Presidentt Barack Obama has orddered that all flags be flow
wn at half-sttaff today, Tuesday,
T
Octtober
16, to shoow respect for
f the loss of
o Pennsylvaania’s longesst-serving US
S senator, Arlen Specterr,
who will be laid to reest today neaar Philadelphhia.
h
Sundayy of compliccations from non-Hodgkkin’s lymphooma. He had
Specter, 82, died at home
fought tw
wo previous bouts with Hodgkin’s,
H
a also overrcome a braiin tumor andd cardiac arreest
and
followingg bypass surrgery.
Senator Specter
S
was born in Wicchita, Kansass, the youngeest child of Russian
R
Jew
wish emigrantt
parents. He
H graduated
d Phi Beta Kappa
K
from the
t Universiity of Pennsyylvania in 19951. Specterr also
served sttateside in th
he United Staates Air Forcce during thee Korean Waar and obtainned the rankk of
Second Lieutenant
L
within
w
the Airr Force Officce of Speciaal Investigatiions.
First eleccted in 1980,, Specter reppresented hiss state for 300 years. He was
w a Democcrat from 1951 to
1965, theen a Republiican from 19965 until 20009, when he switched baack to the Deemocratic Paarty.
Specter crossed
c
party
y lines to suppport Obamaa’s economicc stimulus bill in 2009, one
o of only three
t
Republiccans to do so
o.
Specter’ss long politiccal career thrrust him to the
t center off many pivottal events in modern
Americann history. Hee served as counsel
c
to thhe Warren Coommission investigating
i
g President John
J
F. Kenneedy’s assassiination and promoted
p
thee single-bulllet theory in his death. He
H also took part
in 14 Suppreme Courtt confirmatioon hearings, questioned Anita
A
Hill abbout sexual harassment
h
claims shhe raised agaainst Suprem
me Court Justtice Clarence Thomas inn the 1990s, and more
recently worked
w
to prromote Mideeast peace plans and stem
m-cell research.
Specter is survived by
b his wife, Joan,
J
sons Shhanin and Stteve, and fouur granddaugghters. Vice-Presidentt Joe Biden is
i expected to
t attend his funeral todaay at Har Zioon Temple inn Penn Valleey,
which is open to the public, folloowed by buriial in Huntinngdon Valleyy, Pennsylvaania.