The field of Republican candidates vying to run against Rep. Tom Perrillo is so strong that…a seventh candidate has kicked off his campaign. Jim McKelvey, a Smith Mountain Lake developer, completes our septumvirate of dwarves. McKelvey says both that he’s not satisfied with any of the other candidates and that “a couple of other good, strong candidates” are running whose “platforms are essentially the same.” How’s he going to get all of these super-conservative promises enacted in congress? “I don’t know exactly how it works,” he tells the paper.
A student of history in the standard teabagger mold, he told the Smith Mountain Eagle that the founding fathers didn’t draw a salary for their service, and so he won’t either. But, of course, they did—every member of the 1st United States Congress received $75/day (adjusted for inflation), including Sen. James Monroe and Rep. James Madison, each founding fathers, each representing Virginia. And what district was James Madison representing? Why, it was Virginia’s 5th. The very district that McKelvey wants to represent. McKelvey is really most of these candidates in a nutshell: It’s a job that he’s no better suited for than “a couple of other” candidates, that he doesn’t “know exactly how it works,” with a campaign premised on a serious misunderstanding about how our nation was founded.
Keep these candidates coming, 5th District Republicans!
Why?
Although maybe he was referring to either the Second Continental Congress or maybe the Constitutional Convention (which I don’t know if they received compensation for).
But… why?
Even George Washington accepted a salary as president. He agreed with congress that, while he was wealthy and had no need for a salary, refusing a salary would set a precedent that would allow only wealthy men to serve as president. Founding fathers had bills to pay, too.
What McKelvey is really saying here is that his time is without value. I suspect he’s right.
Only a fool or a man whose time is worthless… or a dwarf… would try to stand against Perriello!
That being said, I’m betting that one of those seven (or one of the ones not announced) will be sitting in Perriello’s seat after the next election.