Thursday, August 23, 2001

Congressman getting to 
know potential constituents

Cantor visits Page to learn issues before realignment

By Randy Arrington
Staff Writer

His district would change just days before he officially takes office; but first the incumbent has to get re-elected.

Congressman Eric Cantor (R-7th Dist.) will seek re-election in November of 2002 in a district that once included Page County, prior to the realignment that followed the 1990 U.S. Census.

At the time, Sen. George Allen was serving as Page’s Congressman in the 7th District just before the county was merged with Northern Virginia localities in Republican Frank Wolf’s 10th district. Now, after another proposed realignment of Congressional districts following the 2000 Census, Page County will shift back into the 7th, once the Justice Department signs off on the new lines drawn up by the General Assembly and approved by Gov. Jim Gilmore.

Although Page won’t be a part of the 7th District until Jan. 1, 2003; Cantor, a lifelong resident of the Richmond area, hopes to gain support for his candidacy in the county. He plans to appear next year at a local event that marked his first visit to Page last week: the Republican barbecue at River’s Bend Ranch near Alma.

"If you ask the people that I’ve represented, they’ll tell you I strive to be a very attentive representative of the people," Cantor said during an interview with the Page News and Courier last Tuesday. "I try to stay in touch with their concerns … and that’s really why we’re here."

Some local residents have expressed concern over Page’s geographical location in the extended 7th Congressional District, which puts the county at the far northwestern corner — making it the only county in the district west of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

"I felt it was important that I come here and meet the citizens of Page and the elected officials to try to get a sense of what is important," Cantor said. "So that we can be ready to hit the ground running once we seek election and represent Page In Congress."

Cantor said the interests here in Page are not that much different than many of the 11 counties currently in his district.

"The 7th now contains a lot of rural counties," Cantor said. "These are counties that contain a lot of agribusiness."

Cantor said that Page is not far from Culpeper, where he has an office established, along with office locations in Richmond and Washington.

Cantor commented on a proposal that would bring additional waste streams into the county’s Battle Creek Landfill.

"I understand that Page County is dealing with the situation that there is a significant investment in the landfill, and they are trying to find the economically viable solution to that issue," Cantor said. "In a larger context, I certainly am signed on to the effort to allow the states to restrict the amount of out of state trash that flows in. I don’t think anybody in Virginia wants us to be the nation’s dumping ground."

Cantor said one solution may be to find more funds for localities so they won’t have to rely on landfills as a source of revenue.

The first-term representative got his start in politics by interning for Congressman Tom Bliley — serving as his driver on his first re-election campaign — while attending George Washington University. After getting his bachelor’s degree, Cantor then headed to William and Mary College where he obtained a law degree before going on to get a master’s at Columbia University.

After serving nine years in the House of Delegates, Cantor was elected to Congress in November of 2000 and was selected to serve on the House Financial Services Committee and the House International Relations Committee the following January. Since getting involved in GOP affairs on the Hill, Cantor has been asked to join the House Leadership’s whip team as an Assistant Majority Whip, while also serving as vice chair of the Republican Israel Caucus and chairman of the Republican Task Force on Terrorism and Unconventional Warfare.

The father of three said he believes education to be one of his biggest challenges currently, and he hopes to find ways to help parents become more involved with their children’s education. Over the long term, Cantor feels that promoting "jobs and opportunity" for his constituents will be the focus of his efforts in Washington.

If the newly structured seventh Congressional district becomes a reality, the first-term Congressman will replace a seasoned member of the House who has been known for helping Page any way he could over the past 10 years.

"[Frank Wolf’s] a great man, and he’s got an office right around the corner from mine," Cantor said. "I look forward to learning the issues from Congressman Wolf and working along with his seniority. He’s been there a long time."

The self-described "common sense, conservative Republican" said he can relate to the values he saw during his first visit to Page.

"I have had a tremendous welcome," Cantor said last week. "People have been warm and friendly, and I really sense a true commitment to morality and common sense for conservative principles … and that’s what I’m about."