In a move rich with both party symbolism and personal opportunity, Democratic leaders tapped Cardoza to deliver their response to Bush's weekly radio address. This gives Cardoza about four precious minutes in front of a national audience that's often hard to reach.
It's a "response," though, in name only. Cardoza began working on his 750-word address Thursday, without knowing what Bush would discuss.
And no matter what Bush talks about -- in the past month, he's used his Saturday radio time to discuss Iraq, the Supreme Court and Medicare -- Cardoza will zero in on the budget.
"We have something to offer, while the Republicans have abandoned their old ideas of fiscal responsibility," Cardoza said Thursday.
Now in his second House term, Cardoza won the speaking slot by virtue of his leadership role in the House Blue Dog Coalition.
The 35-member Democratic coalition prides itself on fiscal discipline and has traditionally drawn many of its members from the South.
When Cardoza's predecessor, former congressman Gary Condit, co-founded the coalition a decade ago, Democratic leaders were often irked by the conservatives' maneuvering. Now, they welcome it.
"The leadership wanted the most conservative people in our party to be the spokespeople," said Cardoza, who oversees the coalition's communications campaign.
This is particularly important on the budget, where the Blue Dog members have been in the middle of a tug-of-war.
All day Thursday, House Republican leaders scrambled to secure the votes needed to pass a $53 billion package of budget cuts. The cuts -- or budget savings -- range from reduced federal subsidies for student loans to making legal immigrants wait seven years instead of five years before receiving food stamps.
This is one part of a "reconciliation" bill, which is also slated to include extending tax cuts that have a $70 billion price tag. These include, for instance, a one-year extension in the federal deduction for state and local taxes.
While the GOP leaders strained Thursday to rally a majority, Republicans cast the legislation as a mix of prudent savings and helpful tax cuts.
In speeches, editorials and interviews, they have been eagerly courting the Blue Dogs as the one group of Democrats most likely to swing their way.
"They're conservative, and this is a reduction in spending," Mariposa Republican George Radanovich said Thursday. "This is something they would normally vote for, but it's so partisan now that they aren't being allowed to by their leaders."
