Top Ten Reasons Rep. Eric Cantor is Out of Step with Jews (and Americans)

Political pundits and Republicans are abuzz with talk that Senator John McCain (R-AZ) may name Representative Eric Cantor (R-VA) as his choice for Vice President. Although Cantor is Jewish he is wildly out of step with the Jewish community's values. Here are the top ten reasons Cantor is out of touch with the Jewish community (and America):

1) Cantor is against stem cell research. He voted against expanding research to more embryonic stem cell lines in 2007 and voted against allowing human embryonic stem cell research in 2005.

2) Cantor is 100% against a woman's right to choose. In 2007, he received a 0% rating from NARAL Pro-Choice America.

3) Cantor is against the separation of Church and State and was given a 0% rating by the Americans United for Separation of Church and State in 2006.

4) Cantor votes against our country's health care priorities. He voted to sustain President George W. Bush's ill-conceived veto against the SCHIP plan which would have extended coverage of 6 million more children in January 2008. According to a 2006 0% rating from the American Public Health Association, Cantor consistently votes against public health policies.

5) Cantor opposes environmental legislation and rates 5% according to the the League of Conservation Voters 110th Congress environmental scorecard. The Campaign for America's Future gave him a 0% in 2006 for his opposition to energy independence. (According to the 2007 American Jewish Committee poll, 82% of American Jews think that energy independence is very important, with 17% saying it's somewhat important). He also voted against tax incentives for renewable energy and on investing in homegrown bio fuel in August 2007.

6) Cantor opposes civil rights for gays and lesbians. He received a 0% rating from the Human Rights Campaign in 2006 and votes against prohibiting job discrimination based on sexual orientation (November 2007). Cantor also voted for a Constitutional Amendment banning same-sex marriage in September 2004.

7) Cantor plays loose with the facts and grossly distorts Senator Barack Obama's (D-IL) record and public statements in order to scare Jewish supporters. Monday, Jeffery Goldberg of The Atlantic wrote that he expected more from Cantor than these kinds of attacks.

You'll recall that in an interview with me, Obama referred to the Middle East conflict as a "constant sore." The Republican House leader, John Boehner, and Cantor, one of his deputies, willfully misreading Obama's comment, and, trying to scare Jewish voters away from Obama, accused him of calling Israel itself a "sore." Here is what Cantor said:

It is truly disappointing that Senator Obama called Israel a "constant wound," "constant sore," and that it "infect[s] all of our foreign policy." These sorts of words and characterizations are the words of a politician with a deep misunderstanding of the Middle East and an innate distrust of Israel.

This, of course, is complete nonsense, and I let Boehner's office, and Cantor's office, know that it was complete nonsense. So far, though, no sign of a retraction. Cantor, who is said to be brighter than Boehner, should know better than to launch such foolish, unethical and refutable attacks.

8) Although some elite insiders know who Cantor is, hardly anyone in the Jewish community could name the representative from Virginia's 7th congressional district.

9) Cantor consistently votes against civil liberties, according to a 0% rating from the American Civil Liberties Union.

10) Cantor votes against protecting whistle-blowers from employer retaliation. (March 2007)

Cantor is clearly from the right of the right wing of the Republican Party. If McCain thinks that Cantor will help him with the Jewish community because he's Jewish, McCain is sorely mistaken.

In summary, Cantor is an unknown in the Jewish community but the more the community gets to know him, the less of him it will like.

Comments

[antiqueglass]

Cantor is my Congressman and I will gladly (smirk) give him up for a doomed McCain campaign.
And in the interim, please consider giving Cantor's challenger some campaign moolah. She's Anita Hartke (the daughter of Vance Hartke - the 3-term anti-war Senator from Indiana). Here website is www.Hartkeforcongress.com

[longislandlol]

What's he a hassid? Against womens' rights and stem stell? Look- lieberman and his very religious orthodoxy did not help gore--- we jews do not help tickets-- we detract-- our time will come like the blacks chance has now come and god-willing to fruition this Nov.-- but we still our too early - and need to be represented in office by the right jews-- not jews to the extreme right....

[robiform]

If McCain chooses Cantor as his VP nominee, we can hope that Cantor will do for McCain what Lieberman did for Gore in 2000! That is to say, bupkes!!

[Dave01]

Come on McCain, go for it! Choose him. Secure a landslide victory for Obama! Do it, I dare you, I double dare you, I triple dare you.

I figured would give it a whirl by daring him to do it. You know, since he likes to act like a child (referring to his "Celeb" ad.)

[bluevillage]

Bring it on. The more right-wing the better.

[jhNY]

Missing from your ten reasons is Cantor's stance on Palestinian statehood or the possibility of an upcoming attack on Iran. Is that because you don't know his opinions, or is it because there is more agreement between mainstream Jewish values and his on these issues? Kindly enlighten.

But I do agree with you that Mr. Cantor's candidacy would sway very few Jews to vote for McCain who weren't going to already...

[Swerinjer]

and jews only comprise 2% of the US population anyhow. they have little to no effect on the outcome of an election.

[LeoMarvin]

Cantor would be a play to different constituencies in Florida and Virginia, two states McCain must take to stand a chance of winning the election: Florida's elderly Jewish voters, who are a significant voting block there, and by far the most right wing segment of the Jewish population; and Virginia's right-wing Christian conservatives, with whom Cantor is popular, and who aren't crazy about McCain.

[eddiejoe]

"...have no effect on the outcome of an election." You must be kidding. They own the media....TV...newspapers...magazines......

[BCubedReg]

I didn't know you could get that far right???

[GeeEll]

"Whatever it is, I'm against it" - Let us pray mightily that McCain goes in the direction of a paleoconservative like Cantor! McSame's discomfort with the America of 2008 - its virtues and problems both - will inevitably alienate him from a host of voters for whom his touchstones such as Vietnam and Reagan and the Cold War are only school lessons. John "Comin' in on a wing and a prayer" McCain cannot sail into the White House via the elderly white vote and the dittoheads--he would have to marshall a very broad base of support, but he's absolutely the wrong candidate for the task.

I am so keen to see the GOP convention, and watch them babble about "values" and generally self-immolate.

[lvdragonlady]

Sounds like a prefect VP choice to me. John is not sure what he is for and what he is against, this guy knows what he is against(everything)...........lol

[norkas]

Mc Cain deserves this Cantor. I am Jewish and just to give you a little insight because the guy is a Cantor does NOT mean chit. I hope Mc Cain selects him this will be the joke of a life time.He thinks he will get the Jewish vote with this guy running. There are Jewish corrupt people just like any other religion and by his voting record i am not saying he is corrupt but Stupid and cares little about anyone but himself. I will assure you he wants war in Iran. I will aslo tell you he will be a puppet for Israel instead of being a American first. Just my opinion.