Eric Cantor, House Republican Leader, Loses in Republican Primary

An unknown Tea Party candidate unexpectedly beat the House Leader in today's GOP primary.

eric-cantor-flag-loses-primary

Breaking news: A Tea Party candidate has defeated Eric Cantor in a primary contest for his House seat.

AP:

In a stunning upset propelled by tea party activists, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) was defeated in Tuesday’s congressional primary, with insurgent David Brat delivering an unpredicted and devastating loss to the second most powerful Republican in the House who has widely been touted as a future speaker.

The race called shortly after 8 p.m. Eastern by the Associated Press.

WaPo reported this as of early this afternoon:

A conservative challenger is expected to fall far short of defeating House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) in Tuesday’s congressional primary. Disorganization and poor funding have stymied the campaign of tea party activist David Brat, even as he tapped into conservative resentment toward a party leader who has been courting the Republican right for years.

Brat, an economics professor, simply failed to show up to D.C. meetings with powerful conservative agitators last month, citing upcoming finals. He only had $40,000 in the bank at the end of March, according to first quarter filings. Cantor had $2 million.

Despite those shortcomings, Brat has exposed discontent with Cantor in the solidly Republican, suburban Richmond 7th Congressional District by attacking the lawmaker on his votes to raise the debt ceiling and end the government shutdown, as well as his support for some immigration reforms. At a May meeting of Republican activists in the district, Cantor was booed, and an ally he campaigned for was ousted as the local party chairman in favor of a tea party favorite.

A similar revolt in the state Republican committee last year determined that the party would hold a two-day convention rather than an open primary to elect candidates in 2013. That decision helped gubernatorial contender Ken Cuccinelli II, a conservative hero who lost to Democrat Terry McAuliffe. Many establishment Republicans in the state believe Cuccinelli’s nomination cost them the governorship. The 7th District fight is a sign that the factions in the party have yet to unite.

Since his days in the Virginia legislature, Cantor has been on the side of the pro-business, establishment. But he began to forge ties with the tea party in 2010, positioning himself as a conservative counterweight to House Speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) after the movement helped sweep Republicans into power. Yet tea party activists in his own district have never embraced him.

Cantor has taken the primary threat seriously, attacking Brat in television ads and boasting in mailers that he blocked “amnesty” for illegal immigrants on Capitol Hill.

This came out of the blue.  As a Virginia resident (albeit not one in Cantor’s district) I was only vaguely aware that there was an election today. Given torrential downpours, at least in these parts, much of the day, I’m sure that the horrendously low turnout one sees in primaries in an off-year election was lowered considerably.  Holding so many small elections—even worse in the Commonwealth, where major state elections are in the off-off years—virtually guarantees that only the most motivated partisans will vote. It’s a really bizarre way to conduct a democracy.

I haven’t the foggiest what this portends for November. Presumably, Brat will be a less effective general election candidate than the long-time incumbent. But it’s a solidly Republican district and the Democrats barely fielded a candidate.

UPDATE:  POLITICO naturally sees this as more than a fluke of low turnout:

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor was toppled on Tuesday night in the most shocking primary defeat since Republicans took the House in 2010.

Dave Brat, a local economics professor who had tea party support, became the second challenger to defeat a House incumbent this primary season. Texas Republican Ralph Hall lost to a tea party insurgent at the end of May.

Brat also halted one of the most meteoric rises in national politics, and his win illustrates the strong anti-incumbent fever that has taken over Cantor’s Richmond-area district.

Cantor’s defeat not only reorders Virginia politics, where Cantor was the highest-ranking Republican, but it completely throws the House Republican leadership into flux. Cantor, 51, was long seen as the next speaker of the House after John Boehner retires.

Absent some larger trend, I’m still inclined to chalk this up to the absurdity of the process rather than some major portent for the future.

UPDATE 2:  CNN focuses on the surprise factor.

In the biggest upset of the year, the No. 2 Republican in the House, Eric Cantor, has lost to his tea party opponent in his primary in Virginia, CNN projects.

With 89 percent of precincts reporting on Tuesday, Cantor trailed his opponent Dave Brat 55% to 44%, according to the Virginia Secretary of State’s website.

“This came out of nowhere,” said Mark Preston, CNN’s executive political editor, who said a defeat for Cantor would have national implications since he has been viewed as a potential speaker.

Brat is an economics professor at Randolph-Macon College outside Richmond.

Most Republicans view Cantor, 51, as the most conservative member in the House leadership lineup. He was President Barack Obama’s chief foil in budget negotiations in 2011, a role he proudly points out during this campaign season.

In a phone interview with CNN on Monday, Brat argued that Cantor is more attentive to donors in New York and California and big business groups than he is to enacting an agenda based on Republican ideals.

“While he’s got an eye on the speaker job, he’s turned his back on his constituents,” Brat said.

Again: What was the turnout? Unless it was unusually high for a primary, it’s doubtful that message was the key factor here.

FILED UNDER: 2016 Election, Democracy, US Politics, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
James Joyner
About James Joyner
James Joyner is Professor and Department Head of Security Studies at Marine Corps University's Command and Staff College. He's a former Army officer and Desert Storm veteran. Views expressed here are his own. Follow James on Twitter @DrJJoyner.

Comments

  1. superdestroyer says:

    Maybe Cantor should have paid more attention to his own district and less attention to chasing after the dollars of big money donors like Sheldon Adelson. Considering how much more money Cantor spent than his opponent, can we all just agree that money is the most overrated thing in politics.

  2. James Joyner says:

    @superdestroyer: I haven’t the foggiest what the spending ratios were in the race. Primaries, especially in off years, are just not very predicable because of the absurdly low participation rate.

  3. PJ says:

    lol.

    The masters can’t control the monster they created.

  4. CB says:

    Holy crap.

  5. Matt Bernius says:

    I suspect there is still more than enough time for Cantor to raise the signatures to get on the ballot as an independent candidate.

  6. superdestroyer says:

    @James Joyner:

    The National Journal was reporting that Cantor had a spending edge and that Brat was underfunded. http://www.nationaljournal.com/politics/eric-cantor-s-unusually-expensive-surprisingly-negative-primary-campaign-20140609

    If the Republican establishment really want comprehensive immigration reform, they have to take a positive message and really convince Republican voters that reform will be good for them. When Cantor;s campaign went negative on Brat, it probably convinced many primary voters that Brat was right and Cantor was wrong on immigration. Democrats should also learn the lesson that the way to sell immigration is to show how it will be good for Americans instead of talking about how great it will be for employers and for the illegal immigrants.

  7. Dave Schuler says:

    Interesting. The DNC might decide to drop a little money on the Democratic candidate in that district.

    What’s being said backchannel is that Cantor lost due to his position on a single issue: immigration (he supports something his opponents are characterizing as “amnesty”).

    I can’t help but wonder if there’s not more to it. A broad anti-incumbent sentiment won’t just hurt Democrats. It will work against all incumbents and a lot of those are Republicans.

  8. Franklin says:

    @superdestroyer:

    can we all just agree that money is the most overrated thing in politics

    No.

  9. Just 'nutha' ig'rant cracker says:

    @superdestroyer:

    Democrats should also learn the lesson that the way to sell immigration is to show how it will be good for Americans instead of talking about how great it will be for employers and for the illegal immigrants.

    What????????????? That has to be the absolute stupidest thing you have ever said in a long history of saying stupid things. Wow!

  10. The biggest issue in the Brat-Cantor race? Immigration reform.

  11. @Matt Bernius:

    I’d have to check but I think Virginia has a sore loser law

  12. James Joyner says:

    @Matt Bernius: @Doug Mataconis: Not sure if it’s state or district but Cantor can’t run again this cycle.

  13. superdestroyer says:

    @Just ‘nutha’ ig’rant cracker:

    Almost every progressive makes two arguments in favor of comprehensive immigraiton reform: That it will be great for the illegal aliens and that anyone who is opposed to it is a racist. What is almost every said is how amnesty and a massive increase in the number of legal immigrants allowed in every year will be good for the current American citizens.

    Cantor can make a great argument that amnesty and increased legal immigraiton will be great for Sheldon Adelson and Luis Guiterrez. However, there are few arguments to be made is how amnesty will help the middle class whites who live in Cantor’s district in Virginia.

  14. Matt Bernius says:

    @James Joyner:

    Not sure if it’s state or district but Cantor can’t run again this cycle.

    That’s right. Didn’t something similar happen relatively recently (last few cycles) in VA? I remember the sore loser thing coming up then.

    Wow, this actual might change Bohner’s calculus in the House. Though I’m not sure whether it’s going to weaken or strengthen his position.

