Editing Arlen Specter (section)

==Senate career==
[[File:Nixon Contact Sheet WHPO-6469 (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|Specter greeting President [[Richard Nixon]] in 1971]]
[[File:Ronald Reagan and Arlen Specter.jpg|thumb|right|Specter with President [[Ronald Reagan]] in 1986]]
In 1988, he co-sponsored an amendment to the [[Fair Housing Act]] of 1968, which prohibited discrimination in the rental, sale, marketing, and financing of the nation's housing. The amendment strengthened the ability of the [[Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity]] to enforce the Fair Housing Act and expanded the protected classes to include disabled persons and families with children. In 1998 and 1999, Specter criticized the Republican Party for the [[Impeachment of Bill Clinton|impeachment]] of President [[Bill Clinton]]. Believing that Clinton had not received a fair trial, Specter cited [[Scots law]] to render a verdict of "[[not proven]]" on Clinton's impeachment.<ref>{{cite journal|ssrn=1339222|last=Bray|first=Samuel|year=2005|title=Not Proven: Introducing a Third Verdict|journal=University of Chicago Law Review|volume=72|issue=4|pages=1299–1300}}</ref> However, his verdict was recorded as "not guilty" in the Senate records.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=106&session=1&vote=00017|title=U.S. Senate: Roll Call Vote|publisher=Senate.gov|access-date=April 8, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110223165028/https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=106&session=1&vote=00017 |archive-date=February 23, 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref>

In October 1999, Specter was one of four Senate Republicans to vote in favor of the [[Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty]]. The treaty was designed to ban underground nuclear testing and was the first major international security pact to be defeated in the Senate since the [[Treaty of Versailles]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/10/14/world/defeat-treaty-overview-senate-kills-test-ban-treaty-crushing-loss-for-clinton.html|title=Defeat of a Treaty: The Overview; Senate Kills Test Ban Treaty in Crushing Loss for Clinton; Evokes Versailles Pact Defeat|first=Eric|last=Schmitt|date=October 14, 1999|work=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/daily/oct99/senate14.htm|title=Senate Rejects Test Ban Treaty|date=October 14, 1999|first=Helen|last=Dewar|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]}}</ref>

On October 11, 2002, Specter voted in favor of [[Iraq resolution|H.J.Res.114]] authorizing the [[Iraq War]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=107&session=2&vote=00237|title=U.S. Senate: Legislation & Records Roll Call Vote|publisher=Senate.gov|access-date=April 8, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110220191540/https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=107&session=2&vote=00237 |archive-date=February 20, 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref>

In a 2002 ''[[PoliticsPA]]'' [[Feature story]] designating politicians with [[Yearbook|yearbook superlatives]], he was named the "Toughest to Work For".<ref name=yearbook>{{cite web|title=Keystone State Yearbook Committee|work=[[PoliticsPA]]|publisher=The Publius Group|year=2001|url=http://www.politicspa.com/yearbookcommittee.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020803170058/http://www.politicspa.com/yearbookcommittee.htm|archive-date=August 3, 2002 }}</ref> In 2003, the ''Pennsylvania Report'', a subscription-based political newsletter, described Specter as one of the "vanishing breed of Republican moderates", and described his political stance as "'Pennsylvania first' middle of-the-road politics", even though he was known as an "avid Republican partisan".<ref name=pareport2003>{{cite web|title=The PA Report "Power 75" List|work=Pennsylvania Report|publisher=Capital Growth, Inc.|date=January 31, 2003|url=http://www.pa-report.com/uploaded_pdf/PAReportPower75_.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060920200116/http://www.pa-report.com/uploaded_pdf/PAReportPower75_.pdf|archive-date=September 20, 2006 }}</ref>

Soon after the [[U.S. Senate election, 2004|2004 election]], Specter stepped into the public spotlight as a result of controversial statements about his views of the future of the [[Supreme Court of the United States|Supreme Court]]. At a press conference, he stated:
{{blockquote|When you talk about judges who would change the right of a woman to choose, overturn ''Roe v. Wade'', I think [confirmation] is unlikely. The president is well aware of what happened, when a number of his nominees were sent up, with the [[filibuster]].... And I would expect the president to be mindful of the considerations which I am mentioning.}}

