Even for the deranged American left, the latest revelation regarding a message wishing a violent death upon a hated opponent is so far beyond the pale that it beggars belief. This was not the product of a far-left radical activist or some loser living in his parents’ basement with way too much time on his hands. No, this time it was from a Democrat running to be the chief law enforcement officer in the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Racing to apologize for the evident darkness of his soul, Jones said, “Reading back those words made me sick to my stomach. I am embarrassed, ashamed, and sorry.” But the toothpaste is already out of the tube. For leftists who argue that the homicidal fantasy of Mr. Jones was some sort of one-off, or a spasm of unrepresentative emotion, The Virginia Scope added to the narrative by reporting that Coyner recalled a 2020 phone call with Jones in which he said, “if a few police officers died, then maybe they would stop killing people.” Jones has denied making the remarks. Of course he has, since there is no transcript from the call.
Virginia’s two Democratic senators, among many others, failed to react the way any normal, healthy person would expect, which would be along the lines of “obviously he should drop out of the race.” But Tim Kaine explained away the disgusting remarks, saying he is “still a supporter” of his fellow Democrat. Kaine said, “Jay has apologized,” as if that amounts to anything more than a hill of beans. Kaine continued, “[T]he statements that [Jones] made were indefensible, but I’ve known Jay Jones for 25 years, and I think those statements were not in character.” When Kaine’s colleague, Sen. Mark Warner, was asked point-blank about the situation by a reporter, he pretended not to hear the question and remained mute on the subject.
Then there is the woman who seeks to become the next governor of Virginia, Abigail Spanberger, who has exhorted supporters at her campaign events to “let your rage fuel you.” And you wonder why three assassins have taken aim at President Trump, Charlie Kirk, and, most recently, an ICE facility in Texas, while prominent Democrats, led by Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and California Gov. Gavin Newsom, defend the rights of criminal aliens and call ICE agents the Gestapo. Like her state’s two senators, Spanberger claims she expressed to Jones her “disgust” at his remarks, but has refused to distance herself from the AG candidate running on her ticket.
“Democrats should not tolerate Jones’s call for violence. Spanberger should cut him loose,” Democratic strategist Brad Bannon told The Washington Post. “My party would be hypocritical if they criticize Trump’s violent threats but tolerate rhetoric like that from one of our own.” But others, including the Democratic leader in Virginia, are dug in, using the opportunity to take another swipe at the president: “There’s no way [Republicans] can take the moral high ground when they have Donald Trump sitting in the Oval Office,” Lamont Bagby, the chairman of the Democratic Party of Virginia, said. “Jay Jones will be our candidate, and he will win.”
As of now, not a single prominent Democrat, even in Virginia, has called for Jones to leave the race. The president of the Democratic Attorneys General Association, Sean Rankin, called Jones’ texts “reckless and unacceptable” but said in a statement that “on balance” he is a better choice than his GOP opponent. The Democratic National Committee and the Democratic Governors Association refused even to comment, hoping this scandal would just go away.
But since this story has now garnered national headlines, it cannot be thrown down a memory hole with less than a month to go before Election Day. Trump called Jones’ comments “SICK and DEMENTED,” and a White House spokesman on Tuesday said Democrats are trying to “buck accountability … by attacking the President who’s been the victim of multiple assassination attempts isn’t convincing anyone.” With early voting underway in Virginia, and some 300,000 votes already cast with Jones’ name printed on the ballot, Democrats are now left squarely between a rock and a hard place. Does he stay or does he go? Either answer means trouble in a race that has suddenly become nationalized and will undoubtedly boost the prospects of Jones’ incumbent opponent, Jason Miyares, as well as GOP gubernatorial nominee Winsome Earle-Sears.
There is a deep sickness on the left, a profound derangement replete with violent actions and threatening rhetoric. In what world can a man like Jay Jones continue to seek the high office of attorney general for an entire state? If resignation from a race were ever a slam-dunk decision, it would be as soon as such a vile message was unearthed. And yet, incredibly, most Democrats continue to support the candidacy of Mr. Jones. As has so often been the case of late, leftists have no answers to offer for their latest iteration of violent, hate-filled rhetoric beyond attempting to minimize the indefensible remarks of one of their own. They have made the bed and now must sleep in it.