The Specter of Trial Lawyers

The focus of reporting concerning the appointment of Sen. Arlen Specter to the Chairmanship of the Senate Judicial Committee has focused solely on a single issue, abortion. What is getting overlooked is that Specter is also a little to tight with the trial lawyers lobby as well. Read here. Specter’s influence on tort reform is perhaps even more important to the GOP than judicial nominations.

From the article:

But while Specter has longtime ties to the legal community in Philadelphia and his son, Shanin Specter, is a well-known trial attorney in town, many Democrats -- locally and across the country -- are eyeing the Republicans' slim majority in the Senate and hoping Hoeffel may be the one to tip the balance.

Local Democratic lawyers "are going to have conflicting emotions," said Alan Kessler, an attorney at Wolf Block and chairman of the Democratic Party's state finance committee.

While party members want to see Democrats take back the Senate, "many have long-standing relationships with Sen. Specter," Kessler noted