Jon Stewart, for one, is underwhelmed by Eric Cantor's stunning downfall
Jon Stewart, like everyone else, is surprised by House Majority Leader Eric Cantor's (R-Va.) loss to little-known GOP primary opponent David Brat. But, he noted on Wednesday night's Daily Show, the loss isn't really that earth-shattering — certainly not "David over Goliath times 1,000," as one pundit colorfully put it.
"So, 65,000 people in one congressional district in Virginia have overthrown a clearly arrogant and unsuspecting incumbent," he said, noting (repeatedly) that Cantor spent more of his campaign war chest at steakhouses than Brat did on his entire campaign. ("How did you spend $169,000 on steak?" Stewart asked of Cantor — and Politico has the answer.) Surely this is a case of "all politics is local"? Not if cable news has 24 hours to fill, he sighed: So, "to the broader-lesson-mobile!"
The broader lessons are that all Republicans have to be afraid of Tea Party challenges, immigration reform is dead, and GOP lawmakers will be in trouble if they even talk with Democrats. "Oh, no!" Stewart said in mock horror, summing up his feelings about Washington and Cantor's downfall. "Congress's current golden age of cooperation and productiveness is over!" --Peter Weber
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Into the Woods: a ‘hypnotic’ productionThe Week Recommends Jordan Fein’s revival of the much-loved Stephen Sondheim musical is ‘sharp, propulsive and often very funny’
-
‘Let 2026 be a year of reckoning’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Why is Iran facing its biggest protests in years?TODAY’S BIG QUESTION Iranians are taking to the streets as a growing movement of civic unrest threatens a fragile stability
-
Son arrested over killing of Rob and Michele ReinerSpeed Read Nick, the 32-year-old son of Hollywood director Rob Reiner, has been booked for the murder of his parents
-
Rob Reiner, wife dead in ‘apparent homicide’speed read The Reiners, found in their Los Angeles home, ‘had injuries consistent with being stabbed’
-
Hungary’s Krasznahorkai wins Nobel for literatureSpeed Read László Krasznahorkai is the author of acclaimed novels like ‘The Melancholy of Resistance’ and ‘Satantango’
-
Primatologist Jane Goodall dies at 91Speed Read She rose to fame following her groundbreaking field research with chimpanzees
-
Florida erases rainbow crosswalk at Pulse nightclubSpeed Read The colorful crosswalk was outside the former LGBTQ nightclub where 49 people were killed in a 2016 shooting
-
Trump says Smithsonian too focused on slavery's illsSpeed Read The president would prefer the museum to highlight 'success,' 'brightness' and 'the future'
-
Trump to host Kennedy Honors for Kiss, StalloneSpeed Read Actor Sylvester Stallone and the glam-rock band Kiss were among those named as this year's inductees
-
White House seeks to bend Smithsonian to Trump's viewSpeed Read The Smithsonian Institution's 21 museums are under review to ensure their content aligns with the president's interpretation of American history
