Is Eric Cantor's Loss the Start of Something Big?

Here's some news that supposedly marks a watershed in American political history:
U.S. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor lost his re-election bid, falling to Tea Party challenger David Brat in a Virginia Republican primary in one of the biggest upsets in modern congressional history.
Is this really such a big deal. Brent Bozell thinks so:
Brent Bozell, head of ForAmerica, a limited-government group specializing in social media, said in a statement: “Eric Cantor’s loss tonight is an apocalyptic moment for the GOP establishment. The grassroots is in revolt and marching.”
Have Americans really awakened from their typical torpor and decided to take things into their own hands, rather than going along with the long-established two wings of the same bird of prey - an apt description of the Democrat and Republican party establishment as vividly described may years ago by none other than Pat Buchanan. Buchanan, if you remember, when he once ran for President, called upon ordinary Americans to pick up their pitchforks - another vivid image - and it did seem for a few brief shining moments that some sort of populist movement had been energized by his words. Alas, if such a movement ever really got off the ground, it was either skillfully manipulated back into "sleep mode" by the established politicians defending their lucrative turf, or it simply collapsed under the weight of the ultimate indifference underlying the brave words spewing from some at the time.

In any case, it looks as if we may be in for another round of populist uprising, if this Virginia primary carries the sort of weight people like Bozell think it does. It will be interesting to see if this time the forward momentum leads to any substantive change at the top, or if the initial enthusiasm is spent after the initial push. Have Americans really awakened to the shenanigans of the entrenched corrupt government that pushed us to the brink of economic and cultural catastrophe, or is this just another urge to make a fuss for a bit before we all return to our daily lives of indifferent materialism?

We don't know and should therefore keep our eyes on this one.

One side note if great interest: The guy who beat Cantor is a professor at Randolph-Macon college in Virginia - an academic, which already should raise eyebrows, although I don't know the guy so don't want to rush to judgement. However, the other eyebrow-raiser is that his opponent will be another professor from Randolph-Macon. What were the chances of that happening? So whoever wins, we get an academic in Congress. Not that all academics should cause us concern if they find their way into a position of political power, of course, But common sense dictates that we raise a cautionary flag nonetheless.

Comments

Popular Posts