This is a daily newsletter covering Virginia politics. Please consider becoming a paid subscriber today for $5/month to receive all of the insider information on what is happening in Virginia politics.
Welcome to Wednesday!
Republican gubernatorial candidate Glenn Youngkin was hit with two editorials in the last 24 hours critiquing his campaign.
“Glenn Youngkin, the blankest of blank slates ever to run for Virginia governor, has finally started to fill in some of those blanks on policy,” wrore the Roanoke Time editorial board. “The result is pretty disappointing, and something of a gut punch for the rural areas that are the base of his own Republican Party.”
The editorial board continued by calling Youngkin’s recent announcement to invest in all Virginians a “recitation of standard Republican talking points — mostly tax refunds and tax breaks.”
Youngkin was also critiqued by Josh Kraushaar at the National Journal with Kraushaar writing: “The GOP’s gubernatorial nominee in Virginia is reminiscent of Michael Bloomberg: He has lots of money to spend, but lacks a clear campaign argument.” Kraushaar then continued: “Youngkin’s early efforts at introducing himself to Virginians are more reminiscent of Romney than McDonnell. There are only three months until the election against Democrat Terry McAuliffe, yet his campaign message is unclear. His advertisements, blanketing the airwaves all summer thanks to his willingness to self-fund his campaign, show him playing basketball but don’t offer clarity on what he’d actually do as governor. He’s kept his distance from former President Trump, but isn’t outright rejecting the election conspiracy theories that drive the right-wing base.”
Greg Schneider from the Washington Post wrote an in-depth look at Youngkin’s time spent with global investment firm The Carlyle Group. After talking to several people within the company, Schneider wrote that Youngkin had taken on more of an administrative role within the firm in recent years and was not very involved in the individual deals being made. Youngkin said this year on a campaign stop, however, that he will “own anything” that the firm did while he was working there.
“Taking on those roles, another former Carlyle executive said, was something of a sacrifice for Youngkin — leaving behind the more exciting world of deals for the sometimes thankless task of corporate operations,” Schneider wrote.
More from the Washinton Post article: “One longtime Carlyle joint-venture partner, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to talk frankly about the firm, said Youngkin was smart and personable but not one to shake up the status quo. ‘A phrase that was kicked around is he’s like Wonder Bread dipped in whole milk,’ the joint-venture partner said.”
Republican candidates Jason Miyares (Attorney General) and Winsome Sears (Lieutenant Governor) confirmed (first with the Richmond Times-Dispatch) that they will not be attending the election integrity event being held at the Liberty University this weekend. Both candidates will be stumping for a Republican House candidate in Northern Virginia instead.
Glenn Youngkin, the Republican candidate for governor has recently said that he will be stopping by the event to discuss voter ID laws. His campaign has not said anything different since that statement.
From Richmond Times-Dispatch: “GOP gubernatorial nominee Glenn Youngkin’s campaign would not say whether he still plans to attend the event at Liberty University in Lynchburg, which is coordinated by the 5th congressional district Republican committee and includes a banquet on Friday and forums on Saturday. Asked if he was still scheduled to speak, campaign spokeswoman Macaulay Porter declined to answer on Tuesday and sent the Richmond Times-Dispatch a statement attacking Democratic nominee Terry McAuliffe.”
Tim Anderson, a firebrand Republican House of Delegates candidate in Virginia Beach is facing backlash after he campaigned against COVID-19 relief but accepted $750K in relief funds for his own company. According to The Virginian-Pilot: “since April 2020, however, his businesses have taken in over $742,000 in federal COVID relief money, according to data from the U.S. Small Business Administration.”
This news comes less than one month after Anderson wrote on his Facebook page that it should all be given back. “We should give it back. We don’t need it. Virginia has hundreds of millions in Surplus already. This is borrowed money and we should only spend what we absolutely need – which is Zero. “
Anderson did not respond to multiple requests for comment from The Virginian-Pilot.
Anderson is running against Democratic Delegate Nancy Guy in House District 83.
The Virginia Gazette wrote about Princess Blanding, the Liberation Party candidate who is running against Terry McAuliffe and Glenn Youngkin for governor.
