ONE LOCAL pol whose name has not been mentioned could make the perfect running mate -- for Republican John McCain.Rep. Eric Cantor is 44. McCain is 71.
As a member of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, Cantor brings the clout and experience on economic and tax issues that many believe McCain lacks. He was a businessman before being elected to the House in 2000 and has been an eloquent spokesman for pro-growth policies ever since.
Cantor would energize economic conservatives in a way that McCain has not, and he possesses the skill and expertise to attack the Democrats' high tax, anti-trade, big government platform as precisely the wrong medicine for a struggling economy. (His wife, Diana, also plays in the financial major leagues, serving for more than a decade as executive director of the Virginia College Savings Plan. She is currently a member of the Board of Directors of Media General, which owns this newspaper.)
there's more
His consistent, staunch defense of Israel's interests could strengthen McCain's already respectable standing among traditionally Democratic Jewish voters, many of whom are growing nervous about Obama's pastor's embrace of the anti-Semitic Louis Farrakhan. Jimmy Carter's get-together with Hamas terrorists offered another reminder that left-wing Democrats often lend tepid support to Israel.The congressman from Richmond would keep Virginia and Florida in the GOP column and could help McCain in Northeastern states, such as New Jersey, where the Arizona senator appears to be running better than recent Republican presidential candidates.
Personally, I think it would be an idiotic choice. Yes, Cantor is Jewish, but so what? He will add nothing more to the ticket as far as appeal to that segment of the electorate than McCain already has. Those who want massive U. S. military commitment to Israel do not further convincing about McCain. And while he might be a member of the Republican House leadership, he has almost no national visibility, and not that much stature, and given McCain's age and health, the Senator from Arizona will need a running mate who can assure the nation that he is ready to be president on day 1, should it become necessary.
I wonder what others think of this suggestion?
His bio also says that he worked as a lawyer in private practice before entering politics professionally. So I'm trying to understand when exactly Eric Cantor was running a business. He only had a very small window between school and professional politics. What exactly is this business that Eric Cantor is supposed to have run?
With regard to Cantor as a running mate, I don't see this helping McCain much. McCain's big challenge (well, one of them) is getting the fundamentalist Christian base fully on board. Republicans do not win nationally without that constituency. I don't see a Jewish Congressman whom most of them have never heard of doing much to solidify that part of the base. No, the fact that he's Jewish isn't the problem. It's that like McCain, he isn't a fundamentalist Christian.
What nonsense. But imagining him on a stage with Jim Webb or Kathleen Sebelius gives me a very happy mental image.
The Wikipedia entry on most any Congressman is written and maintained vigilantly by that Congressman's staff. Ask anyone who works on the Hill. These people are obsessive about checking it for alterations every day.
Once someone becomes very high profile, things change a bit because other people are in there trying to amend the entry. But I would bet money that every word in Cantor's Wikipedia entry as of this moment was written by his staff. I can't imagine why they would go lying about his date of birth or what year he was elected to the House.
I used to live in Cantor's district before it was re-drawn so I followed his initial rise somewhat. I've got a long-standing grudge against Tom Bliley going back to my freshman year of high school. I'm pretty sure that most of what I see there is correct.
"Democrats often lend tepid support to Israel" What's that even supposed to mean? That we're willing to negotiate for peace in the region and offer Israel sound advice instead of just chanting BOMB BOMB BOMB BULLDOZE BULLDOZE BULLDOZE! Not only are American Jews not stupid but Israeli Jews aren't stupid either - if you want to find the root of the anti-Palestian-at-all-costs lobby, look no further than the Far-Right Evangelical Christian movement.
Once again, Jews are not stupid, and while they may sometimes (rightfully) be treated/act like an ethnic interest group much like Hispanics or Arabs, we're all Americans, and in the end I'm guessing most smart people in this country will vote for peace, prosperity, civil rights, Democrats, and overall good management this November.
Now, that all said, Cantor would surprise me for a bunch of reasons, not the least of which is that because of his age, McCain's VP choice will get a lot of scrutiny, because the person stands a better that normal change of becoming president, or at least will be seen that way. I just don't see McCain picking an unknown or someone without strong, demonstrable national security cred, as the GOP thinks of it.
That is all leaving aside whether the guy is qualified or not, or anut case, or whatever.