House Majority Leader Eric Cantor endorsed Mitt Romney and predicted the former Massachusetts governor would win all of Virginia’s Republican delegates on Tuesday.
“I am endorsing Mitt Romney in his candidacy for president of the United States,” Mr. Cantor, Virginia Republican, said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
Mr. Cantor said Mr. Romney is the only Republican presidential candidate who has put forward a viable plan to create jobs and move the sluggish economy forward.
“If you look at Mitt Romney’s economic plan, what it does is it lowers taxes for everyone who pays income taxes; it will result in reduced red tape for small businesses; it will help us get back on track. That’s why I think that Mitt Romney is the man for this year,” he said.
Mr. Cantor downplayed Mr. Romney’s struggle to win the support of the GOP’s conservative base, saying, “This hard-fought primary has been full of all kinds of issues.”
“But one thing that can bring people together in this country is the economy and jobs,” Mr. Cantor said. “This plan, this pro-growth plan that Mitt Romney has put forward is something that I think the more people look into the details and see that plan, the more they will rally behind Mitt Romney.”
Mr. Cantor predicted that the Romney campaign would do well across the nation on Super Tuesday, when Virginia and nine other states hold their primaries, but he said the Republican presidential contest likely will last until this August’s convention in Tampa, Fla.
“I think it will be hard-fought until the end,” but “I do believe Mitt Romney will win our nomination.”
The Virginia congressman, who has been mentioned as a vice presidential candidate, said he had no interest in running on a potential Romney ticket.
“This (endorsement) is about Mitt Romney and making sure that he is put into office,” Mr. Cantor said.
• David Eldridge can be reached at deldridge@washingtontimes.com.
• Sean Lengell can be reached at slengell@washingtontimes.com.
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