By Peter Galuszka
When I looked at my Richmond Times Dispatch, I was stunned. I couldn’t find a story that their wunderkind Congressman, Eric Cantor, the kind of Republican they love, had gotten a big deal job with Moelis & Co., a New York boutique investment bank.
There was the story in the Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post. Finally, the RTD straggled on with brief piece at 6:22 a.m. on its Website.
Maybe it’s embarrassment. Cantor, the former House Majority Leader, could do no wrong with his Main Street Republican friends or the editors of the local newspaper. His wife, Diana, was on the board when the newspaper was owned by Media General. Then came his stunning defeat in a June primary to unknown David Brat, who ran a mash-up of a Tea Party and Libertarian insurgency.
Moelis says it is hiring Cantor “for his judgment and experience” and ability to open doors, says the Journal. He’ll live in Virginia and have offices in Washington and New York.
Well, that was quick! Or maybe not. Cantor has raised $1.4 million from the financial services sector, as well as lots from managed care. His sense of entitlement is astounding. First, he thought he didn’t have to bother with the home folks in the Seventh District any more, costing him the election. They he arranged (with Gov. Terry McAuliffe’s help) a special election.
Doing so would get his replacement in office faster and thus Virginia can keep its seats on some important committees. But it also frees Cantor to take his plum job.
You didn’t read it in the RTD first! Somethings will never change.