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GOP Base Sees Moderate Plot in Reform Group

Righties compalin that Cantor rebranding effort excludes them

By Gabriel Winant,  Newser User

Posted May 8, 2009 8:40 AM CDT

(Newser) – With Eric Cantor's high-profile new group aimed at diagnosing what ails the GOP, members of the party base are worried that the answer might be them. Social conservatives from Steve King to Mike Huckabee are accusing the group of excluding them from the National Council for a New America, Politico reports. Says former Ohio Secretary of State Ken Blackwell, conservatives “have the experience of being used and then abused and then forgotten.”

Righties aren’t pleased at the idea of a panel of experts telling them what to do next. “Ronald Reagan didn't summarily dismiss values voters like this new group of ‘experts’ has,” grumbles Huckabee. But Cantor denies intent to exclude any faction of the party. The group is still inviting members, he says, but “it’s been an incredibly successful rollout.”

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney is a member of Cantor's National Council.
Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney is a member of Cantor's "National Council."   (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, FILE)
In this June 13, 2008 file photo, former Republican presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee speaks during the Texas Republican Party State Convention in Houston.
In this June 13, 2008 file photo, former Republican presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee speaks during the Texas Republican Party State Convention in Houston.   (AP Photo/David J. Phillip, file)
House Minority Whip Eric Cantor of Va., gestures during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, March 26, 2009, during the unveiling of the House Republican's budget solution.
House Minority Whip Eric Cantor of Va., gestures during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, March 26, 2009, during the unveiling of the House Republican's budget solution.   (AP Photo/Kevin Wolf)
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Our problem is not lack of ‘experts,’ but too many of them and not enough attention to the hard working people in our communities that aren’t connected to the Beltway, but to the heartland. - Mike Huckabee

The National Council for a New America is meant to be a wide-open policy debate. There is no exclusion about what we'll talk about. - Rep. Eric Cantor

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COMMENTS
Showing 1 of 1 comment
Robert_Dada
May 8, 2009 7:36 AM CDT
Well first Mr. Huckabee you need to evolve past your religious myths to be taken seriously. We have real problems that need real solutions from real people. Not from some guy in a white beard sitting on a cloud. Why don't you go argue with a talking snake on the evils of temptation and let us sentient people address the problems of the day.

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