Ben Shapiro
Breitbart.com
Big Government
20 Jun 2014
On Tuesday night, one of the most stunning upsets in Congressional primary history took place, with House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) losing his primary to economics professor Dave Brat. Brat campaigned on the platform that Cantor was a backer of amnesty legislation; heavy conservative media coverage of the thousands of illegal immigrant youths pouring across our inundated southern border contributed to a sense of urgency.
So Cantor is out.
And the landscape has radically shifted, both for the Republican Party, and for the 2014 election. Here are the biggest ramifications of Cantor’s defeat.
…The Conservative Media Has Firepower. Without the power of Drudge, Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Mark Levin, Laura Ingraham, Breitbart News, and others in the new media, the consistent and steady push for amnesty in the House would have gone largely unremarked upon. Instead, it has become a national issue, firing up the base. Ousting a powerful figure like Cantor is not easy. It takes a major movement to do so. That major movement came as a result of scrutiny from conservatives in the media…
…Barack Obama Will Use This As An Excuse for Executive Action — After The Election. Obama has been threatening executive action for years on immigration. And he has the power to blanket amnesty millions, as I’ve written before in this space. But now Obama believes he may have a ray of hope in campaigning on immigration. That will delay any executive action beyond the election. He’d rather campaign on the basis that he needs a compliant Congress on immigration than act unilaterally prior to the election and have to answer questions about abuse of power.
This is a stunning night for the GOP. And just as in 2010, the establishment and its donors have no idea just what to do about it. The answer should be: unify.
Related: Eric Cantor’s defeat throws Republican leadership into ‘total chaos’
D.C. Earthquake: Top Republican Booted From House
…Author and columnist Ann Coulter told Fox News, “The Democrat response is to keep saying, ‘Oh, this is a tea-party victory. They are not saying ‘this is a defeat for amnesty’ because they know what I’m saying is true. Americans do not want amnesty. In fact, they’d like a moratorium on immigration generally. Overwhelmingly the polls have shown that for 20 years but the Chamber of Commerce, the Sheldon Adelsons of the world, are buying their way into the heart of John Boehner and Eric Cantor.”
She added, “I hope it will shut down any more happy talk about amnesty this year.”
Talk-radio host Laura Ingraham said, “This is a massive wake-up call to the Republican Party, if they choose to wake up at this point. If they don’t, if John Boehner, Paul Ryan and the rest of the crew in the GOP establishment move forward after this race with this idea of ‘quote’ immigration reform, which is a pathway to some type of amnesty, eventually, they will put a wedge down the middle of the Republican Party that will in my mind prevent the Republicans from winning in 2016, exactly the opposite of what they’re contending.
“This is an amazing moment for the people. It is not to be discounted. … It’s an absolute repudiation of establishment politics.”
There was no immediate comment from House Speaker John Boehner. But a senior Republican leadership aide described the mood as “chaos for the leadership ranks.”
“We’re absolutely stunned,” the aide said. “Honestly, we really can’t believe it.”…
Update: Bloomberg’s Al Hunt on Cantor Defeat: ‘Biggest Shock I Have Ever Seen in Electoral Politics’ (video)
…”First of all, it’s the biggest shock I have ever seen in electoral politics. I don’t think anybody anticipated it. Eric Cantor was at a fund-raiser in Washington yesterday morning. This guy didn’t spend any money. If you got money in Bobby Van stock, sell it. It doesn’t do very well. But Joe, the other thing is this is not a right-wing district. This is not your redneck riviera. I was born in that district. This is a very Republican district, but one that Mark Warner carried. Barack Obama once got 46 percent.”
“I think this is a grassroots whatever you call it — Tea Party, right-wing, ‘throw the rascals out,’ whatever,” he continued. “I agree with Mark [Halperin]. The implications are profound…”…
Update 2: From Johnny A., our man in Texas:
