The Shrinking Republican Party

Sen. Arlen Specter has finally switched to the Democratic Party

While his defection is good news for the Democratic Party, it is not clear he will help pass Obama's progressive agenda on health care and other issues. He will probably side with "Blue Dog" DemoCons.

His defection is a reminder that the Republican Party continues to contract, especially outside the South, and that it appears increasingly less welcome to politicians and voters who do not consider themselves solidly conservative. Northeast Republicans have gone from an endangered species to a nearly extinct species. Republicans lost ground in the Rocky Mountains and the Midwest in the last two elections. That's no way to build a national party.

The latest Washington Post-ABC News poll shows the depth of the party's problems. Just 21 percent of those surveyed identified themselves as Republicans. That's the lowest since the fall of 1983, when just 19 percent identified themselves as Republicans. Party identification does fluctuate with events. But as a snapshot indicator, the latest figures highlight the impact of Obama's opening months on the Republican Party. From a high-water mark of 35 percent in the fall of 2003, Republicans have slid steadily to their present state of affairs.

It's hard to see how the Republican Party will become a majority party by denying science, global warming, siding with religious fanatics, supporting and defending torture, and promoting hatred of Barack Obama.

Obama's Big 100 Days Accomplishment: The Defection of Arlen Specter