Activist groups interpreted his comments as warnings to [[George W. Bush|President George W. Bush]] about the implications of nominating Supreme Court justices who were opposed to the ''[[Roe v. Wade]]'' decision. Specter maintained that his comments were a prediction, not a warning. He met with many conservative Republican senators, and based on assurances he gave them, he was recommended for the Judiciary Committee's chairmanship in late 2004.<ref>{{cite news|last=Adams|first=Helen Colwell|title=Toomey gets behind Specter|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-9225652.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130602095144/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-9225652.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=June 2, 2013|access-date=March 18, 2013|newspaper=[[Sunday News (Lancaster)|The Sunday News]]|date=July 11, 2004|publisher=via [[HighBeam Research]] |location=[[Lancaster, Pennsylvania]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Hurt|first=Charles|title=Hatch backs Specter for Judiciary post|url=https://www.questia.com/read/1G1-124773318|access-date=|newspaper=[[The Washington Times]]|date=November 17, 2004|publisher=}}{{dead link|date=July 2021}}</ref> He officially assumed that position when the 109th Congress convened on January 4, 2005.<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Toobin|first=Jeffrey|title=Arlen Specter and the Supreme Court|url=https://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/newsdesk/2012/10/arlen-specter-and-the-supreme-court.html|magazine=[[The New Yorker]]|publisher=Conde Nast|access-date=March 18, 2013|date=October 15, 2012}}</ref>

On March 9, 2006, a revision of the [[USA PATRIOT Act]] was signed into law. It amended the process for interim appointments of U.S. Attorneys, a clause Specter wrote during his chairmanship of the [[Senate Judiciary Committee]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Lithwick|first=Dahlia|title=Specter Detector|work=Slate|url=http://www.slate.com/id/2161260|date=March 5, 2007|access-date=January 7, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080112055028/http://www.slate.com/id/2161260/|archive-date=January 12, 2008|url-status=live}}</ref> The change allowed the [[George W. Bush administration|Bush Administration]] to appoint interim U.S. attorneys without [[term limits]], and without confirmation by the Senate. The Bush administration used the law to place at least eight interim attorneys into office in 2006. Specter claimed that the changes were added by staff member [[Brett Tolman]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Kiel |first=Paul |title=Specter: 'I Do Not Slip Things In' |url=http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/002487.php |work=[[Talking Points Memo|TPMmuckraker]] |publisher=TPM Media LLC |date=February 6, 2007 |access-date=April 30, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080718212303/http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/002487.php |archive-date=July 18, 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref> For more information, see [[2006 dismissal of U.S. attorneys|dismissal of U.S. Attorneys controversy]].

[[File:Arlen Specter.jpg|thumb|left|Specter, while he was being interviewed by [[Margot Adler]] for an episode of ''[[Justice Talking]]'' on "Presidential signing statements".]]

Specter was very critical of Bush's [[NSA warrantless surveillance controversy|wiretapping of U.S. citizens without warrants]]. When the story first broke, he called the effort "inappropriate" and "clearly and categorically wrong". He said that he intended to hold hearings into the matter early in 2006, and had [[Alberto Gonzales]] appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee to answer for the program. (However, Specter declined to force Gonzales to testify under oath.) On January 15, 2006, Specter mentioned [[Movement to impeach George W. Bush|impeachment and criminal prosecution]] as potential remedies if Bush proved to have broken the law, though he downplayed the likelihood of such an outcome.

