Anti-War, Anti-Establishment Republican Defeats Challenger

The media’s
biggest takeaway from yesterday’s North Carolina primaries
seems to be that the GOP establishment has defeated the Tea Party
insurgents. So it’s worth noting that the candidate last night who
had the longest record of defying his party’s leadership—Rep.
Walter Jones, an anti-war, anti-TARP Republican who has held his
seat for 10 terms—beat
back a well-funded challenge from former Bush official Taylor
Griffin.

Jones began the Iraq War as a superhawk, infamously reacting to
France’s reluctance to go to war by urging the House cafeteria to
start calling French fries “freedom fries.” But when Jones turned
against the conflict, he turned hard, moving close to Ron Paul and
losing out on committee appointments because of his stands. His
rhetoric got pretty fiery, too. Speaking at a Young Americans for
Liberty conference last year, he
said, “Lyndon Johnson’s probably rotting in hell right now
because of the Vietnam War, and he probably needs to move over for
Dick Cheney.” Ballsy stuff, especially for a congressman whose
district includes Camp
Lejeune.

There are plenty of issues where I disagree with Jones, from gay
marriage to Citizens United, but he is generally
preferable to the modal House Republican and, more to the point,
infinitely preferable to the fellow he defeated handily last night.
I’m glad the small caucus of antiwar Republicans didn’t lose a
man.