The Virginia Attorney General race was rocked on Friday after texts surfaced that revealed the Democratic nominee, Jay Jones, once talked about a scenario involving him killing a former GOP colleague.
As first reported by National Review Online, the texts were sent in August 2022 by Jones amid the eulogizing of a former Democratic state lawmaker who had recently passed away:
Jones, who at the time had recently resigned from the state house after a brief stint representing Norfolk, had strong feelings about how the political class was eulogizing recently deceased former state legislator Joe Johnson Jr., a moderate Democrat with a long tenure in Virginia politics. Republican legislators like House Speaker Todd Gilbert had begun making public statements honoring Johnson’s memory and political legacy, and some of those statements were making the rounds in state legislative group chats.
The report noted that Jones mistakenly sent the texts to a former Republican colleague, House Delegate Carrie Coyner, realized it, and yet continued with the messages:
“If those guys die before me,” Jones wrote, referencing the Republican colleagues who were publicly honoring the deceased Johnson’s memory, “I will go to their funerals to piss on their graves” to “send them out awash in something.”Jones then suggested that, presented with a hypothetical situation in which he had only two bullets and was faced with the choice of murdering then-Speaker of the House Todd Gilbert or two dictators, he’d shoot Gilbert “every time,” prompting pushback from his former colleague…
Not surprisingly, the Republican Attorneys General Association is demanding Jones drop out of the race:
Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, the GOP nominee for governor, called Jones’s comments “disqualifying”:
This is horrible to read and should be wholly disqualifying of someone running for an office that protects the people of Virginia.Jay Jones’ horrific comments are a symptom of the entire Democratic Party and his running mate, Abigail Spanberger, needs to call on him to drop out.Attorney General Jason Miyares has served the people of Virginia with honor and dignity, and will continue to do so come November.Jay Jones can never be Attorney General of Virginia.
She has since called for him to exit the race:
Her Democrat opponent, former Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger, put out a statement condemning the language but not calling for Jones to drop out:
Incredibly, the initial statement issued by Jones referred to this as a “smear” campaign coordinated by Republican AG Jason Miyares, his opponent. He also characterized NRO, which has frequently been critical of President Trump, as a “Trump-controlled media organization.” Jones also didn’t include an apology:
Someone must have talked to him about that statement (which says it all about who Jones really is, IMO), because several hours later, he put out another, profusely apologizing to Gilbert but stopping short of saying he’d bow out:
“I take full responsibility for my actions, and I want to issue my deepest apology to Speaker Gilbert and his family. Reading back those words made me sick to my stomach. I am embarrassed, ashamed, and sorry.“I have reached out to Speaker Gilbert to apologize directly to him, his wife Jennifer, and their children. I cannot take back what I said; I can only take full accountability and offer my sincere apology.“Virginians deserve honest leaders who admit when they are wrong and own up to their mistakes. This was a grave mistake and I will work every day to prove to the people of Virginia that I will fight for them as Attorney General.”
In an interview done Friday night, Jones again apologized, saying, “Well, again, I am so deeply, deeply sorry for what I said, and I wish that it hadn’t happened, and I would take it back if I could.”
Current Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin also condemned the remarks:
As of this writing, Miyares has yet to comment.
Election Day in Virginia is November 4th, just one month away
– Stacey Matthews has also written under the pseudonym “Sister Toldjah” and can be reached via X. –
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