Specter says reaction to party switch ‘stings’

In an interview with Details, newly Democratic Sen. Arlen Specter (D-Pa.) says the rough embrace he’s received from Democrats has taken its toll.

“But I must say, the reaction stings a little,” Specter says. “I just was not going to subject my record to the bleak prospects of a (Republican) primary election.”

Some other gems from the interview:

On his authorship of the “single-bullet theory” on the Warren Commission: “Obviously a strange path for a bullet, but then sometimes truth is stranger than fiction.”

On his questioning of Anita Hill during the Clarence Thomas confirmation hearings: “I had a tough political race in the next year, but my opponent couldn’t use any of the tapes from the hearing because I don’t think she could find a single question where I was unprofessional.”

-On whether he wishes he could form a third party: “I’ve got enough problems dealing with the two we have. I’ll settle.”

-On life lessons: A “Philadelphia lawyer taught me, ‘Never let your face show how hard your ass is being kicked,'” and “‘The higher the monkey climbs the flagpole, the more his ass is visible.'”

-Aaron Blake