(The New York Times – Opinion) “Whether the Gillespie-Trump brand of Republicanism sells to the Virginia electorate this year will tell us a lot about where American politics stand a year after the election of President Trump — and the outcome will also offer tantalizing hints about where we are headed in 2018 and 2020.”


It would be hard to find a better example of the “corrupt Washington establishment” that President Trump calls “the swamp” than Ed Gillespie.

The Republican nominee in Virginia’s gubernatorial election, Gillespie is an insider’s insider, a founder of Quinn Gillespie and Associates, one of the most successful lobbying firms in Washington. He has been moving in and out of government service for 35 years.

Gillespie is not, of course, presenting himself to Virginians as a swamp creature. Instead, with the election just five days away, Gillespie is showing two different faces to voters.

Click to continue reading. By Thomas B. Edsall, contributing Op-Ed writer – Nov. 2, 2017.