On April 9, 2006, speaking on [[Fox News]] about the Bush administration's leaking of classified intelligence, Specter stated: "The President of the United States owes a specific explanation to the American people."<ref name=UsaToday060409>{{cite news|last=Jackson|first=David|url=https://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2006-04-09-specter-cia_x.htm|work=[[USA Today]]|title=Specter urges Bush, Cheney to explain CIA leak|date=April 10, 2006|access-date=July 16, 2007}}</ref> However, he did vote for the [[Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 Amendments Act of 2008|2008 amendments]] to the [[Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act]], which placed federal [[search and seizure|electronic searches]] almost entirely within the [[executive branch]].<ref>{{cite web|title=U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes: Bill H.R. 6304|url=https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=110&session=2&vote=00168|work=United States Senate website|date=July 9, 2008|access-date=April 30, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090502180734/https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=110&session=2&vote=00168|archive-date=May 2, 2009|url-status=live}}</ref>

During the [[2007 NFL season|2007–2008 National Football League]] season, Specter wrote to [[NFL]] commissioner [[Roger Goodell]] concerning the destruction of [[New England Patriots]] [[2007 National Football League videotaping controversy|"Spygate"]] tapes. Specter, a devout and longtime [[Philadelphia Eagles]] fan, wondered if there was a link between the tapes and their [[Super Bowl]] victory over the Eagles in [[Super Bowl XXXIX|2005]]. On February 1, 2008, Goodell stated that the tapes were destroyed because "they confirmed what I already knew about the issue". Specter released a follow-up statement: {{blockquote|My strong preference is for the NFL to activate a Mitchell-type investigation, I have been careful not to call for a Congressional hearing because I believe the NFL should step forward and embrace an independent inquiry and Congress is extraordinarily busy on other matters. If the NFL continues to leave a vacuum, Congress may be tempted to fill it.<ref>{{cite news|title=Specter Repeats Call for NFL to Hire Outside Investigator|url=http://voices.washingtonpost.com/nflinsider/2008/06/specter_repeats_call_for_nfl_t.html|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120716195108/http://voices.washingtonpost.com/nflinsider/2008/06/specter_repeats_call_for_nfl_t.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=July 16, 2012|last=Maske|first=Mark|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|date=June 6, 2008|access-date=April 29, 2009}}</ref>}}

Starting in 2007, Specter sponsored legislation<ref name="S2052">[http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=110_cong_bills&docid=f:s2052is.txt.pdf ''Equal Justice for United States Military Personnel Act of 2007''], S.2052 introduced in 110th Congress-Senate (September 17, 2007)</ref> to fix a long-standing inequity in American law that shut out a majority of [[U.S. Armed Forces]] service members convicted in courts-martial from appealing their convictions to the [[U.S. Supreme Court]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Resolution 116|author=American Bar Association|url=http://www.abanet.org/crimjust/policy/am06116.pdf|date=August 7–8, 2006|access-date=April 30, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090326152729/http://www.abanet.org/crimjust/policy/am06116.pdf|archive-date=March 26, 2009|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2007, Specter co-sponsored the Equal Justice for United States Military Personnel Act of 2007 with Senators [[Dianne Feinstein]] (D-Calif.), [[Hillary Clinton]] (D-NY) and [[Russ Feingold]] (D-Wis.).<ref name="S2052"/> But the bill failed in the 110th Congress, and Specter again co-sponsored the measure in the 2009 111th Congress.<ref>{{cite web|title=S. 357: Equal Justice for United States Military Personnel Act of 2009|url=http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c111:S.357:|work=Thomas website|publisher=[[Library of Congress]]|date=January 30, 2009|access-date=April 30, 2009|archive-date=October 18, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151018154402/http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c111:S.357:|url-status=dead}}</ref> In December 2008, Specter was involved in a controversy as a result of telling "Polish jokes" at New York's Rainbow Room while speaking at the annual meeting of the Commonwealth Club.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/12/14/specter-polish-jokes-at-l_n_150855.html|title=Specter Polish Jokes At Luncheon Deemed "Tasteless"|work=The Huffington Post|date=December 14, 2008|access-date=June 13, 2010}}</ref>

Specter voted in favor of the Senate's version of the [[American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009]] on February 10, 2009; he was one of only three Republicans to break ranks with the party and support the bill, which was favored by President [[Barack Obama]] and was unanimously supported by the Democratic senators.<ref>{{cite web|last=Schatz|first=Joseph J.|title=Senate Passes Stimulus, Setting Up Tough Conference With House|url=http://www.cqpolitics.com/wmspage.cfm?docid=news-000003028597|work=CQPolitics|publisher=Congressional Quarterly|date=February 10, 2009|access-date=April 30, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090212034103/http://www.cqpolitics.com//wmspage.cfm?docid=news-000003028597|archive-date=February 12, 2009|url-status=dead}}</ref> As a result of his support, many in the Republican mainstream began calling for his removal from office.<ref>{{cite web|last=Smith|first=Ben|title=Ads target 3 Republicans, Lincoln|url=http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0209/Ads_target_3_Republicans_Lincoln.html|work=Politico.com|date=February 14, 2009|access-date=April 30, 2009}}</ref>

