U.S. President Barack Obama welcomed and offered full support on Tuesday for a senator's switch from Republican to Democrat.
White House spokesman Robert Gibbs told a press conference that the president was surprised and "thrilled" to know Arlen Specter, a Republican Senator from Pennsylvania, changed his party affiliation.
According to the spokesman, Obama called Specter seven minutes after he heard the news and offered his "full support" to the new member of the Democratic Party.
"I think Senator Specter made a decision today about how he can best represent the people of Pennsylvania in the United States Senate," said Gibbs. "He was a valuable ally in passing the recovery and reinvestment plan that's now the law of the land and we're appreciative ... of his support."
Specter made the unexpected announcement on Tuesday, saying "I now find my political philosophy more in line with Democrats than Republicans."
"I have decided to run for re-election in 2010 in the Democratic primary," he said on his website.
Specter's decision will give the Democratic Party 60 Senate votes that are needed to break any Republican efforts to use a filibuster to delay a legislative and boost Obama's ability to push for his agenda in Congress.