Eric Cantor loses to Tea Party

[Revmitchell]

In a stunning upset, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor lost the GOP Virginia primary Tuesday night to Dave Brat, an economics professor and political novice.

The Associated Press called the race for Cantor about an hour after polls closed at 7 p.m. ET.

Cantor is the second-most powerful member of the U.S. House and was widely seen as the next in line to succeed House Speaker John Boehner.

Cantor's loss to a political novice with little money marks a huge victory for the Tea Party movement, which supported Cantor just a few years ago.

Brat had been a thorn in Cantor's side on the campaign, casting the congressman as a Washington insider who isn't conservative enough. His message apparently scored well with voters in the 7th District.

"There needs to be a change," said Joe Mullins, who voted in Chesterfield County Tuesday. The engineering company employee said he has friends who tried to arrange town hall meetings with Cantor, who declined their invitations.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/201...cantor-loses-virginia-gop-primary-ap-reports/

 

[SolaSaint]

Maybe just maybe America is listening and starting wakeup.

 

[Revmitchell]

Some of us are anyway.

 

[Baptist in Richmond]

You can say that again, Revmitchell.
This Liberal went in and cast a vote for David Brat today, and will do it again come November. Many of my Liberal friends feel the same way, and did the same. In other words, this was not some sort of "Operation Chaos," at least not as far as I am concerned.

Right up to the election, Cantor was running ads claiming that Brat was a liberal college professor. Talk about out of touch.....

Do I agree with everything Brat believes/supports? Nope, especially with respect to social issues. But I can overlook that because of our similarities on such issues as the economy and fiscal responsibility, which IMO are significantly more important.

Hope all is well,
BiR

 

[church mouse guy]

You can say that again, Revmitchell.
This Liberal went in and cast a vote for David Brat today, and will do it again come November. Many of my Liberal friends feel the same way, and did the same. In other words, this was not some sort of "Operation Chaos," at least not as far as I am concerned.

Right up to the election, Cantor was running ads claiming that Brat was a liberal college professor. Talk about out of touch.....

Do I agree with everything Brat believes/supports? Nope, especially with respect to social issues. But I can overlook that because of our similarities on such issues as the economy and fiscal responsibility, which IMO are significantly more important.

Hope all is well,
BiR

Hi, BiR! Happy to hear from you! Glad that the GOP is getting new leadership! Ohio needs to dump Boehner! Unless the GOP gets 2/3 of House and Senate, the Democrats will still block economic improvement, however. We need to stop this war on coal right now before electricity prices increase 80%.

cmg

 

[thisnumbersdisconnected]

Brat campaigned door-to-door, spent little money on advertising -- little money period, for that matter -- and stayed on a simple message of returning the U.S. government to Judeo-Christian principles and getting government out of the way of a free market economy. The irony here is that the Tea Party came late to the table for Brat. They told him last year, "It's Eric Cantor. You haven't got a chance." But even though Cantor spent $5 million and Brat spent $100,000 -- that ain't no misprint -- Brat won.

I see three possible ways to interpret this:

• It marks the beginning of a true conservative revolution that "returns the country to Judeo-Christian and free market principles"
• It is a disaster for the country as a whole and Republicans in particular, as the general voting populace is not as conservative as candidates like Brat
• It is a local phenomenon that can't be duplicated anywhere else in the U.S.

Which do you think it is?

 

[InTheLight]

I see three possible ways to interpret this:

• It marks the beginning of a true conservative revolution that "returns the country to Judeo-Christian and free market principles"
• It is a disaster for the country as a whole and Republicans in particular, as the general voting populace is not as conservative as candidates like Brat
• It is a local phenomenon that can't be duplicated anywhere else in the U.S.

Which do you think it is?

A hybrid of #1 and #3.

It is the beginning of a true conservative revival for free market principals, limited government, fiscal conservatism, and controlling of our borders. It can be duplicated in many areas of the country but I don't think it will be pervasive. It won't be big enough to be called a revolution, i.e. a movement that will totally reclaim the country, but it might get true conservatives enough power in Congress to change some things.

 

[Bro. Curtis]

I think it's one state, and you shouldn't start popping any corks, yet.

Is Brat one of these "limited government" types that also support the Patriot Act, DOMA, and Federal drug laws ? Like one of those "I'm for smaller government until I'm not" folks, whom I could never vote into office ?

 

[InTheLight]

I think it's one state, and you shouldn't start popping any corks, yet.

True, but I can see this sort of thing happening in a lot of states, like the Carolinas, the Dakotas, Montana, Idaho, Arizona, Alabama, Texas, etc.

Is Brat one of these "limited government" types that also support the Patriot Act, DOMA, and Federal drug laws ? Like one of those "I'm for smaller government until I'm not" folks, whom I could never vote into office ?

Not sure about this guy. Let's hope he's not "I'm for smaller government unless it benefits my cause, then I'm all in" types.

 

[carpro]

I used to be a fan of Cantor. But I have watched him gradually become infected by the disease that eventually seems to infect all politicians that go to Washington.

They begin to think they no longer have to listen to the people that sent them there. He got what he deserved.

Hundreds more deserve the same.

 

[Bro. Curtis]

This is a victory against crony-capitalism.