  15. Orange says:

    I never grew any sympathy for Cantor.

    Senator McConell was predicting that the Tea Party would lose big time this cycle. Doesn’t look like it though.

    It’s always that story that if you only care when they come for you, it might be too late by then.

    All the time that moderate Republicans wasted not compromising and getting a moderate message across is now only coming to haunt them even more.

  16. Ian says:

    @PJ:

    The comaprison between the Tea Party and Frankenstein (or Golem in the language of Cantor’s people) gets more apt every day.

  17. bk says:

    @Ian: Who are “Cantor’s people”?

  18. Nikki says:

    @Matt Bernius: Nope. Too late for that. He will have to be a write-in.

    @superdestroyer: Cantor spent over a million dollars. It was a low turn-out, but Cantor still paid the price.

  19. Pinky says:

    Wow. This is huge. It’s hard to believe it’s true, but if the Washington Post missed it, then it’s possible.

  20. Neil Hudelson says:

    Ok. Now someone ask Brat his thoughts on abortion and rape in about, oh, three months. Let’s turn this seat blue.

  21. This seat is not going to turn blue

  22. DrDaveT says:

    a local economics professor who had tea party support

    Sorry, I’m still reeling from the cognitive dissonance there….

  23. Ian says:

    @ BK

    He’s Jewish. A lot of people credit the Jewish story of the Golem as the inspiration (if you’re being kind) for Frankenstein. If you want to be less kind, some people say that Shelley ripped it off wholesale.

  24. Tillman says:

    So much for that “Establishment fends off Tea Party insurgency” narrative.

    Couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy. He played a pivotal part in the torpedoing of fiscal cliff negotiations in 2011, leading to our first debt ceiling standoff. (Can’t believe I have to write “first” there.)

  25. Moosebreath says:

    @bk:

    “Who are “Cantor’s people”? ”

    Presumably Jews. The Golem is a Jewish folklore character.

    On the other hand, I wonder who would have bet on Boehner outlasting Cantor in the Republican leadership conference.

  26. MikeSJ says:

    Here’s a crazy idea…instead of being a cowardly craven smarmy hack of a politician try something different.

    Tell people the truth and stand for something positive. (I don’t believe for one second Cantor believed the nonsense he spouted)

    You may still lose but at least you can leave with your dignity.

  27. Jc says:

    Has to be voter fraud going on here….just has to be 🙂 someone investigate those tea partiers

  28. @Tillman:

    So much for that “Establishment fends off Tea Party insurgency” narrative.

    Except establishment types like McConnell are beating the Tea Party easily. Cantor was himself a Tea Party darling, so I think it’s more a case of the Tea Party eating their own.

  29. Nightrider says:

    65K voters in 7th district vs 38K in NoVA’s 8th – doesn’t sound like a freakishly low turnout

  30. al-Ameda says:

    You just can’t make it up any more. Fantastic.
    Who knew that Cantor was a RINO?

  31. gVOR08 says:

    @Doug Mataconis: According to commentary tonight, yes, VA has a sore loser law and Cantor’s name cannot be on the ballot.

    Also, the district went for Romney by something like 15%. Reported numbers are that Cantor spent 5 mil to Brat’s 120K, out of 200K raised. Turnout something like 60K v/ 350K in a presidential election.

  32. Jr says:

    LMAO…….LMAO….LMAO!!!!!!

  33. “While he’s got an eye on the speaker job, he’s turned his back on his constituents,” Brat said.

    Well, Brat will certainly be able to focus on his constituents, since I doubt he’ll get any significant committee assignments after this.

  34. jukeboxgrad says:

    James:

    … horrendously low turnout … only the most motivated partisans will vote

    What you said is the key point. This is like a small dog with a loud bark.

    Brat won by 7,212 votes. This is less than 1% of the population of the district. Nevertheless, his victory will convince stupid conservatives everywhere that the country loves them and they should keep pulling the GOP to the right, right over a cliff. Please proceed.

  35. ernieyeball says:

    Given torrential downpours, at least in these parts, much of the day, I’m sure that the horrendously low turnout one sees in primaries in an off-year election was lowered considerably. Holding so many small elections—even worse in the Commonwealth, where major state elections are in the off-off years—virtually guarantees that only the most motivated partisans will vote. It’s a really bizarre way to conduct a democracy.

    Primaries, especially in off years, are just not very predicable because of the absurdly low participation rate.

    Isn’t it obvious? What we must do in the United States is force all Citizens to vote in all elections.
    This would mean that all Virginia electors would have to register as a member of a political party and vote in that parties primary elections or be punished. This would insure 100% turnout.
    Jehovah’s Witness? Sorry pal. Vote or sit in jail until you change your mind. Why do you hate America anyway?

  36. PAUL HOOSON says:

    It sure was surprising to see such a conservative Jew as Cantor was. But, it might be a sign that this Republican leaning district could be in play if political divisions are so wide and Republicans become so factionized here between conservatives and ultraconservatives. Cantor at least was the establishment candidate here, where his opponent might be a hard sell to the wider range of November voters. – A deeply surprising result to say the least.

  37. anjin-san says:

    Senior leaders at the VA must be held accountable, and the White House must continue to answer for the treatment of our veterans.
    Eric Cantor, @GOPLeader

    Maybe he should have taken a look in the mirror. Goodbye, you won’t be missed.

  38. MarkedMan says:

    @MikeSJ: I’m afraid that all the Republicans who behaved like you wish already have “ex” before their titles – ex-Senator, ex-House Member. The Republican party is screwed. There is literally nothing they can do to stave off a challenge from a spittle flecked ideologue. It doesn’t matter if they dodge right, left, or run up the middle. They are gone. Add to that they must constantly taste the acid fear that a concerted effort by the right wing blowhards on talk radio can take anyone, anyone at all, down.

    This is a good test of my prognostication abilities. Yesterday I felt there was no way the Repubs in Congress could be more afraid to stand up FOR anything (as opposed to mindlessly opposing everything). Now we’ll see that put to the test. They are really going to try to show that they are not for a single thing, nor vote for a single bill that has any chance of passing.

  39. C. Clavin says:

    Good riddance to one of the nations biggest a-holes.

  40. Eric Florack says:

    Cantor has long been part of the problem.
    This goes to what I’ve been saying all along to the GOP. Quit puking up centrists and calling them conservative.

  41. Eric Florack says:

    @PAUL HOOSON: That’s just it… Cantor was at best a centrist.

  42. If you think Eric Cantor was a centrist then you are either an unreasonable purist who doesn’t understand how politics works, or so far to the right that you’re not anywhere near the mainstream of American politics.

  43. sam says:

    Buried in the middle of the Times story was this:

    David Wasserman, a House political analyst at the nonpartisan Cook Political Report, said another, more local factor has to be acknowledged: Mr. Cantor, who dreamed of becoming the first Jewish speaker of the House, was culturally out of step with a redrawn district that was more rural, more gun-oriented and more conservative.

    “Part of this plays into his religion,” Mr. Wasserman said. “You can’t ignore the elephant in the room.”

    New headline: Hix Nix Bris

  44. C. Clavin says:

    @Eric Florack:
    That you think Cantor was a centrist shows what a far-right wingnut you are. You are not a Conservative. You are a radical extremist.
    If you had any balls you would own it instead of pretending that you are something you are not.
    But that’s really the story of the Tea Party, isn’t it?

  45. C. Clavin says:

    The guy that beat Cantor is awesome!!!
    A professor that believes in Ayn Rand…theologian to the intellectually bankrupt.
    The GOP just keeps getting better.

  46. OzarkHillbilly says:

    The Tea Party just threw off the muzzle. Now they can show their true colors. Did they just lose 2016?

  47. superdestroyer says:

    @Franklin:

    As all of the reporting on money spent on upscale Steakhouses in DC shows, most fund raising by politicians is not meant to help win close elections. The point of most political fund raising is to raise the standard of living of incumbents as the use the campaign money on restaurant meals, first class tickets, car services, and hotel suites. I guess Democrats have to convince themselves that money is important so that can refuse to believe that demographics is the most important aspects in elections today.

  48. @James Joyner: Eric Cantor heavily outspent Brat, James, to the tune of $993k to $76k in the last 7 weeks.

    As far as vote totals go, it’s sad that Establishment Republicans are always looking for a way to downplay when their guy gets beat. Apparently, the people in that district are more interested in someone who will do the People’s work, and stop pushing amnesty and other more liberal policies. Cantor had his good points, but it is time for new blood.

    Can we expect lots of posts attacking Dave Brat for his Tea Party leanings now?

