| Submit your comments on this article | |
| Home Front: Politix | |
| Dems Try Out Cantor as Poster Boy for Tea Party Evils | |
| 2011-10-11 | |
| For months, Democrats have been searching for a political villain who will rile up their base and scare centrist swing voters to their side. After a series of trial-balloon auditions during the spring and summer, they settled on House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) as the man they want to cast as the face of GOP intransigence. "He, more than anyone else, has tied himself to the tea party. And the tea party is exceedingly unpopular with Democrats and independents," said Rep. Steve Israel (D-N.Y.), Ain't nobody to scare folks like The One.
You clowns have enough of my money. Find a better way to spend what you got. Democrats hope to use Cantor as a stand-in for the GOP nominee -- and it is not a role Cantor minds playing. "They are cementing Leader Cantor's reputation as a defender of the free market, entrepreneurism and job creators, which is a clear contrast with President Obama's plans for more government-stimulus spending and tax hikes on working families and small businesses," said Laena Fallon, Cantor's spokeswoman. "The president has handed Leader Cantor a national megaphone." Beware of the Law of Unintended Consequences. Cantor is no Joe Biden. On the other hand ... Cantor isn't a familiar enough figure to craft a national campaign around. Also, three of those four (examples of national figures, omitted for brevity) -- Wright, Gingrich, DeLay -- had ethical issues that sullied their reputations and made them easier targets. Pelosi was the fourth example of a national campaign to demonize, but her ethical issues were never front-page news. Not even her private jumbo jet. For those reasons, it could take years for Democrats to turn Cantor into the sort of political figure that can be featured in attack ads in battleground districts in the way that Democrats and Republicans used Gingrich and Pelosi. Anybody ever consider they might not have "years"? Earlier this year, Democrats tried out Boehner and Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) -- plain-spoken Midwesterners -- and had some success demonizing Ryan's Medicare proposals. Boehner has been an elusive target. In a speech last fall, Obama singled out the soon-to-be speaker nearly 10 times, but he neither electrifies conservatives nor incites rage among liberals. I don't think Cantor does either, either. Perhaps the Dims will also have a hard time making him the poster boy for the evil Tea Party goblins. | |
| Posted by:Bobby |
| #1 Ought to work well with the Democratic Party's money base. Maybe some more hook on the Cantor caricature's nose will help. |
| Posted by: Eohippus Phater7165 2011-10-11 13:03 |