From Virginia Gazette: “As a longtime educator, Middlesex resident Princess Blanding said she never imagined she would follow a path into politics. She had worked her way up to an administrative position at the Essex County public school division and there, she planned to stay. But, her path veered in 2018, when her brother, Marcus David-Peters was fatally shot by the Richmond City Police Department. He was suffering from a mental health crisis and was unarmed.”
Graham Moomaw from Virginia Mercury wrote about the conundrum facing election officials with a new “L” party on the ballot. McAuliffe with have a “D” next to his name, Youngkin will have an “R” next to his name, but while “L” usually stands for Libertarian on the ballot, officials now have to figure out how to decipher between Libertarian and Liberation.
Moomaw reports:
“To resolve the issue, the state reached out to both parties for ideas.
‘We believe the identification of ‘L’ for Libertarian has long been used in Virginia and voters understand that ‘L’ officially represents a vote for the Libertarian Party,” Joe Paschal, the chair of the Libertarian Party of Virginia, wrote in response. “We believe it would be unfair to ask our party to change the ballot identification of ‘L’ after spending years establishing this familiarity with voters. As such, we request ‘L’ for the Libertarian Party on all ballots in Virginia.’”
General Michael Flynn is set to headline Republican congressional candidate Jarome Bell’s “Rally to Right the Ship” in Virginia Beach this weekend. Bell is seeking the Republican nomination to run in Virginia’s second congressional district, currently represented by Congresswoman Elaine Luria.
Flynn was President Trump’s national security advisor for a short time before being fired 25 days into the administration for lying to the FBI and vice president about his contacts with Russia. After pleading guilty to the charges, Flynn was eventually pardoned by President Trump. “It is my Great Honor to announce that General Michael T. Flynn has been granted a Full Pardon,” Trump said at the time”
Now Flynn is endorsing Bell in the VA-02 nomination contest. “Bell’s 27 years of service in the U.S. Navy as a Chief Petty Officer, as well as his understanding that his oath never expires, proves Jarome will stand his ground against the constant onslaught by the socialist left, anti-American attacks,” Flynn said in an announcement for the event. “I am strongly and wholeheartedly endorsing Jarome for the Commonwealth of Virginia’s 2nd Congressional district.”
More News:
Virginia House Republicans pitch alternate plan for federal relief money with an eye toward elections – Washington Post
by Greg Schneider and Laura Vozzella
Two minutes. That’s what House Minority Leader Del. Todd Gilbert (R-Shenandoah) figured the GOP had on Tuesday to try to score some political points over the spending plan that Virginia Democrats have engineered for $4.3 billion in federal coronavirus relief funds.
Democrats who control the General Assembly had reached an agreement with Gov. Ralph Northam (D) on how to allocate the federal relief money even before the special legislative session started on Monday, including $800 million for the unemployment trust fund, $250 million for school ventilation systems, $700 million for rural broadband and more.
The Va. House GOP came up with a spending plan. It lasted 2 minutes.
By NED OLIVER AND GRAHAM MOOMAW
Republicans in the Virginia House of Delegates offered their own proposal Tuesday for how to spend billions in federal rescue funds, floating a plan they said would ban door-to-door vaccination campaigns, give $5,000 bonuses to every police officer in the state and limit how students are taught about race and discrimination.
After a two-minute floor speech by House Minority Leader Todd Gilbert, R-Shenandoah, the measure was promptly voted down by the Democratic majority.
- A couple from Richmond was arrested outside of the United States Capitol for multiple weapons charges
- Alexandria Will Start Sending $500 Every Month To Low-Income Families
- Lawmakers ask SCC to analyze Dominion rates with an eye on refunds for customers
- Hungry? Bring your vax card – some Richmond eateries asking patrons to show proof
- Mother of would-be Reagan assassin John Hinckley, who lived with him near Williamsburg, dies at 95
- Virginia wedding vendors want ‘a seat at the table’ and funding, as they struggle to recover from COVID-19
- Five historical markers highlighting Asian American contributions to Virginia to be installed around state
[…] Editorial pieces critique Youngkin; two L’s on the ballot; VA Beach Republican gets caught red… Virginia Scope […]