  49. Jenos Idanian #13 says:

    I never heard of this guy before yesterday, but just a very casual amount of research shows that “The Stupid Party” just chose a guy who:

    1) Has a Bachelor’s from Hope College, a Masters from Princeton, and a Ph.D. from American University.

    2) His Ph.D. is in a field that is enough of a science to have its own Nobel Prize.

    3) Has worked in both the private and public sector.

    4) Has actually published scholarly papers in his field.

    5) In the true anti-intellectual trend, has yet to write a book about himself.

    He also didn’t run as a “Tea Party” candidate, but cheerfully accepted their support.

    Also, apparently both he and his Democratic opponent are faculty at Randolph-Macon College — the other guy, Jack Trammel, is an associate professor of sociology and “Director of Disability Support Services.”

    Faculty meetings there could be quite entertaining over the next five months…

  50. James Joyner says:

    @William Teach: Until last night, I considered Eric Cantor a Tea Party Republican and had never heard of Dave Brat.

    @ernieyeball: I’m not arguing people should be forced to vote, merely that out-of-left-field outcomes happen because of the nature of the contest.

    This isn’t a new position of mine: Primaries are unpredictable because turnout tends to be extremely low by general election standards, allowing the most ramped up segment of the party to dominate the outcome. Additionally, in cases where the other party doesn’t have a competitive race, there’s room for mischief through crossover voting.

  51. jukeboxgrad says:

    crossover voting

    No one has mentioned Cooter. Link.

  52. jukeboxgrad says:

    Jenos:

    a Masters from Princeton

    Nope. Princeton Theological Seminary has nothing to do with Princeton University.

  53. ernieyeball says:

    @James Joyner:..I’m not arguing people should be forced to vote,..

    I did not think you were. Nor was I. That was my evil twin Bernie who occasionally hijacks my keyboard while I am napping…

  54. Another Mike says:

    Is there really such a thing as the Tea Party? It seems to be a loose grouping of people who believe in the rule of law, less government and government living within its means. I would fall into this grouping, but I have never taken a single action that would make anyone think that I belonged to the Tea Party. The illegal immigration issue comes under the heading of the rule of law. Most of this group have nothing against legal immigration or reforms pertaining to legal immigration.
    There are certain groups that claim to speak for the Tea Party, but they really only speak for themselves.

  55. C. Clavin says:

    Funny how the Tea Baggers are running away from Cantor…who did their idiotic bidding…and are trying to attach themselves to Brat.
    At the end of the day there is not much difference between them.
    They are both radical extremists. Period.

    More importantly…any hope for Immigration Reform is now dead…and with it the Republican chances in ’16.
    The GOP just got even more homogeneous than it already was…the only non-christian in the House Republican Caucus is now gone.
    And The GOP just got even more stupid than it was…seriously…a college professor who believes in Ayn Rand? I thought only 14 year old boys believed in Ayn Rand.

  56. C. Clavin says:

    @Another Mike:

    Is there really such a thing as the Tea Party? It seems to be a loose grouping of people who believe in the rule of law, less government and government living within its means.

    The Tea Party is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Koch Brothers…who founded it, pay for it, and organize it.

  57. An Interested Party says:

    Now Cantor can move on to the far more lucrative field of lobbying…he may have lost his seat but he won’t be spending any less time in Washington…the revolving door continues to spin…

  58. Jenos Idanian #13 says:

    @C. Clavin: The Koch brothers turned you into a newt, didn’t they, Cliffy?

    You’re more obsessed with Koch than… nah, not gonna go there. Too easy.

  59. mantis says:

    Well, forget about immigration reform in the foreseeable future. This was the final nail in that coffin.

  60. DrDaveT says:

    @Another Mike:

    It seems to be a loose grouping of people who believe in the rule of law

    I will believe they value the Rule of Law when they are clamoring for the arrest and conviction of Cliven Bundy. Until then, Occam’s Razor says they’re just whingeing bigots.

  61. Jenos Idanian #13 says:

    @DrDaveT: I will believe they value the Rule of Law when they are clamoring for the arrest and conviction of Cliven Bundy.

    Priorities, dude. Which is more likely to cause greater lasting harm — one nut rancher in the Nevada desert, or Obama openly ignoring laws and arbitrarily rewriting laws on the fly?

  62. Tony W says:

    It’s a really bizarre way to conduct a democracy.

    As is weekday voting, blatant gerrymandering, “Taxation without Representation” for DC residents, voter-ID schemes, intelligence testing & poll taxes (thankfully mostly gone now) and a range of other ideas designed to take power away from the most vulnerable citizens. The party that does not believe America can do big things anymore benefits from those folks not showing up – as we saw in this election.

    The Republican party has learned that their ideas are not strong enough to stand up to scrutiny, so the only winning approach is to assure those who would oppose it cannot express their opposition. It’s a dishonest and subversive approach.

  63. Moosebreath says:

    @Doug Mataconis:

    “If you think Eric Cantor was a centrist then you are either an unreasonable purist who doesn’t understand how politics works, or so far to the right that you’re not anywhere near the mainstream of American politics.”

    Or, in bithead’s case, both.

  64. C. Clavin says:

    @Jenos Idanian #13:

    Which is more likely to cause greater lasting harm — one nut rancher in the Nevada desert, or Obama openly ignoring laws and arbitrarily rewriting laws on the fly?

    Let’s look at this for a minute.
    Clive Bundy owes all of us more than a million dollars…more than every other delinquent rancher combined. In addition he spawned a movement that led, even if indirectly, to the death of a couple of police officers and at least one civilian in Las Vegas.
    Obama ignoring laws and rewriting laws on the fly…pure fever swamp fiction.
    You should become familiar with the Dunning-Kruger Effect and spend some time in self-examination.

  65. C. Clavin says:

    @Jenos Idanian #13:
    Pure Jenos…you got nothing….so you go ad hominem.
    Idiot.

  66. Fester Bestertester says:

    @C. Clavin:

    The Tea Party is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Koch Brothers…who founded it, pay for it, and organize it.

    And, they hired Fox Noise as their PR firm.

  67. mantis says:

    @C. Clavin:

    In addition he spawned a movement that led, even if indirectly, to the death of a couple of police officers and at least one civilian in Las Vegas.

    I think even attributing any indirect responsibility for that is going to far. Even if the Millers and the Bundy Ranch “defenders” are motivated by the same paranoid hysteria, the Millers were murdurous terrorists. The Bundy Ranch folks, as far as we know, are just pathetic weekend warrior types–cowards who hide behind women and children–and don’t really have the guts to act on their talk radio inspired, anti-government beliefs. They don’t want a “revolution” in any real sense, they just want to feel tough and powerful. It’s fantasy camp.

  68. grumpy realist says:

    Whee! I predict a lot of Sturm und Drang from the usual suspects, nattering on What This All Means. Expect much merriment.

  69. C. Clavin says:

    @C. Clavin:

    In addition he spawned a movement that led, even if indirectly, to the death of a couple of police officers and at least one civilian in Las Vegas.

    It appears that, statistically speaking, you are more likely to be killed by a far-right American than a Muslim American.
    Just sayin’

  70. Jenos Idanian #13 says:

    @C. Clavin: Pure Jenos…you got nothing….so you go ad hominem.

    The only reason your demented obsession with the Koch brothers doesn’t technically qualify is because “hominem” is the singular form.

    BTW, the Koch brothers just gave $25 million to the United Negro College Fund. Aren’t you a bit late for your spittle-flecked denunciations?

    But back on topic… Brat is intelligent, credentialed, and accomplished. No wonder he’s got the left pissing their pants in terror. He’s got all the qualities that they always say are so important.

  71. C. Clavin says:

    @mantis:
    These guys in Vegas saw the whole Bundy thing as the beginning of “The Revolution”.
    Not unlike the establishment GOP hitching it’s wagon to the Tea Baggers…and then regretting being hitched to the Tea Baggers.
    Unintended consequences are still consequences.

  72. mantis says:

    @Jenos Idanian #13:

    No wonder he’s got the left pissing their pants in terror.

    That there is a fantasy. We’re laughing at you idiots for electing another Randroid. No one on the left fears Brat.

  73. mantis says:

    @C. Clavin:

    These guys in Vegas saw the whole Bundy thing as the beginning of “The Revolution”.

    So The Catcher in the Rye killed John Lennon, then?

  74. Rob in CT says:

    I’m neither optimistic nor pessimistic about this. It’s an R district that will likely remain R. I doubt there will be much substantive difference between Cantor’s behavior in congress and his replacement’s behavior.

    My general takeaways are: 1) There is no peak wingnut; and 2) bothering to pay at least some attention to your district is important for a congresscritter.

