Sen. Arlen SpecterPerhaps sensing that it might be impolitic to cheer on a member of the party he just left, Republican-turned-Democrat Sen. Arlen Specter says his statement, revealed Tuesday, that Norm Coleman will prevail in the battle for Minnesota’s second senate seat, was a mistake. Outside the Senate chamber yesterday, he said, “In the swirl of moving from one caucus to another, I have to get used to my new teammates. I’m ordinarily pretty correct in what I say. I’ve made a career of being precise. I conclusively misspoke.”

Who’s he backing now? “I’m looking for more Democratic members,” he said. “Nothing personal.”

In other news, Specter’s hopes of keeping his committee seniority have been dashed. The Washington Independent reports:

The Senate last night voted to boot Specter to the back bench of four of those panels — Appropriations, Environment and Public Works, Judiciary and Veterans’ Affairs — while he’ll sit second to last on the Special Committee on Aging.