Quick Note: David Brat, Uncovered?

David Brat has looked like a deer in the headlights since upsetting Eric Cantor in Virginia's primary election earlier this week, and has shown himself to be woefully unprepared for life in the media spotlight.

Mr. Brat, an economics professor at Randolph-Macon College, was interviewed by MSNBC's Chuck Todd on Wednesday.  When he was asked about whether he would support raising the minimum wage, Mr. Brat replied "Um, I don't have a well-crafted response on that one."

This is a professor of economics, who has been running a campaign for Congress for months and he doesn't know what he thinks about the minimum wage?

Mr. Brat added: "I thought we were just going to chat today about the celebratory aspects...I love all the policy questions, I'm happy to do more, but I just wanted to talk about the victory."  

He sounds like a 15 year old who was just elected president of his junior high school chess club. Wheee!  Yippy Skippy!  Look at me!  I won!

Then there is Mr. Brat's campaign manager, Zachary Werrell, a 23 year old Libertarian who wiped his Facebook page this week, but not before some of his postings were scrutinized.  In one post, Mr. Werrell supported the innocence of George Zimmerman and railed against people who were pro-choice but didn't support the Zimmerman verdict.   

I'm not sure of the connection, but I don't see his post making any inroads with minorities or pro-choice advocates. 

In other posts he called for abolishing the FDA, (all drugs should be legal), supported the right of any state to secede from the U.S., "I say yes.  I derive that opinion from our first foundational document--the Declaration of Independence.  What say you?", and offered the opinion that women should not be permitted within "fifty feet of where boys are taught...It is way past time.  Women in our feminized classrooms are consigning generations of our sons to years of misery and diminished futures."

That ought to bring in the women voters.

I can only hope that now that he is running in a "grown-up" election, Mr. Brat will consider hiring a adult campaign manager.   

While Zachary Werrell's posts were interesting, I was still curious to know what Mr. Brat had to say for himself.   I did a search putting together David Brat and all the Republican favorite talking points.  I found his opinion on Benghazi to be an eye opener:  "My guess is Republican leadership did something related to Benghazi that they don't want coming out. That's the best of what I've heard.  There's something a little fishy there."

So Republicans are gung ho on investigating Benghazi because they had something to do with it that they are trying to cover up?  Why do I feel that this opinion will not make him popular with his fellow Republicans?

The Christian right may be able to find something to love about him.  In an essay on economics and Christian ethics, he wrote:  "If we make all of the people good, markets will be good.  If markets are bad, which they are, that means people are bad, which they are.  Want good markets?  Change the people."

Of course, he also said, "Are you willing to force someone you know to pay for the benefits for one of your neighbors?  Very few Christians I know are willing to say 'yes' to this question."

He seems to believe that all our economic problems will go away if everyone becomes Christian and attends church regularly.  But at the same time, he doesn't know many Christians who want to help their neighbors, which is sort of a basic tenet of Christianity.  It's not clear how he reconciles what I see as two disparate opinions. Or maybe he means there won't be anyone left for Christians to help because we'll all have become equally rich church goers.

All I know is, that after delving into Mr. Brat's writing, I still don't know what he stands for.  Better minds than mine will be analyzing this latest Tea Party darling in the months to come.

 I can't wait.