Make Me Proud, Arlen

For a Repbulican, I do have to like Arlen Specter sometimes. I think he may be one of the few, (maybe two?) GOP votes I've ever cast. (You have to hang onto those pro-choice Republicans.) I am especially pleased with his recent vote against the gay marriage amendment and also the efforts he's made to investigate that telephone surveillance that the government thought it could get away with under the loose guise of national security. Arlen makes me a little proud that he's from Pennsylvania, and so am I. But before I get too weepy or braggadocious I do have to remember that 1. he's a self-important politician just like all the rest of them, and 2. he might be getting a little funny in his old age. (See commentary from Wonkette to support both one and two.)
I briefly shuddered when I heard Chris Matthews reflect that he grew up with Arlen as a fixture in politicis when he was a kid in Philly. Me too. Has Arlen really been around that long?