According to Politico's Josh Kraushaar, The National Republican Senatorial Committee is placing 100,000 robo-calls to Democrats in Pennsylvania, slamming Arlen Specter for being close to ... George W. Bush?
I'm frankly befuddled by this tactic. Even leaving aside the fact that the 2010 election is a year and a half away, I'm unclear on what this robo-call is intended to accomplish. Does the GOP think that if it reminds Democrats that Specter is a former Republican who is opposed to EFCA, it will persuade them to vote for a more conservative, still-Republican who likely opposes EFCA still more? Do they imagine they'll inspire Dems to vote against him in the primary, possibly giving them a more-liberal, less-well-known Democratic candidate to run against in the general? Or are they just so ticked off they want to insult him, and associating him with Bush is the best they can come up with?
Regardless, this seems unlikely to be, in the immortal words of Blackadder, "a plan so cunning you could put a tail on it and call it a weasel." And, one brief word of advice for the brainiacs at the NRSC: When you're talking to Democrats, and trying to persuade them you're on their side, it's probably best not to sneeringly refer to "Democrat Senators" and "Democrat interest groups." Just a suggestion.
--Christopher Orr