House Minority Whip Rep. Eric Cantor surprised me with his candor on Meet the Press on Sunday. After saying the standard concerns about Democrat spending and taxes, he clearly stated that the role of minority party is to pull the president to the center (the same role Democrats played with President Bush.) But, my question is what happens if President Obama finds a comfortable home with us– the moderates in the center. Will congressional minority leadership acknowledge his movement? He should thinks fast because I think Obama is a centrist at heart.
I had to laugh when Cantor said that the president goes into the country to “campaign” for his programs. As quiet as it is kept, my friends have been saying the same thing. “My man is still in campaign mode.” The president is staying in touch with the people who elected him rather than insulating himself in a Washington cocoon.
Meet the Press- March 15, 2009
MR. GREGORY: But, but isn’t the problem in the, in the public’s mind, Republicans are calling for things now that they didn’t actually do during the Bush years? And you look at some of the polling, here’s our recent NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll: Which party would do a better job of getting the U.S. out of a recession? It’s the Democrats that have, by a 48 to 20 percent margin, the advantage in terms of people’s confidence. What do you do to change that as the minority party?
REP. CANTOR: Well, I mean, listen, as the minority party, I think part of our job is to be the honest opposition. And we also, I think, are charged with the task of bringing President Obama back to the center. That’s what bipartisanship is about and, frankly, that’s what the solutions are going to be about going forward.
Project Logic Ga 
Obama may very well become a centrist; arguably it is what President Clinton did. What happens then? Liberal and Conservative frustration. And general backlash against the ruling party of the Senate and House.
Of course, the size of the spending plans would make him a classic liberal but after satisfying the people who put him in office with early action, I see his policies moving to the center.
I still like the old model where elected officials serve all the people (not the winner takes all mentality). Obama and Rep. Bishop are cut from the same cloth in that regard because the are scholars of American government, the framers and law. They are elected officials who attempt to make the wise decision for all the people—that can make you successful or it can get you sent home. Everyone knows Bishop was a liberal when he was elected to Congress but he would never ignore the views of the conservatives because they are constituents. Over the years, moderation has permeated his mindset.
Hats off to elected officials who would prefer leaving office than support position they don’t like.