This reasoning is faulty, but local media parroted it, and it pervaded the state enough to push Specter over the top.

Conservatives such as Schantz believe Bush and Santorum backed Specter reluctantly. But this ignores the facts. Bush visited Pennsylvania with Specter many times, endorsing Specter not only for reelection, but also for Judiciary chairman. Bush came to Pittsburgh again eight days ago for a fundraiser and said, “I’m here to say it as plainly as I can: Arlen Specter is the right man for the Senate.”

There can be no doubt about it: Bush and Santorum won this election for Arlen Specter, and that is exactly what they meant to do.

The question is why?