Four Democratic candidates for governor blasted their GOP counterparts in a joint statement Thursday.
“Last week, the entire Republican field took their complete embrace of Donald Trump a step beyond the far-right extremism that has become the norm in the Virginia GOP,” wrote candidates Jennifer Carroll Foy, Delegate Lee Carter (D-Manassas), Terry McAuliffe, and Senator Jennifer McClellan (D-Richmond.)
“From Pete Snyder lying to the IRS to hide information about his organization’s finances and Glenn Youngkin’s commitment to voter suppression, to Amanda Chase’s racist tirade against Sen. McClellan and the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus and Kirk Cox’s embrace of policies that hurt Virginia working families — the Republican candidates are proving one thing: they are wrong for Virginia,” the release states.
Gubernatorial candidate Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax did not sign the statement.
Last week, Axios reported that Snyder’s non-profit the Virginia 30 Day Fund may have under-reported its gross receipts on an IRS form, allowing the non-profit to keep key financial and operational details hidden from public reporting. Although the Virginia 30 Day Fund is separate from Snyder’s campaign, the non-profit is a key part of Snyder’s pro-business political brand. Snyder staff told Axios the discrepancy was due to unexpectedly rapid growth.
“Shocking these left-wing Democrats found time to parrot talking points but can’t find a second to stand up to teachers unions and special interests groups to open our schools and our economy. Their radical agenda for our state will continue down the road of failure paved by Northam and McAuliffe,” Snyder campaign spokesperson Lenze Morris said in a statement.
Last week, Chase came under fire from Republican as well as Democratic gubernatorial candidates for her statement saying McClellan wouldn’t be able to fairly represent Virginians because of her leadership in the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus. In response she tweeted, “I’m sick and tired of being called a racist when it’s Sen McClellan leading divisive organizations that exist for the sole purpose of promoting Virginians of one color. We’re Virginians. I will be a Governor for ALL of Virginia.”
The Democrats fired at Youngkin for voter suppression, an apparent reference to his elections integrity plan.
Youngkin campaign spokesperson Macaulay Porter said, “Republicans and Democrats have both raised concerns about the integrity of our elections in recent years, and Glenn is proposing real solutions to restore faith in the process and ensure every legal vote is counted quickly and accurately. If the liberals in Richmond were as focused on election integrity as they were scoring political points and playing partisan games we could actually get something accomplished for a change.”
The Democratic candidates published the statement the day after a Democratic gubernatorial forum. The forum was the first to feature all five candidates. Last week, McAuliffe did not participate in a debate with the other four candidates, earning criticism from Carrol Foy.
“As Democrats, we may have our differences, but we are united against allowing any of these Trump acolytes near the governorship,” the candidates said in their Thursday statement. “The unhinged extremism on the GOP side is dangerous — and it is a constant reminder that every one of these Republicans is completely unfit to lead Virginia.”
– – –
Eric Burk is a reporter at The Virginia Star and the Star News Digital Network. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Virginia Capitol” by Mike Fonseca CC2.0
