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In UVa Appearance, Eric Cantor Calls for Political Tolerance

Eric Cantor was in Charlottesville on Friday, speaking to students at UVA’s Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy. The former House Majority Leader weighed in on the current presidential landscape, the importance of tolerance in America, and the state of the House of Representatives. WMRA’s Jordy Yager has this report.

The smell of several dozen Papa John’s pizzas may have helped draw more than 100 students into the Batten School’s main hall on a beautiful sunny Friday afternoon, but Eric Cantor made sure they stayed.

The seven-term former congressman from Virginia’s seventh district, which stretches from Culpeper down to the Richmond suburbs, wasted no time in getting to the topic on everyone’s mind.

CANTOR: It’s been entertaining. I mean, it really is almost entertainment. Donald Trump, I mean you know he’s a reality TV show star and he uses that skill in these so-called debates… I, however, do think as we get closer to the first ballot being cast, that you’re going to see a seriousness set in, that people are going to stop and think, wait a minute, we’re actually electing somebody to sit in the Oval Office.

Cantor’s a firm supporter of former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush. And while the shear number of Republican presidential contenders is healthy for democracy, Cantor says Trump’s rhetoric is divisive.  The next president is going to have to respect everyone’s viewpoint, on all sides of an issue.

But Connor Maxwell, a graduate student in public policy, wondered whether Republicans were cut out for the job.

MAXWELL: Do you think that the Republican Party needs to change its stance on social issues in order to win more support from my generation?

The whole idea of the U.S. is based on tolerating the beliefs of others, Cantor said. But that goes both ways, for liberals and conservatives.

CANTOR: Why should a pro-life Republican be maligned, necessarily, for his or her position? They should be afforded the ability to have that position.

Maxwell was one of seven students who posed questions to Cantor, ranging from immigration and affirmative action to wealth distribution and equal opportunity.

I caught up with Cantor after he was done answering more than an hour’s worth of questions from students.

Fifteen months ago, he was the second most powerful member in the House, right behind John Boehner, the Speaker. But now Cantor’s gone, losing a primary bid to the Tea Party supported Dave Brat. And so is Boehner, after being strong-armed to step down by the conservative Freedom Caucus. So what does Cantor think is behind the House’s steady push to the far right? 

CANTOR: When people see the fact that their wages haven’t increased over decades, they’re having trouble making ends meet, pay for their kids to go to college, try and deal with their healthcare needs, and the rest, they want some action, they want something to get done, so there’s that level of anger that sort of manifests itself in the folks in the House.

Cantor says there’s also an unreasonable expectation placed on Republicans in Congress. They may have the majority in both chambers, but there just aren’t enough votes to override Democrats and President Obama on major issues like such as healthcare and the budget.

CANTOR: You can’t force the other side into submission.

Earlier this year, Cantor’s replacement as Majority Leader, Kevin McCarthy, failed to get enough votes to succeed Boehner as Speaker. So, it begs the question, if Cantor was still in Congress, if he had been re-elected last year, would he have tried to run for Speaker?

CANTOR: Fortunately, I don't have to answer that question. [Laughter]

Jordy Yager was a freelance reporter for WMRA from 2015 - 2019.