GREENVILLE — When U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., ran for the office in 1980, he spent $1.9 million.

Running for a fifth term 24 years later, he spent a then-state record $23 million to retain his seat.

The reliance on enormous sums of money to get elected, he noted, is a major problem with the political process that will only get worse unless it’s addressed in the near future by the federal government.

“The time that candidates have to spend on raising money is very harmful to the system,” Specter said, noting he’s considering introducing legislation that would provide public financing for candidates and level the playing field for all.

About 100 students and other guests were on hand Wednesday as Specter answered that and a dozen other questions during a 45-minute stop at Thiel College in Greenville. Specter was also scheduled to make an appearance later Wednesday at Westminster College in New Wilmington.

A noted moderate, Specter said another problem with politics of the early 21st century is the “fringes” are taking control of both parties.

“And that’s not good,” he said. “It’s not good for America. ... This country needs to be governed from the center.”

Specter also answered questions about international policy, anti-incumbent sentiment, domestic wiretapping, food safety, the nation’s growing population and the John F. Kennedy assassination.

In the wake of recent scandals wracking his party, he acknowledged there are a lot of problems in Washington. He also believes the lack of confidence that continues to build among voters is detrimental to the system.

“It’s an intolerable situation,” he said. “You cannot have the American people lacking confidence in what we’re doing. And sometimes the perception outweighs the reality.”

Specter said if voters don’t like the incumbents, they can simply vote them out of office. But he also cautioned voters not to be overly influenced by scandals of individual lawmakers like former Rep. Mark Foley, R-Fla..

Specter nonetheless said the situation surrounding Foley and Congressional pages is troublesome and admits ethics could play a role in the Nov. 7 general election.

Four decades later, the Kennedy assassination continues to interest people and Specter fielded a question Wednesday about his work on the Warren Commission and the “magic bullet” theory he is credited with formulating.

Specter was a young assistant counsel for the commission responsible for going through the medical evidence. His conclusion, adopted by the commission was that one of the two bullets that hit Kennedy took an odd course to hit Texas Gov. John Connolly in the front seat of Kennedy’s limo in Dallas in 1963.

The theory has been challenged by many over the years but never formally discounted.

“Admittedly it was a strange course, but I always say truth is sometimes stranger than fiction,” Specter said.

While there have been plenty of books written and a few memorable movies about the assassination, Specter said in the end no new evidence has surfaced over the last 40-plus years that would lead him to believe anyone other than Lee Harvey Oswald shot Kennedy.

“If there had been a conspiracy, I think we would know it by now,” Specter said. “Nothing stays secret in this country.”

There’s still speculation about the Abraham Lincoln assassination 141 years after it occurred and Specter said he expects people will still by theorizing about Kennedy’s death 200 or 300 years from now.

“Maybe even until the end of my term in the Senate,” he added with a laugh.