Arlen Specter - resolute maverick or compliant pet?

I can't put my finger on exactly why this is the case, but there is something about this photograph -- showing Arlen Specter standing and grinning at George Bush's side yesterday at the White House ceremony when Bush signed the renewed Patriot Act into law -- that speaks volumes about whether it is rational to place one's hopes for a meaningful Congressional investigation into the NSA scandal on the shoulders of Arlen Specter:

















As usual, the Leader is adorned with glorious Orwellian imagery - the "Protecting the Homeland" slogan embedded into the American flag. But the true revelation in the photograph, for me at least, is Specter. While we ought to press ahead with as much pressure and encouragement as possible directed towards Specter to follow through on his commitments to have the Judiciary Committee investigate the NSA scandal further, there's just something about this photograph that seems significant to me, and less than encouraging.