WASHINGTON, D.C. June 11 (DPI) – Just when the Republican establishment here thought it had beaten down the Tea Party and broader reform movements this election season, an unknown economics professor with libertarian leanings stunned House leader Eric Cantor in a Virginia congressional primary last night. Reform-minded Americans everywhere applauded, but given the entrenched power of Washington’s political duopoly, and its recent success beating back reformers, it’s still hard to see meaningful political change on the horizon.
Indeed even The New York Times made an effort to mock Cantor’s opponent, posting an unflattering photo on its index page of David Brat this morning. Brat defeated Cantor by more than 12 percentage points of more than 60,000 votes cast:
Economics Professor DAVID BRAT as he appeared this morning on the index page of NYTimes.com (AP)
The reaction of the mainstream press – particularly The Times and The Washington Post – suggests that political reform movements in America are a long way from proving their credibility, and much of the media seems intent on keeping those movements marginalized.
Cantor, a 51-year-old seven-term Republican from Virginia’s 7th Congressional District north of Richmond, emerged in recent years in the House as one of the Republican Party’s henchmen, who tallied and muscled loyalty among its ranks; in so doing he helped define today’s political culture in Washington.
The best part about Cantor’s election defeat stems from the fact that money played little role in the outcome: Cantor’s campaign had more than $5 million while Brat’s reported about $250,000, although it’s still unclear how much each actually spent.
Reform-minded sites across the internet hailed Cantor’s defeat. “Tonight the GOP establishment is shaking,” wrote Nick Sorrentino, editor of againstcronycapitalism.org. “They are slack jawed. They thought they were beginning to rein in the Tea Party.”