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glenn youngkin
'Boot-Licking Trump Sycophant' Youngkin Dodges Question on National Guard Threat
"This is the textbook definition of 'gaslighting' by Glenn Youngkin," said a progressive Virginia organization.
Oct 15, 2024
The Virginia Democratic Party said Tuesday that Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin—long promoted in the political press as a "moderate" alternative to the far-right MAGA movement—had made clear he was a "disgrace to our commonwealth" in an interview regarding GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump's recent threat to deploy the U.S. military against his political opponents.
CNN anchor Jake Tapper on Monday evening confronted the governor with Trump's comments in an interview broadcast on Sunday in which the former president toldFox News' Maria Bartiromo that he was concerned about violence from "the enemy within" on Election Day.
"We have some very bad people, we have some sick people, radical left lunatics," Trump said in a clip played by Tapper on CNN. "And it should be very easily handled by, if necessary, by National Guard, or if really necessary, by the military."
He later pointed to U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), who helped lead the prosecution during Trump's first impeachment trial, as one of the "lunatics that we have inside."
"Is that something that you support?" Tapper asked Youngkin.
Youngkin repeatedly dodged Tapper's direct question, instead focusing on immigration and claiming the CNN anchor was "misinterpreting and misrepresenting" Trump's words, which he said were related to the former president's views on undocumented immigrants.
"I'm literally reading his quotes," said Tapper. "I'm literally reading his quotes to you and I played them earlier so you could hear that they were not made up by me."
The governor didn't budge from his message, repeatedly claiming that Tapper had taken "little snippets" from what Trump had said and created "a big narrative" out of the comments. He did not answer Tapper's question about whether he would support deploying the National Guard on Election Day.
"This is the textbook definition of 'gaslighting' by Glenn Youngkin... Insane. And EVIL," said progressive Virginia-based news outlet Blue Virginia. "Youngkin is an eternal disgrace to Virginia—worst governor ever, betrayer of our democracy, boot-licking Trump sycophant."
Independent journalist Eric Michael Garcia said the interview presented the latest evidence that Youngkin—who rose to his state's highest office after campaigning against the teaching of accurate U.S. history, including the history of racial injustice, in public schools—is not the "upbeat Post-Trump alternative" his supporters claim he is.
The interview aired around the time that Mark Esper, Trump's former defense secretary, urged CNN viewers to take seriously the GOP presidential nominee's threat to deploy the military on Election Day.
"I saw over the summer of 2020 where President Trump and those around him wanted to use the National Guard in various capacities in cities such as Chicago and Portland and Seattle," Esper toldCNN's Kaitlan Collins, referring to Trump's response when the police killing of George Floyd sparked racial justice protests. "So that's what equally concerns me about his comment would be the use of the military in these types of things."
At a rally in Green Bay, Wisconsin on Monday, Democratic vice presidential nominee Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota also addressed Trump's threat, telling the audience, "He's talking about you."
"We'll let the lawyers decide if what he said was treason, but what I know is it's a call for violence, plain and simple," said Walz. "If anyone wants to pretend that this is a normal conversation that Donald Trump is having, just dispel that."
After Youngkin refused to say that as a governor, he would oppose mobilizing the military against Trump opponents, progressive strategist Murshed Zaheed said that "every reporter should be asking every Republican governor whether they will call the National Guard to help Trump target his enemies."
"Would love to get answers to this question from governors of Georgia, Nevada, Ohio, etc.," he said, referring to several battleground states.
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Potomac Yard: A Rare Victory of People Power Over Stadium Socialism
The citizens and taxpayers of Virginia handed an ignominious defeat to the combined forces of corporate bread-and-circuses and the real estate-development complex.
Apr 10, 2024
It seems as if there is nothing but bad news these days, from the butchery in the Middle East and Ukraine to the constitutional butchery in the Supreme Court. All the more reason to celebrate an uncommon triumph: Somehow, the citizens and taxpayers of Virginia handed an ignominious defeat to the combined forces of corporate bread-and-circuses and the real estate-development complex. The $2-billion Potomac Yard arena boondoggle is dead.
In December, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, once thought to be presidential timber (meaning: He is a reactionary troglodyte, but a mediagenic one) announced a deal he had secretly concocted with Ted Leonsis, owner of the Washington Capitals and Wizards. The scheme was to build a sports arena at Potomac Yard, once a railroad switching facility but now mainly distinguished by a strip mall and auto body shops. But that’s not all: Over 7 million square feet of the surrounding area would be developed into an entertainment district. It would supposedly create 30,000 jobs and $12 billion in economic activity.
There was just one little hitch. The citizens of Alexandria were almost unanimously opposed because Northern Virginia’s traffic, already some of the worst in the country, would become epically awful. And many Virginians were dismayed that $2 billion worth of bonds would be issued in their names, leaving them on the hook for issuance fees and 40 years of debt service—all to subsidize a billionaire mogul.
A stand of trees just might be healthier for a community than the umpteenth corporate-franchised sports bar with its focus group-choreographed “hometown” atmosphere.
Once the plan came under scrutiny, the opposition only grew. Over the last year, Alexandria’s unemployment rate varied between 2.2-2.5%. The very populous Fairfax County, which wraps around much of Alexandria, has had unemployment of 2.3%. Considering the baseline level of people changing jobs, this is essentially full employment; does the area really need 30,000 likely low-paid service jobs in an already crowded metro area?
