Gone: Cantor, Kids Act and Amnesty Too

On Tuesday night, Americans who favor sensible immigration scored one of the biggest victories in political history when little known, underfunded Randolph-Macon University economics professor Dave Brat handily defeated incumbent and Majority Leader Eric Cantor in Virginia’s 7th Congressional District. Despite being outspent $5 million to $250,000, Brat’s victory margin was an impressive 12 points.

Cantor is a long-standing amnesty advocate both publicly and, more dangerously, behind the scenes. Recently, Cantor urged President Obama to work with House Republicans to pass amnesty. Cantor has long supported his version of the DREAM Act, the so-called Kids Act can of worms that would allow young aliens to qualify for in-state tuition. Ironically, the Central American “kids” invasion of the Southwest border also hurt Cantor.

Although he tried to disguise his amnesty commitment, Cantor was done in by his Chamber of Commerce, Mark Zuckerberg, anti-American worker, pro-immigration platform which District 7 voters saw through and rejected. As Brat said in his campaign, “The Republican Party has been paying way too much attention to Wall Street and not enough to Main Street.”

Predictably, the amnesty lobby downplayed Cantor’s devastating defeat. Had Cantor been more aggressive on immigration, detractors insisted, he would have had little trouble knocking off Brat. They point to Senator Lindsey Graham’s easy win in the South Carolina primary. Graham was one of the Gang of Eight that cosponsored and helped pass last year’s Border Security, Economic Opportunity and Immigration Modernization Act.

Graham’s never-say-die Gang of Eight cohort, the sour grapes Democrat Chuck Schumer, insisted as he has done countless times that Republicans must address the “nation’s broken immigration system.” Schumer left unsaid that his party, by refusing to enforce existing laws, is the major contributor to the “broken system.” Check out the 2013 release of 36,000 criminal aliens to understand what presidentially endorsed lawlessness spawns.

Brat’s win will reverberate throughout Capitol Hill, send the message to other legislators that amnesty is toxic and kill off the already slim chance of an immigration amnesty bill for the balance of the 113th Congress.