  75. sam says:

    @Jenos Idanian #13:

    No wonder he’s got the left pissing their pants in terror

    Seriously? The guy may be Aristotle reincarnated, but he is associated with the Tea Party, whose standing with the electorate at large is lower than whale shit.

    The ones with the dripping drawers are the leadership of the Republican Party and those in the GOP who don’t want to see it become a purely state party. (Actually, that last horse left the barn a few years ago.)

  76. Jenos Idanian #13 says:

    @C. Clavin: It appears that, statistically speaking, you are more likely to be killed by a far-right American than a Muslim American.

    As long as you skip the DC snipers, El Sayyid Nosair, and Major Nidal Hassan, of course. Just to name three.

    And nice qualifier — “Muslim Americans.” Way to exclude non-citizens like Mir Qazi, Hesham Mohamed Hadayet, and the 9/11 terrorists.

    Just sayin’

  77. C. Clavin says:

    @Jenos Idanian #13:

    Brat is intelligent, credentialed, and accomplished.

    Brat sees the economics profession as dishonest and morally flawed and instead ascribes to the Randian vision of human freedom and free markets.
    He’s an idiot that follows an idiot…but it makes sense that you are wetting yourself over him.

  78. C. Clavin says:

    @Jenos Idanian #13:

    As long as you skip the DC snipers, El Sayyid Nosair, and Major Nidal Hassan, of course. Just to name three.

    No.
    Don’t you understand how statistics work?

  79. stonetools says:

    @Jenos Idanian #13:

    No wonder he’s got the left pissing their pants in terror

    Yeah, we are so terrified that a true Ayn Rand believer who thinks Milton Friedman wasn’t conservative enough is on his way to Congress. Meanwhile when faced with his first serious questions:

    In his interview with MSNBC’s Chuck Todd Brat punted when Todd asked him both about the minimum wage and Syria.

    “Let me ask you a few other issue questions. Where are you on the minimum wage? Do you believe in it and would you raise it?” Todd asked.

    “Minimum wage, no, I’m a free market guy,” Brat responded. “Our labor markets right now are already distorted from too many regulations. I think Cato estimates there’s $2 trillion of regulatory problems and then throw Obamacare on top of that, the work hours is 30 hours a week. You can only hire 50 people. There’s just distortion after distortion after distortion and we wonder why our labor markets are broken.”

    Todd then pressed Brat on the question.

    “Um, I don’t have a well-crafted response on that one,” Brat finally conceded. “All I know is if you take the long-run graph over 200 years of the wage rate, it cannot differ from your nation’s productivity. Right? So you can’t make up wage rates.”

    The exchange was pretty similar when Brat was asked about arming Syrian rebels.

    “On a foreign policy issue, arming the Syrian rebels. Would you be in favor of that?” Todd asked.

    “Hey, Chuck, I thought we were just going to chat today about the celebratory aspects,” Brat said

    Yep, terrified. I can’t wait for his questions on farm policy and Social Security ( he represents a largely rural district).

  80. C. Clavin says:

    @mantis:
    I don’t remember a militia gathering around to protect J. D. Salinger with guns waving.

  81. Tillman says:

    We’ll get to know Dr. Brat over the course of the election season, and we’ll find out just how intelligent or eloquent he is. Beating Cantor in his own primary is going to draw the media circus like a lightning rod to that district race.

    Until then, I’m going to reserve judgment and wait for the flood of articles detailing something stupid he said.

  82. Jenos Idanian #13 says:

    @sam: The guy may be Aristotle reincarnated, but he is associated with the Tea Party, whose standing with the electorate at large is lower than whale shit.

    I’ve lost count of how many times the Tea Party movement has been pronounced dead, but I’m thinking that it must be close to feline levels (or Michael Myers levels) of returns from the grave.

    And “associated with the Tea Party?” He didn’t get any big money from the Tea Party groups (which may change now), and never declared himself a member of the movement. Barack Obama has closer ties to the Weather Underground (a genuine domestic terrorist group) than Brat does to the Tea Party (which is perfectly legal, despite the IRS violations of the law to cause them legal trouble).

    BTW, Doug, if you’re looking for a juicy story with a legal angle, there’s a good one: the IRS broke the tax confidentiality laws to give 1.1 million pages of information on conservative non-profit groups to the FBI in hopes of causing those groups legal problems. And newly-released e-mails prove that it was politically motivated:

    Thanks, as always, for the excellent support from Media. I do think it came out pretty well. The “secret donor” theme will continue–see Obama salvo today and Diane Reehm (sp).

  83. stonetools says:

    Ezra Klein weighs in:

    11 political lessons from Eric Cantor’s loss

    An excerpt:

    1The power of the Tea Party has never been the number of Republicans it defeated in primaries. The overwhelming majority of Republican incumbents running for reelection win their primaries without trouble. Rather, it’s been the prominence of the Republicans the Tea Party defeated that give the movement its sway. Dick Lugar, Mike Castle, and Bob Bennett. They were institutions. And Eric Cantor’s loss is a nearly unprecedented event in American politics. These losses mean no Republican is safe. And that means that as rare as successful Tea Party challenges are, every elected Republican needs to guard against them.
    1The Republican Party has a serious data problem. In 2012, Mitt Romney’s internal polls were garbage. This year, Eric Cantor’s internal polls showed him up by more than 30 points. Something is deeply wrong with the GOP’s campaign infrastructure if the party’s presidential nominee and the party’s House majority leader can’t rely on their pollsters.

  84. sam says:

    C’mon. Stop waving our arms. The guy is associated, etc. That remains true whether he comes out or not. And I did not assert the Tea Party was dead, only that it has zombie status in national elections.

  85. grumpy realist says:

    Anyone who believes in Ayn Rand has already demonstrated he has no understanding of reality. Or history. Or politics. Or how humans work.

    And if this bozo were REALLY as much of a Supermensch as he probably thinks he is, why in the heck is he an economics professor in a small college few people have heard of?

    (I know, I know–rampant discrimination……nice try boyo, but no soap. According to the Randite ethos, you should have managed to rise above all of those problems and created a miraculous metal working out of your garage.)

    So how many patents does he have? None? Well, then obviously he’s not a Super-mensch.

  86. mantis says:

    @C. Clavin:

    I don’t remember a militia gathering around to protect J. D. Salinger with guns waving.

    My point is that it is wrong to blame the sources of crazy people’s inspirations. Unless you have some reason to believe the Bundy folks were advocating local-police focused shooting sprees. From what I understand, they are actually friendly with their local police, and direct their ire at the federal government and the OMB.

  87. C. Clavin says:

    Brat:

    “God acted through people on my behalf – it’s an unbelievable miracle.”

  88. C. Clavin says:

    @mantis:
    I will cop to a certain amount of hyperbole and maybe a little comment trolling.
    But Bundy did get these folks riled up…he is not blameless.

  89. KM says:

    @grumpy realist:

    And if this bozo were REALLY as much of a Supermensch as he probably thinks he is, why in the heck is he an economics professor in a small college few people have heard of?

    Amazing, isn’t it? How many Rand readers instinctively KNOW they are a true Maker surrounded by witless theivin’ Takers despite no accomplishments Rand would be proud of and that their going Galt will not only be noticed but make a significant difference in the world. Who knew we had so many Supermensch just chillin’ at Walmart?

  90. @Another Mike:

    Is there really such a thing as the Tea Party? It seems to be a loose grouping of people who believe in the rule of law, less government and government living within its means.

    I think the single most annoying thing about the Tea Party is the “No one is in the Tea Party” game they play after every election. They’ll all over the place crowing someone as “the tea party candidate” until the second they lose an election, and then suddenly it’s like “Ken Cuccinelli? Nah never heard of him. He’s just a RINO, no one in the Tea Party ever backed him. Oh those Tea Party people? Well they’re not real Tea Party people. You know there’s no official membership, right?”

    Most of this group have nothing against legal immigration or reforms pertaining to legal immigration.

    This is bull. If it was purely a concern about rule of law, they wouldn’t be screaming bloody murder about “amnesty” any time someone proposes loosening restrictions. If your fine with immigration as long as its legal, making it easier to immigrate legally would be great, right?

    Of course it’s not okay, because they hate immigration in and of itself. They just don’t want to come right out and admit it.

  91. Tillman says:

    @C. Clavin: What did he win with, 36,000 votes? It doesn’t count as a God™-sanctioned miracle unless there’s 144,000 people involved.

    And before you use your atheistic science mumbo-jumbo, I’ll have you know…chaos theory.