Boeing, the top recipient of Ex-Im bank subsidies in 2013, saw its stock tumble on Wednesday, the day after Eric Cantor, one of the largest supporters of this type of corporate welfare, lost his primary. From Bloomberg News

Cantor has been an Ex-Im advocate, and his upset brings the bank’s “future into question,” two Bloomberg Industries analysts, Caitlin Webber and George Ferguson, said in a note today. “If the bank isn’t renewed by Sept. 30, the agency can’t finance new deals, though it could service existing commitments, estimated at $114 billion.”

The Ex-Im bank is the very definition of corporate welfare, providing taxpayer subsidies to companies worth billions of dollars. The bank has to be renewed by September 30th, so all this so-called “fiscally conservative” House of Representatives has to do is nothing in order to end Ex-Im……

http://www.campaignforliberty.org/national-blog/boeing-stock-tumbles-cantor-loss/

 

[Crabtownboy]

From what I have read there are a number of areas where I like Brat. His comments on Wall Street and big banks for instance. However, one are of concern to me is he is an admirer of Ayn Rand. Rand was anything but a Christian and her philosophy is not one I care for at all.

Here are some Ayn Rand quotes to illustrate areas I disagree with:

Achievement of your happiness is the only moral purpose of your life, and that happiness, not pain or mindless self-indulgence, is the proof of your moral integrity, since it is the proof and the result of your loyalty to the achievement of your values.
Ayn Rand

If any civilization is to survive, it is the morality of altruism that men have to reject.

Money is the barometer of a society’s virtue.

I would not put too much stock in that Brat is a Tea Party candidate as far as the rest of the country is concerned. I heard that only 6% of the people in his district voted in the primary. Not much of a mandate for anyone.

 

[church mouse guy]

Apparently, this thread is misnamed because the Tea Party rejected Brat.

His drawing card was that Cantor was in favor of amnesty and the American people are not.

May Boehner be next.

 

[Crabtownboy]

I would not put much stock in the primary outcome as far as the nation goes. Only 12% turned out to vote. In a low turnout primary or election strange things can happen. I will be interesting in the fall if, because of this primary outcome, the 7th District elects a Democrat.

Despite the political ramifications of his loss, the election had a low turnout of approximately 12 percent in Commonwealth's left-leaning 7th District. According to Virginia's "sore loser" law, Cantor cannot run as a third-party candidate in the 7th District election, but can be a written in candidate.

http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/Va-Voters-Go-to-Polls-in-3-US-House-Districts-262495581.html

 

[church mouse guy]

1. The Tea Party had nothing to do with Cantor's defeat.
2. It was the first time that a majority leader had ever lost a primary.
3. Turnout was high.

 

[Crabtownboy]

1. The Tea Party had nothing to do with Cantor's defeat.
2. It was the first time that a majority leader had ever lost a primary.
3. Turnout was high.

You say 12% is high? Hmm, don't think so.

The turnout will be much higher in the fall election. It will be interesting to watch this one.

Have you looked at the way the district is drawn ... looks very much like gerrymandering to me.

 

[Revmitchell]

You all will have to excuse crabby he is getting his info from Ezra Klien one of the most exteme liberal in the country (bird of a feather):


"Vox's Ezra Klein proposes a theory for House Majority Leader Eric Cantor's surprising primary loss: Voters who turned out heavily in 2012 to cast ballots for the Virginia Republican stayed home, so Cantor lost. He did a bad job getting his people to the polls.

That's almost certainly wrong. Turnout in the 7th Congressional District in Virginia was higher than in any recent congressional primary in the state in both vote total and in turnout percentage. Far higher. People came out to vote — and they voted against Cantor.

That top bar, obviously, is Tuesday's result in Cantor's district. The second-highest total is the same district in 2012, with nearly 20,000 fewer people coming out to vote. (The Virginia primaries in 2012 didn't coincide with the presidential primary.) Turnout in Virginia's 7th on Tuesday was at 13.7 percent. No other congressional primary in 2012, 2010, 2008, or 2006 topped even 10 percent.

In an interview with the National Journal magazine Wednesday, Cantor's pollster, John McLaughlin, explained that his turnout estimate was that about 45,000 people would vote, not the 65,000 who actually did. That incorrect turnout estimate is almost certainly why McLaughlin's polling, which showed Cantor with a wide lead at the end of May, was so far off. If you misunderstand who's going to come out to vote, your estimate of how much support you'll see on Election Day will be wrong, too."


http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs...-turnout-he-lost-because-turnout-was-so-high/

 

[Revmitchell]

The turnout was actually higher than 13% and for a primary that is actually high. Trying to take a number like 12 or 13 and suggest it is low without any context is just intellectually dishonest and that being intentional.

 

[Crabtownboy]

The turnout was actually higher than 13% and for a primary that is actually high. Trying to take a number like 12 or 13 and suggest it is low without any context is just intellectually dishonest and that being intentional.

To me it is still low and only shows that historically the American voter is lazy, complacent and not very civic minded. Sure, it is a primary, but it is still important and people should vote! To believe that 12 oer 13 percent is a high figure is a very liberal idea. You love that word so.

As I said, this should set up a very interesting fall campaign and election in VA's 7th district.

If a person does not vote, they have no grounds to complain.

 

[Revmitchell]

To me it is still low

Of course it is that is what fits your personal narrative.