Specter's Math

If you subtract 200,000 moderate Republicans from the Pennsylvania base, Specter essentially ran out of support from his own party. It's a classic pattern of the losing party actually becoming more extreme after it loses - because the rump is more marinated in ideology than the less committed and more pragmatic members. You can spin this as cowardice on Specter's part, and many will. But it does not strike me as a good sign for the GOP that the base in a state like Pennsylvania - already trending blue - is trending ever more red.