  92. MarkedMan says:

    @mantis: Way off topic but I can’t let this go by. Bundy and his crew of loonies out there bear some kind of moral responsibility. This nutball shows up with a all kinds of guns and a cooler full of ammo, spouting about starting a revolution and killing cops and they… kicked him out? Didn’t report him, didn’t try to stop him, didn’t try to take away his guns. Yeah, great guy that Bundy. “I don’t care if you murder innocent people, just don’t do it on my property”.

  93. mantis says:

    @C. Clavin:

    Fair enough.

  94. mantis says:

    @MarkedMan:

    To be fair, their neighbors in LV heard the same things and didn’t report them, from what I’ve read.

    Yeah, great guy that Bundy.

    I’m not saying that at all. He’s a scummy, cowardly scofflaw. He’s just not responsible for the murders.

  95. al-Ameda says:

    I haven’t the foggiest what this portends for November. Presumably, Brat will be a less effective general election candidate than the long-time incumbent. But it’s a solidly Republican district and the Democrats barely fielded a candidate.

    This probably amounts to one of the strangest net-zeros in a long time.

    Boehner must be lighting a victory cigar and reserving time at the local spray tan salon. This probably saved his job, and now the question is, which Tea Party approved representative ascends to Cantor’s position?

  96. Jenos Idanian #13 says:

    @grumpy realist: And if this bozo were REALLY as much of a Supermensch as he probably thinks he is, why in the heck is he an economics professor in a small college few people have heard of?

    Here’s even more amusement for you: his Democratic opponent’s an associate professor of sociology at the same “small college efw people have heard of.”

  97. James in Silverdale, WA says:

    @OzarkHillbilly: “Did they just lose 2016?”

    It was already lost. None of the posers for candidates has a PRAYER on the electoral college map.

  98. jukeboxgrad says:

    C. Clavin:

    Clive Bundy … spawned a movement that led, even if indirectly, to the death of a couple of police officers and at least one civilian in Las Vegas.

    Correct, except that the entire GOP spawned that movement.

    The GOP teaches hate for government. They treated the lawless, seditious Bundy like a hero. National Review compared him to Gandhi, Thoreau, and George Washington, while portentously reminding us that “the American order … was born in a violent revolution.” Gordon “go for a head shot” Liddy is pals with McCain. Sharron “Second Amendment remedies” Angle was endorsed by Palin. Tea-party cop killers in Las Vegas is the result.

  99. jukeboxgrad says:

    C. Clavin:

    The Tea Party is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Koch Brothers…who founded it, pay for it, and organize it.

    Correct. The tea party was founded and financed by the Koch brothers. Here are some facts about that from impeccable sources: WSJ and NR. AFP is a major force in tea-party politics (link):

    Conservative groups, most notably Americans for Prosperity, are spending millions of dollars to ensure that as many supporters as possible cast a ballot. … Americans for Prosperity, founded by the industrialist Koch brothers, says it now has more than 100 paid field workers nationwide and about 5,000 volunteers to go door to door. The group plans to spend $130 million this year on all activities, up from $14 million four years ago. That makes it one of the biggest conservative interest groups involved in the election

    And in case anyone isn’t clear about the relationship between AFP and the tea party (link):

    Americans for Prosperity [is] a leading tea-party group

    Also see here (link):

    Two of the conservative movement’s largest grassroots organizations, Americans for Prosperity and FreedomWorks, have been key players in the Tea Party and town-hall rallies over the spring and summer.

    Notice that in NR-speak, there’s no problem describing an organization founded by the Koch Brothers as “grassroots.” Because I’m sure David and Charles own some grass and it has roots, right?

  100. jukeboxgrad says:

    C. Clavin:

    It appears that, statistically speaking, you are more likely to be killed by a far-right American than a Muslim American.

    Correct. Link:

    U.S. right wing extremists more deadly than jihadists … since 9/11 extremists affiliated with a variety of far-right wing ideologies … have killed more people in the United States than have extremists motivated by al Qaeda’s ideology

  101. Jenos Idanian #13 says:

    @jukeboxgrad: since 9/11 extremists affiliated with a variety of far-right wing ideologies … have killed more people in the United States than have extremists motivated by al Qaeda’s ideology

    “Apart from that, Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?”

  102. jukeboxgrad says:

    James in Silverdale, WA:

    It was already lost. None of the posers for candidates has a PRAYER on the electoral college map.

    Correct. The GOP lost the popular vote in 5 out of the last 6 presidential elections. The states that have voted D at least 6 times in a row add up to 242 electoral votes. Add FL and you get 271. Obama won FL twice. Last Democrat who did that: FDR.

    The importance of FL is why they need immigration reform, but of course that is going nowhere. It was already dead, but now it’s deader.

  103. grumpy realist says:

    @al-Ameda: Here’s a link to a great analysis over at Balloon Juice.

    Did all those boobs over in Virginia realize that they just removed their Representative to the “no one that matters” column?

  104. grumpy realist says:

    @Jenos Idanian #13: And so what? He isn’t the one going around spouting about Ayn Rand.

    What I’m saying is that going by the status ladder of Brat’s OWN PROFESSED BELIEFS he isn’t all that fantastic.

    And why is he running for Congresscritter in the first place? Isn’t Government the Ultimate Evil to a Randian?

    Methinks the guy is a few sandwiches short of a picnic basket.

  105. Jenos Idanian #13 says:

    @jukeboxgrad: Let’s take a look at that opinion piece from CNN, shall we?

    First up, it’s ON CNN from a contributor, but that guy’s main job is

    Glenn Miller… a neo-Nazi (National Socialist Party) and KKK member (started as the enforcement arm of the racist Democratic party).

    Here’s a fun quote… “terrorists motivated by al Qaeda’s ideology have killed 21 people in the United States since 9/11.” Shifting of goal posts from “militant islamists” to “motivated by Al Qaeda’s ideology.”

    And the source of this information? The New America Foundation, which has taken at least a quarter of a million dollars (but less than a million dollars) from the Soros front group “Open Society Institute.” Also, one of their directors is George Soros’ son, Jonathan.

  106. C. Clavin says:

    @C. Clavin:
    How does a professed Rand acolyte believe in God?
    The party of stupid confuses me all the time.

  107. Jenos Idanian #13 says:

    @grumpy realist: I’m not a fan of it, but let’s play The Credentials Game. Brat has a Ph.D. in a field that’s scientific enough to have its own Nobel Prize and he’s a tenured professor of economics with a nice collection of published scholarly works. What do you have that shows that you’re smarter than he is?

  108. Jenos Idanian #13 says:

    @jukeboxgrad: since 9/11 extremists affiliated with a variety of far-right wing ideologies … have killed more people in the United States than have extremists motivated by al Qaeda’s ideology

    For nearly the entire length of World War II, Hiroshima was a pretty safe place to live. In fact, if you start with the Japanese invasion of China in 1931 and exclude the last nine days of the war, I can’t think of anywhere in Japan that was safer from enemy attack…

    Well, apart from Nagasaki, of course. How silly of me to forget that. It was even safer!

  109. jukeboxgrad says:

    Jenos:

    that guy’s main job is

    Glenn Miller

    That guy’s main job is Glenn Miller? Next time try English.

    Shifting of goal posts from “militant islamists” to “motivated by Al Qaeda’s ideology.”

    I don’t have a microscope powerful enough to find the hair that you’re trying to split.

    And the source of this information? The New America Foundation

    The ad hominem fallacy is what cowards rely on when they cannot dispute the underlying facts.

  110. C. Clavin says:

    @Jenos Idanian #13:

    Brat has a Ph.D. in a field that’s scientific enough to have its own Nobel Prize

    Oh my…that is impressive.
    No wonder your panties are so damp.

  111. @MarkedMan:

    If we’re going to start assigning attenuating blame, don’t forget that the LVPD is currently under DOJ supervision because in 2010-2011 they had several dozen instances where an officer shot an unarmed person under fishy circumstances and then got off with a slap on the wrist from the police department.

    That doesn’t justify murdering officers, but the community hostility toward the department didn’t just materialize out of nowhere.

  112. Hal_10000 says:

    U.S. right wing extremists more deadly than jihadists … since 9/11 extremists affiliated with a variety of far-right wing ideologies … have killed more people in the United States than have extremists motivated by al Qaeda’s ideology

    So, if you exclude 9/11. That’s a pretty big exclusion, no? The fact is that all forms of violence, including violence against the state are way down. Last year saw the fewest police officers killed since the 19th century. So let’s not get carried away.

  113. jukeboxgrad says:

    So, if you exclude 9/11. That’s a pretty big exclusion, no?

    How ironic, since “exclude 9/11” is precisely what conservatives try to do, with people like Giuliani making statements like this: “we had no domestic attacks under Bush.” I bet you didn’t know that Bush’s term started on 9/12/01.

