“My father was an immigrant who literally walked across Europe to get out of Russia. He fought in World War I. He was wounded in action. My father was a great success even though he never had money. He was a very determined man, a great role model.”

American lawyer, author, and politician

Arlen Specter was an American lawyer, author, and politician, active in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. He served as a United States senator from Pennsylvania from 1981 to 2011 and was the longest-serving senator in that state’s history. Specter’s career in public life was marked by party changes as well as long service in the Senate. He was a Democrat from 1951 to 1965, then a Republican until 2009, when he returned to the Democratic Party. He was first elected in 1980 and represented Pennsylvania for 30 years.