By Jeff Simpson
By now, anyone who has a remote interest in politics knows that Eric Cantor was upset in his bid to stay entrenched in Washington with his fellow "Young Guns"!
However, like most things in the media, the narrative that came out of the national media, is not based on reality. Let's take a look at some myths and realities:
1 The tea party beat the establishment - Myth:
WASHINGTON — The demise of the Tea Party has been greatly exaggerated.The problem here is, the tea party recently backed Eric Cantor to take over for John Boehner as Speaker and they have never backed Dave Brat!
The anti-establishment force within the GOP was strong enough Tuesday to oust House Majority Leader Eric Cantor in a stunning upset by a political newcomer, Randolph-Macon College economics professor Dave Brat.
Eric Cantor's stunning defeat on Tuesday came even as the national tea-party groups basically sat out the race, spending less than $10,000 against the soon-to-be former majority leader.Just try to find any mention of the 'tea party" on his campaign website!
2. The Establishment did not support Brat. Mostly true. While the establishment definitely supported Cantor, at least Dave Brat was allowed to speak at the local republican convention(Mike Tate take notice):
3. Messaging matters - true.
Like it or not, spend two minutes on his website and you will know EXACTLY what he stands for(agree with him or not). He took strong stands, and it showed at the polls. Can you tell me the messages from some of our local candidates?
4. Money does not matter. - False
Despite the fact that Cantor massively outspent Brat, he lost. That is THE EXCEPTION, not the rule.
5. When you rely on, and govern by "polls" you deserve to get beat:
A poll conducted late last month for House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) shows him with a wide lead over challenger David Brat heading toward next Tuesday's Republican primary election.
The poll, shared with Post Politics, shows Cantor with a 62 percent to 28 percent lead over Brat, an economics professor running to Cantor's right. Eleven percent say they are undecided.
6. In what turns out to be a perfect example of how sick and corrupted politics has become, Eric Cantor, representing the people of Virginia's 7th district, had so seriously gerrymandered the district that he knew he would never lose. So much so that he was not even in his district yesterday.
In an even worse example of what politics has become, Eric Cantor "knew" he was up 34 points and STILL Spent 5 MILLION DOLLARS!!!
7. This is bad for America - myth.
Saying that implies Eric Cantor brought something of value to the US. He did not. America will survive this, we have survived much much worse than Cantor losing his job!
The Dark Money Machine That Beat Eric Cantor
ReplyDeleteYeah I agree 5:11. Here is something I found offensive there: ""[F]ilings with the Internal Revenue Service and Federal Election Commission, as well as interviews and reviews of radio shows, found that conservative groups spent nearly $22 million to broker and pay for involved advertising relationships known as sponsorships with a handful of influential talkers including Beck, Sean Hannity, Laura Ingraham, Mark Levin and Rush Limbaugh ... Since then, the sponsorship deals have grown more lucrative and tea party-oriented..."
DeleteSure makes you wonder what kind of side deals people Sykes and Icki have, don't you?
DeleteStill, Cantor is pretty much Exhibit A of everything wrong with DC, so yesterday's result is definitely a good thing.
This fits in with what we hear up in Green Bay with WTAQ's Jerry Bader who talked numerous times about speaking this week at an American For Prosperity event, and spent time today to talk about how the Tea Party was not dead.
DeleteEric Cantor is very right wing, but has done things that displease his constituants. He did not campaign very much. His claim to be a rising star and heir to John Boehner was that he was a Young Gun that could work at bridging the gap between party establishment leaders and Tea Partiers.
ReplyDeleteCanter never was consistent in his leadership take on immigration and amnesty. Brat told people what stances he took on policies.
It just goes to show that the Republican Party is really divided. Meaningful immigration reform will have a lot to do with attracting immigrants and minorities to their party, and judging by their efforts at CPAC, they stand to get little support.
In a lot of ways, it's more a rejection of Cantor than an endorsement of Bart.
Who let the 12-year-olds onto the thread?
DeleteYou want to see tea tards on the loose then check out some of the Mississippi political blogs. Was checking up on the Cochran McDaniel primary runoff and lets just say the crazy has been let loose.
Delete