  114. mantis says:

    @Jenos Idanian #13:

    2) His Ph.D. is in a field that is enough of a science to have its own Nobel Prize.

    Like literature?

  115. Another Mike says:

    @Stormy Dragon: Nice rant, but I still stand behind my statement. Tea Party is mostly an idea, not an organized movement.

  116. anjin-san says:

    @ Hal_10000

    The fact is that all forms of violence, including violence against the state are way down

    That’s a rather remarkable claim. Can you support it?

  117. grumpy realist says:

    @mantis: Ha!

    And actually, Jenos, I DO have a Ph.D. In Theoretical Physics. So if it’s Dueling Equations, I challenge any pipsqueak of an economist to a math duel at 20 paces. And don’t shove Black-Scholes at me, please. Been there, done that. I haven’t yet seen an equation in quantitative finance that wasn’t ripped off from physics somewhere. Frankly, it’s boring.

  118. Jenos Idanian #13 says:

    @jukeboxgrad: that guy’s main job is

    Glenn Miller

    hat guy’s main job is Glenn Miller? Next time try English.

    That’ll teach me to edit and post on the fly without a final re-read. Anyway, your author’s main job is as a director at the New America Foundation, the Soros puppet group. And since your source didn’t include links to sources or lists, I’m wondering what they counted.

    Here’s a list from just a few minutes’ searching:

    Beltway snipers: 10 dead.
    Fort Hood shooting: 13 dead
    2002 LAX shooting: 2 dead
    Boston Marathon bombing: 3 dead
    Little Rock Army recruiters shooting: 1 dead
    Denver 2006 shooting spree: 1 dead
    Seattle Jewish center shootings: 1 dead
    Binghamton, NY, 2009: 1 dead
    Waltham, MA, 2011: 3 dead
    Buena Vista, NJ, 2013: 2 dead
    Ashtabula, OH, 2013: 1 dead
    Boston, MA, 2013: 1 dead
    Port Bolivar, TX, 2014: 2 dead
    Marquette Park, IL, 2010: 4 dead.

    Most of these also included a lot of wounded. So there’s 45, vs. your source’s 21. In about 20 minutes, I more than doubled your source’s count — AND made lunch AND started a load of laundry.

  119. JohnMcC says:

    @grumpy realist: Terrific!

  120. Jenos Idanian #13 says:

    @jukeboxgrad: How ironic, since “exclude 9/11″ is precisely what conservatives try to do, with people like Giuliani making statements like this: “we had no domestic attacks under Bush.” I bet you didn’t know that Bush’s term started on 9/12/01.

    So, you resorting to the same tactic that you hold in contempt is “ironic.” I have another word for it. It starts with an “H-” and ends with an “-ypocritical.”

    “So, putting that one little unpleasant incident aside, Mrs. Kennedy, how did you enjoy Dallas?”

  121. grumpy realist says:

    P.S. It looks like political commentators are ransacking the thesaurus to describe exactly what happened to Cantor. The best one I’ve run across so far is “defenestration.”

    (Anyone else remember learning about the Defenestration of Prague?)

    (and with that, I really do need to get back to work…)

  122. jukeboxgrad says:

    Jenos:

    your source didn’t include links to sources or lists

    He did. You did not.

    you resorting to the same tactic that you hold in contempt

    Except that it’s not “the same tactic.” Giuliani did not say ‘there have been no attacks since 9/11.’

  123. Rafer Janders says:

    @Jenos Idanian #13:

    Brat has a Ph.D. in a field that’s scientific enough to have its own Nobel Prize and he’s a tenured professor of economics with a nice collection of published scholarly works.

    So like Paul Krugman, then — except that Dr. Krugman actually won one of those Nobel Prizes.

    What do you have that shows that you’re smarter than he is?

    Two honors degrees from Harvard and a Wall Street career where I actually made money instead of just teaching about it?

  124. anjin-san says:

    @ Jenos

    Brat, the man you are touting as an educational prodigy, had a deer in the headlights moment when asked a few fairly simply policy questions by Chuck Todd today.

    http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/david-brat-chuck-todd-minimum-wage-syria

  125. Rafer Janders says:

    @Another Mike:

    Tea Party is mostly an idea, not an organized movement.

    “I am not a member of any organized party: I am a Democrat.” — Will Rogers.

  126. Jenos Idanian #13 says:

    @grumpy realist: It looks like political commentators are ransacking the thesaurus to describe exactly what happened to Cantor. The best one I’ve run across so far is “defenestration.”

    The best description I’ve seen so far was from some guy named Stephen Kruiser on Twitter: “The voters of Virginia have shown Eric Cantor a path to private citizenship.”

  127. Jenos Idanian #13 says:

    @anjin-san: Brat, the man you are touting as an educational prodigy, had a deer in the headlights moment when asked a few fairly simply policy questions by Chuck Todd today.

    I didn’t “tout him” as anything. I simply applied the standards that your side usually uses to boast about its side’s superiority. Like I said, I never heard about the guy before last night, and my interest in him is to see just what you do to take him down.

    Kind of like George Zimmerman. The person’s irrelevant to me; what I find fascinating is how you people talk about him.

  128. Jenos Idanian #13 says:

    @jukeboxgrad: I didn’t see the link, so if it’s there, I missed it. But I don’t need to see it to prove him wrong, just in how. I don’t really care how he came up with 21, because it’s way, way too low.

    Or he used your “microscope.”

    Also, that methodology excludes the failed attacks — so he’s giving credit to the Muslims for incompetence. The Times Square bomber, for example, doesn’t make the cut.

    And while not Muslim, the gay activist who shot up the Family Research Council while packing Chick-Fil-A sandwiches to leave on his would-be victims’ bodies wouldn’t count either. He only wounded one guy, so he gets a pass on the roster of domestic terrorists.

    And I didn’t include links because they tend to trigger the moderation limits. But each citation I gave has enough information to Google up the details.

  129. Rafer Janders says:

    @Jenos Idanian #13:

    The person’s irrelevant to me; what I find fascinating is how you people talk about him.

    As an aside, at some point, as an adult, it really really helps if you develop your own interests. A life of always being reactive, of just responding to what other people find interesting, will ultimately prove fairly barren. It’s the difference between actually making something and being a critic of what other people make.

  130. Jenos Idanian #13 says:

    @Rafer Janders: As an aside, at some point, as an adult, it really really helps if you develop your own interests.

    Oh, absolutely. Which is why this is only a small part of the online fora where I participate. In fact, when I go there after spending time here, I have to consciously force myself to remember that on those other boards, I’m dealing with civil folks who enjoy a good conversation about mutual interests, and adjust my tone accordingly.

  131. C. Clavin says:

    @Jenos Idanian #13:

    I didn’t “tout him” as anything.

    Brat is intelligent, credentialed, and accomplished.

    . What do you have that shows that you’re smarter than he is?

    Tout: : to talk about (something or someone) as being very good, effective, skillful, etc.

    Your lack of self-awareness is staggeringly funny.

  132. jukeboxgrad says:

    Jenos:

    I missed it

    You miss a lot.

  133. C. Clavin says:

    @Jenos Idanian #13:
    So that’s where you went when Benghazi made you a fool?
    Could have stayed for all your learned from it.

  134. mantis says:

    @Jenos Idanian #13:

    Like I said, I never heard about the guy before last night

    Yet somehow you concluded that he’s “got the left pissing their pants in terror,” for no reason at all. He defeated the House Majority Leader, whom liberals certainly do not like, and threw the Republican leadership into chaos. When he wins the seat liberals have no hope of winning no matter who the GOP nominated, he will be a freshman with very little influence and no love from the establishment. Oh noes!

    It’s clear you don’t have interest in the ideas, the politics, the party organization, or any other the other issues at play here. No, as usual, something shiny flashed in front of your face that you instinctively believed pisses off liberals, and you jumped on it because your only interest in your pathetic little life is pissing off liberals. It’s your raison d’etre. It doesn’t even really matter to you that, in reality, Brat’s victory does not piss off or scare liberals. Reality doesn’t matter to you, just your fantasies where your amazing, brilliant debating skills show those liberals what dumbasses they are. But in truth, you are nothing but a buffoon who convinces no one of anything.

  135. Eric Florack says:

    @C. Clavin: no conservative could ever back amnesty.

    And that is just for openers.

  136. anjin-san says:

    @ Florack

    no conservative could ever back amnesty.

    And that is just for openers.

    So Ronald Reagan was no conservative?