Specter was instrumental in ensuring that the act allocated an additional $10 billion to the [[National Institutes of Health]] over the next two years.<ref>{{cite news|last=Harris|first=Gardiner|title=Specter, a Fulcrum of the Stimulus Bill, Pulls Off a Coup for Health Money|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/14/health/policy/14specter.html|work=The New York Times|date=February 13, 2009|access-date=April 30, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111122051044/http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/14/health/policy/14specter.html |archive-date=November 22, 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref> In August 2009, more than ten years before the global [[Covid-19]] pandemic, he joined Pennsylvania congressman [[Jason Altmire]] in leading a congressional hearing investigating whether the federal government should fund a national vaccine production center.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.inquirer.com/philly/business/homepage/20090821_Pitt_Medical_Center_wants_to_start_vaccine_center.html | date=August 21, 2009 | title=Pitt Medical Center Wants to Make Vaccines | newspaper=[[The Philadelphia Inquirer]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://irp.fas.org/congress/2009_hr/vaccine.pdf | date=August 21, 2009 | title=Is the Current Vaccine Production System Prepared?}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.post-gazette.com/local/west/2009/08/22/UPMC-wants-to-make-vaccines/stories/200908220156 | title=UPMC Wants to Make Vaccines | date=August 22, 2009 | author=David Templeton}}</ref>

In late April 2009, facing a tough Republican primary, Specter switched to the Democratic party which put Democrats on the "precipice" of a 60-seat majority. He was then denied seniority on Senate committees by his Democratic colleagues.<ref>{{cite news|last=Kane|first=Paul|title=Senate Democrats Deny Specter Committee Seniority|url=http://voices.washingtonpost.com/capitol-briefing/2009/05/senate_democrats_deny_specter.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120922102747/http://voices.washingtonpost.com/capitol-briefing/2009/05/senate_democrats_deny_specter.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 22, 2012|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=May 5, 2009|access-date=May 8, 2009}}</ref>

In October 2009, Specter called for the repeal of the [[Defense of Marriage Act]], which he had supported in 1996.<ref name=marriage>{{cite news|url=http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/27/specter-calls-for-repeal-of-marriage-act|title=Specter calls for repeal of marriage act|work=The Caucus Blogs of The New York Times|date=October 27, 2009|access-date=October 31, 2009|first=Kate|last=Phillips|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091030140853/http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/27/specter-calls-for-repeal-of-marriage-act/|archive-date=October 30, 2009|url-status=live}}</ref> In November 2009, Specter introduced a bill to require [[Supreme Court of the United States, televised|televising U.S. Supreme Court proceedings]], and explained that "[t]he Supreme Court makes pronouncements on constitutional and federal law that have direct impacts on the rights of Americans. Those rights would be substantially enhanced by televising the oral arguments of the Court so that the public can see and hear the issues presented."<ref>"[https://web.archive.org/web/20110106085449/http://specter.senate.gov/public/ Specter Introduces Resolution to Televise Supreme Court Proceedings]" press release (November 5, 2009)</ref>

Specter's career in the United States Senate ended on January 3, 2011, after his primary defeat to [[Joe Sestak]]. He was succeeded by Republican U.S. Representative [[Pat Toomey]], who won the general election against Sestak.

===Committee assignments===
Specter was chairman of the [[Senate Select Committee on Intelligence]] from 1995, when the Republicans gained control of the Senate, until 1997, when he became chairman of the Committee on Veterans Affairs. He chaired that committee until 2001 and again from 2003 to 2005, during the times the Republicans controlled the Senate. He also chaired the Judiciary Committee from 2005 to 2007.