  137. Neil Hudelson says:

    I’m really glad Jenos has decided to post less here, since this blog is not worth his time. If he hadn’t made that decision, he’d be threadjacking every post on OTB…

  138. anjin-san says:

    @ Jenos

    Kind of like George Zimmerman. The person’s irrelevant to me

    That would explain why you screeched at the top of your lungs when OTB took a break from Zimmermann posts 🙂

    And yes, it’s worth noting that you have, once again, brought Zimmermann into a conversation that has nothing to do with him. Kind of a habit for you, no?

  139. Jenos Idanian #13 says:

    @anjin-san: So Ronald Reagan was no conservative?

    It’s because of Reagan that we’re so suspicious of amnesty deals. ‘Cuz Reagan signed one, and the ink was barely dry when the Democrats started reneging on their side of the deal.

    @anjin-san: The drop-off in Zimmerman coverage perfectly coincided with the start of the trial, and the complete and utter collapse of the case against him. The odd thing isn’t that I noticed the timing, but that no one else wanted to.

    Well, not so odd, because it was so damned predictable, but still rather blatantly craven.

  140. C. Clavin says:

    @anjin-san:
    Obama is more Conservative than Reagan was.
    The problem is that Florack and Jenos and others confuse myth with fact on a pretty much constant basis.

  141. al-Ameda says:

    @Eric Florack:

    no conservative could ever back amnesty.
    And that is just for openers.

    … and no conservative would ever trade arms and weaponry to an enemy for American hostages. Trust me on this.

  142. Grewgills says:

    @Jenos Idanian #13:

    which has taken at least a quarter of a million dollars (but less than a million dollars) from the Soros front group “Open Society Institute.”

    So, if I’m understanding you correctly, taking money from Soros means you cannot be objective and you are a tool of the far left, but taking money from the Koch brothers is indicative of nothing. Got it.

  143. Tillman says:

    Anyone else get the feeling you’re just pissing into an ocean of piss?

  144. Grewgills says:

    @Hal_10000:
    To be fair, that was over a decade ago.

  145. mantis says:

    @Jenos Idanian #13:

    It’s because of Reagan that we’re so suspicious of amnesty deals. ‘Cuz Reagan signed one, and the ink was barely dry when the Democrats started reneging on their side of the deal.

    Another nonsense wingnut myth. The INS, which failed to follow through on enforcement in many ways, including diverting the funding to other areas, was a division of the DOJ, part of the executive branch. The Senate was controlled by Republicans.

    The real reason the provisions of that act were not enforced properly, and still haven’t been even when the GOP controlled both houses and the White House, is that business interests wanted to keep hiring undocumented immigrants. Reagan himself is more responsible for that failure than anyone. He ran the agencies responsible, but his administration just wasn’t interested. Subsequent administrations followed his lead.

  146. PJ says:

    @Jenos Idanian #13:

    2) His Ph.D. is in a field that is enough of a science to have its own Nobel Prize.

    No.

    There’s no Nobel Prize in Economics. There’s the “Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences“, but that was not created by the will of Alfred Nobel.

  147. Ben Wolf says:

    A Tea Party economist? God help us.

  148. Pinky says:

    @Jenos Idanian #13:

    In fact, when I go there after spending time here, I have to consciously force myself to remember that on those other boards, I’m dealing with civil folks who enjoy a good conversation about mutual interests, and adjust my tone accordingly.

    Heh. It’s funny to think of the commenters here acting like this in real life.

  149. Pinky says:

    By the way, I’ve seen that he’s written about Ayn Rand, but does anyone know what he’s written about Ayn Rand?

  150. David M says:

    The derp continues to be the defining quality of today’s GOP.

  151. grumpy realist says:

    @Ben Wolf: There are a few of them around. They’re pretty funny, especially when they come out with something that shows exactly how clueless they are about reality.

    Remember the George Mason. idiot who nattered on about how women had “more freedom” back in the 1880s? What was left of him after the historians went after him didn’t weigh much. And then there was the clown who moaned that a $250K salary “was only middle class.” (Can’t find the link, sorry.)

    The problem is when they get into positions where they can do real harm, a.k.a.Alan Greenspan.

  152. C. Clavin says:

    @Eric Florack:
    The problem is that you Baggers use such an extremist definition of amnesty that it prevents anything from happening…Conservative or otherwise.
    Which is what you want…you have yours…and now you want to pull the ladder up behind you.
    Why do you hate America so?

  153. Grewgills says:

    @Jenos Idanian #13:

    No wonder he’s got the left pissing their pants in terror.

    He’s got the left doing a victory dance because the right scored an own goal. Once again Jenos “Tragedy of the Commons” Idanian fundamentally misunderstands something basic and once again despite promises to the contrary will never “cheerfully fess up and apologize.”

  154. KM says:

    @Jenos:

    Brat has a Ph.D. in a field that’s scientific enough to have its own Nobel Prize

    It has a Nobel Prize because some guy named Nobel decided he should give out money and prizes to a people in that field. Psychology does not because Nobel didn’t think they deserved it (and that it was a real science). Economics wasn’t even one of the original fields – it was added in 1968, 73 years behind Peace and Literature. Therefore, someone with a phD in Clasic Lit must be right up there on your social esteem scale, right? Since they’re in a field so distinguished they can win a Nobel Prize!

  155. anjin-san says:

    No wonder he’s got the left pissing their pants in terror.

    The GOP loses a powerful member of congress, and a nobody is slated to replace him. The Republican anointed as the next speaker is publicly humiliated. The campaign apparatus of a top Republican is show to be a bad joke. The Republican who wins the primary has a Palin/Couric moment the very next day.

    Oh, yea. We are shaking in our boots.

  156. anjin-san says:

    It’s funny to think of the commenters here acting like this in real life.

    I don’t think anyone here would let Jenos of Florack mow their lawn in real life, much less sit down to have a conversation with them.

  157. C. Clavin says:

    @Pinky:
    From Gawker:

    Brat doesn’t call himself a “Randian,” but one of his major papers is titled “An Analysis of the Moral Foundations in Ayn Rand,” and he heads the BB&T Moral Foundations of Capitalism program (funded by Cato Institute head John Allison, a huge contributor to the Ayn Rand Institute) at Randolph-Macon. He likes “Rand’s case for human freedom and free markets.”

    Rand’s case for human freedom and free markets is simple, one-dimensional, intellectually bankrupt…in short…childish…as is all of her theology.

  158. grumpy realist says:

    Popping back in to say I tracked down the link about the other bozo. ($450K a year and I’m still just getting by whine)

  159. Terrye C says:

    Only about 65,0000 people voted in this election. I think that some of those Republicans in that district are probably wishing they had voted. No one really took the crazy libertarian professor seriously. They should have. I figure that if Erik Erickson is happy, it is better news for Democrats than Republicans.

  160. C. Clavin says:

    @anjin-san:
    They could mow my lawn.

  161. Electroman says:
  162. Pinky says:

    @anjin-san: :Lemme guess, in real life you’d shoot’em? (That was you doing the internet bravado thing, wasn’t it?)

  163. Pinky says:

    @Pinky: If you act in real life like you act on this site, I’m guessing you really need those guns. People must be lining up to shoot you.

  164. anjin-san says:

    @ Pinky

    Lemme guess, in real life you’d shoot’em?

    So you are throwing your hat in the ring to be the OTB “Ass O’ The Day?”

  165. Jenos Idanian #13 says:

    Geez I hate to pee on the usual gang of idiots’ parade here (hope that comes across as sincere), but not a single big Tea Party group spent a single penny to help Brat or hurt Cantor.

    @anjin-san: The GOP loses a powerful member of congress, and a nobody is slated to replace him. The Republican anointed as the next speaker is publicly humiliated. The campaign apparatus of a top Republican is show to be a bad joke. The Republican who wins the primary has a Palin/Couric moment the very next day.

    Man, doesn’t it suck when The Little People think they get a say in things? It’s like they keep hearing things like “elections matter” and actually go and vote the way they want, despite what you, their obvious betters, think!

  166. anjin-san says:

    @ Jenos

    actually go and vote the way they want, despite what you, their obvious betters, think!

    I’m delighted with the outcome & quite pleased that they voted as they did. I will explain that to you a third time, if necessary. Let me know.

  167. Tillman says:

    @Jenos Idanian #13:

    not a single big Tea Party group spent a single penny to help Brat or hurt Cantor.

    He got a lot of support from talk radio media personalities in the run-up to the primary. So no, no one spent money but they certainly spent time. Not to mention the exposure he received from Ingraham’s and Levin’s radio shows.

  168. Tillman says:

    @Pinky: @anjin-san: Do you two need to be put into opposite corners of the room or something?

  169. Grewgills says:

    @Tillman:
    It looks like someone needs a time out.

  170. C. Clavin says:

    @Pinky:
    Why is it right-wingers jump right from not wanting to have a conversation with someone…to shooting them?
    Frankly…ammo is expensive. I would never waste it on those two.
    I do have a cross-bow however….

  171. anjin-san says:

    @ Tillman

    I’m sure James can assign time outs if they are needed.

  172. Jenos Idanian #13 says:

    @Tillman: He got a lot of support from talk radio media personalities in the run-up to the primary. So no, no one spent money but they certainly spent time. Not to mention the exposure he received from Ingraham’s and Levin’s radio shows.

    But it’s all the Koch brothers, pulling the strings with all their money. Just read upstream…

  173. C. Clavin says:

    @Jenos Idanian #13:
    Cognitive dissonance much?

  174. Pinky says:

    @C. Clavin: To be honest, I have trouble keeping track of who’s who on this site. I’m bad with names. But if I recall correctly, anjin-san is prone to saying things like “I work hard – what do you do, bub?” or “watch out – I have guns”. I’d be kind of surprised if I never called him out in stronger terms before.

  175. Jenos Idanian #13 says:

    Annie’s got his guns, Cliffy has his crossbow (and, by implication, guns)… and we’re supposed to be worried about violence from right-wingers?

    @C. Clavin: Oh, and Cliffy (or should I call you William Tell?), that was sarcasm.

    But if you and Annie do get time-outs, might I suggest you go off and waterboard each other until you find your happy places…

  176. Pinky says:

    @Pinky: And anjin-san – if that wasn’t you, and I am misremembering it, I’m sorry.

  177. anjin-san says:

    @ Pinky

    anjin-san is prone to saying things like “watch out – I have guns”

    Kindly show were I have said anything remotely like that.

    What I have pointed out, by way of showing that I am not a “knee-jerk gun hater” in discussions about shootings, gun control, etc., is that I own several guns and have enjoyed target shooting for many years.

    If I even suggested a threat of using a gun in the manner you suggest, my father, who taught me to shoot, would come back from the grave and kick my ass into next week.

    But hey, make more crap up and double down on being an ass if that’s what gets you through the night.

  178. anjin-san says:

    @ Pinky

    And anjin-san – if that wasn’t you, and I am misremembering it, I’m sorry.

    Fair enough, though sometimes it is worth making sure before you comment.

    What has happened here is that Jenos has, on several occasions, taken my commenting about gun ownership, which does not have a damn thing to do with him, and parsed it into “Anjin threatened me with guns!!!!”

    And you fell for it.

  179. Pinky says:

    @anjin-san: So, are you the one who does the whole “have you ever served your country, bub?”, “have you ever done a hard day’s work, bub” thing?

  180. the Q says:

    James, your low turnout theory is false as 18,000 MORE voters turned out this election vis-a-vis the primary two years ago.

    The reason? Virginia now allow cross over voters and Cantor’s campaign manager is blaming a mass influx of Dems who crossed over to vote for Brat.

    Ben Jones, Dukes of Hazzard actor and Dem, and past loser to Cantor in a previous race, was leading the effort to get rid of Cantor.

    Stay tuned for more parsing of the vote turnout and the Dem effect.

  181. anjin-san says:

    @ Pinky

    I think I am going to let you play with your marbles by yourself.

  182. PJ says:

    @the Q:

    James, your low turnout theory is false as 18,000 MORE voters turned out this election vis-a-vis the primary two years ago.

    The reason? Virginia now allow cross over voters and Cantor’s campaign manager is blaming a mass influx of Dems who crossed over to vote for Brat.

    Ben Jones, Dukes of Hazzard actor and Dem, and past loser to Cantor in a previous race, was leading the effort to get rid of Cantor.

    Stay tuned for more parsing of the vote turnout and the Dem effect.

    Sore loser is sore.

    The parsing has begun. And it doesn’t support the idea that Dems spoiled the election.

    Mr. Cantor’s pollster, John McLaughlin, said the race was decided by Democratic voters.

    No wonder the guy unable to poll the race correctly is blaming everyone else.

    Mr. Cantor lost by an 11-point margin, and he lost just about everywhere in his district. Mr. Brat fared best in heavily Republican Hanover County, while Mr. Cantor kept the race closer in the more competitive Richmond inner suburbs.

    But it would be hard to argue that Democrats made up the margin of victory. Turnout was still far, far higher in Republican precincts. Democratic areas did not contribute a large number of votes: Only 5,722 votes were cast in precincts where Mr. Cuccinelli failed to eclipse 40 percent of the vote. Mr. Brat won by 7,212 votes over all.

    And so on…

  183. the Q says:

    PJ,

    Also Cantor got 5000 LESS votes this year than the last election, even though turnout was much higher.

  184. anjin-san says:

    Just as with Romney before him, a prominent Republican with vast resources behind him walks into a buzz saw on election day without a frigging clue of what is happening.

    This has to have GOP rainmakers in a state of near panic.

  185. Tillman says:

    @Jenos Idanian #13: Well, there is the funny relationship of Koch-funded groups giving sponsorships to talk radio personalities. Mark Levin’s show, whom I mentioned above, received around $750,000.

    And, you know, radio time isn’t technically free. It was free exposure for Brat, certainly, but someone has to pay for that time, and advertisers and sponsors fill the void.

  186. Tillman says:

    @Tillman: By the way, I honestly wouldn’t have checked into it if you hadn’t brought it up as some way to insult liberals for focusing on the Koch boogieman. Suddenly my closet has monsters in it.

  187. jukeboxgrad says:

    Jenos:

    a Masters from Princeton

    I already pointed out that Princeton Theological Seminary has nothing to do with Princeton University, but I just noticed that Brat himself is just as dishonest as you are. Link:

    he tested his rural values against the intellectual elite while at Princeton … Dave’s journey led him to Princeton where he obtained a Masters in Divinity

    Hat tip to WP.

  188. mantis says:

    I got my degree from MIT!*

    *MITchell Community College

  189. Hal_10000 says:

    @anjin-san:

    Just look at FBI and NCVS stats: gun murder down 40%, gun violence down 70%. Here’s the LA times on how few police officers were killed last year. Here is more from Radley Balko. Here is the most recent report on school violence. Here is James Alan Fox and here is me responding to Mother Jones’s climate denial-esque attempt to claim that mass shootings are on the rise.

    That should back up my “remarkable” claim that violence, including anti-state violence is way down.

  190. PJ says:

    @the Q:

    Also Cantor got 5000 LESS votes this year than the last election, even though turnout was much higher.

    Yeah, that would be proof that Republican primary voters preferred Brat over Cantor. Despite a higher turnout Cantor still got less votes than he got in the last primary election.

    (I presume you meant the last primary election? Because he got 222,983 votes in the last election, i.e. the general election…)

  191. MarkedMan says:

    @PJ: And that, my friend, is how hairs should be split… ;–)

  192. An Interested Party says:

    It’s because of Reagan that we’re so suspicious of amnesty deals. ‘Cuz Reagan signed one, and the ink was barely dry when the Democrats started reneging on their side of the deal.

    This kind of argument has been used a lot to explain why Reagan was involved in so many things that today’s so-called conservatives denounce…he must of been like Charlie Brown, always trying to kick that football…perhaps the senility set in earlier than reported…

  193. bill says:

    @Tillman: i can’t even tell what this was about, talk about hijacking a thread!

  194. jukeboxgrad says:

    Tony W

    The party that does not believe America can do big things anymore benefits from those folks not showing up

    Correct. Conservatives hate democracy. They like it better when fewer people vote:

    Many of our Christians have what I call the “goo goo” syndrome. Good Government. They want everybody to vote. I don’t want everybody to vote. Elections are not won by a majority of people. They never have been from the beginning of our country, and they are not now. As a matter of fact, our leverage in the elections quite candidly goes up as the voting populace goes down.

    Paul Weyrich, major conservative thinker, co-founder of the Heritage Foundation. Link, link.

    My apologies to those who have seen this before.

  195. grumpy realist says:

    Sheesh. After reading a lot of the political commentary out there, and all the navel-gazing….

    Maybe Cantor lost because a lot of people simply didn’t like him? He certainly seemed to come off as a back-stabbing Machiavellian Natanyahu boot-licker who would do ANYTHING to get further up in power.

    A lot of people get pissed off by that. As the late Great Steve Gillard commented about Rudy Giuliani’s projected political run: “there’s not going to be enough flesh for all the hatchets whizzing through the air at him.”

  196. rachel says:

    @grumpy realist: This. When you look up the Encyclopedia Britannica entry for “Disingenuous Shitweasel” and find Cantor’s picture as the illustration, that’s all the excuse you need to vote against him.