As is usual for stadium and arena projects, a consulting firm was hired to manufacture highly optimistic economic scenarios based on assumptions that never pan out. Revenues would pay back the bonds—but predicated on $75 parking and $730 a night stays in the hotels that would be built. We still don’t know at what eyewatering level the ticket prices would be. And the arena was projected to support 221 events a year—an impossible prediction to substantiate over four decades because of potential pandemics or other disruptions, or simply declining attendance once the novelty effect wore off.
Youngkin attempted to steamroll the scheme through the Virginia General Assembly with no changes. It was his way or the highway, and disgracefully, a number of Democratic officeholders were willing to accommodate him (this shortly after Youngkin appeared at a Trump rally and proclaimed that Democrats won’t defend America). It took Louise Lucas, an 80-year-old Black state senator and chair of the Senate appropriations committee, to bring the plan to a halt. Flipping the script on Republicans who hypocritically tout their fiscal conservatism, she said that the deal could endanger Virginia’s AAA bond rating.
The entire fiasco was an example of the American ethos at its worst. Professional sports team owners attempting to feed at the public trough while big-footing a community; local developers circling like a school of hungry barracudas; elected officials either dazzled by the faux-glamor of professional sports (it is said that all politicians are suckers for Hollywood actors and jocks) or hoping to land a lucrative gig on a redevelopment corporation’s board once they leave office; deceit in planning estimates (this article is an admirable deconstruction of the economic implications of government subsidized stadiums, which usually amount to “heads I win; tails you lose”).
Unfortunately, there are also millions of Americans who would die on the barricades to resist socialism as represented by single-payer healthcare or public transit; House Republicans are already making noises about not funding the reconstruction of Baltimore’s Key Bridge. But when it is “stadium socialism,” they become like the proletarian mob of ancient Rome, grateful to the emperor for bestowing a mindless amusement on them—at their own expense (at least the Roman games were free to spectators).
Stadium socialism and $700-per-night hotel suites are the exact opposite of quality-of-life enhancements that could be achieved at a fraction of the cost. Traffic mitigation and better public transportation; walkable neighborhoods on a human scale rather than alienating steel and glass canyons; green spaces for recreation, something desperately needed in crowded metro areas. A stand of trees just might be healthier for a community than the umpteenth corporate-franchised sports bar with its focus group-choreographed “hometown” atmosphere.
Potomac Yard could certainly use such upgrading rather than building a sports mausoleum; the Washington Metro region already has an “entertainment center” masquerading as a town at National Harbor, complete with the mandatory MGM casino to draw the suckers. It fairly oozes a sterile, vacuous atmosphere that makes it the perfect venue for the annual CPAC freak-fest.
Cities and counties could plan and zone for such quality-of-life improvements, but they do not generate enormous windfalls for developers and political contributions for elected officials. The website of my own county district supervisor—a Democrat—says in bold letters, “Development and land use are very important to the growth of the Mount Vernon District in coming years.” Note that it says “growth” rather than “quality of life.” Growth for its own sake is like metastatic cancer, a pathological condition.
No doubt for every victory like Potomac Yard, a dozen major monstrosities will sail through. But not only did it prove that a vigilant citizenry can make a difference, it was also a two-fer: Glenn Youngkin’s future political viability as a Reaganesque Trump may have taken a fatal hit.
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Tuesday's Election Results Show Women Will Fight for Abortion Rights
Women don't want men making laws getting between us, our families, and our doctors.
Nov 12, 2023
It is clear that the Dobbs decision by the Supreme Court caught the Republicans completely off guard, even though they have been working to take away the rights of women since before they killed the Equal Rights Amendment.
The right must have thought that stealing the basic rights to bodily autonomy and to determining the size of one's own family would be upsetting at first, but then we would all get over it. The pundits always say that Americans have a short span of attention, especially when it comes to politics, so it appears that the forced birthers didn't have a clue about the buzz saw they were about to confront.
The discussion of abortion has shifted greatly from the pre- Dobbs days. It is standard now, unless you are a fan of Fox and its ilk, to hear abortion referred to as "abortion healthcare." In fact, the media now tells us that abortion is a part of the many procedures used by doctors and midwives to keep women healthy. Some of the heartbreaking cases of doctors being unable or unwilling to do their jobs have resulted in permanent damage to the women who were denied care—whether it is being unable to have more children because of the damage done to the reproductive organs, or people who have to go through unbearable suffering when they could be resting, recovering, and taking care of their lives.
It is hard to imagine that these mostly white, buttoned up men think that the women of 2023—who either lived the explosion of feminism or have raised daughters with the feminist awareness of the past 50 years—will be persuaded, bribed, or forced into accepting their intervention into the most basic aspects of our lives.
A woman described her torment waiting for her sepsis to become life threatening so she could be treated for a fetus that had no chance of survival. Another woman who was so thrilled to get pregnant, only to learn that her fetus was not viable and she had to stay pregnant for months until she birthed a child who would suffer for a few days before passing away. The real fanatics want to deny women with cancer the chance to live, since often the drugs will damage a fetus.
Unlike 50 years ago, when the abortionist was forced to work in a back alley or underground and most people were secret about having the procedure, dozens of brave women have opened up and discussed their worst moments in order to prevent others from having to face the same horrors. These stories are magnified many times over on social media.
In Ohio, the voters recalled the spectacle of the poor 10 year old, impregnated by rape, who had to travel out of state in the miserable no-exception land that Ohio has been. In Kentucky, Andrew Beshear was reelected to his seat as governor with the help of a brave young woman who addressed the Republican in the race directly, telling him about her experience as a victim of incest at age 12. The deplorable Glenn Youngkin thought he was real smart when he told Virginia voters that he had the solution for all this abortion talk: the 15-week ban with exceptions for rape and incest. We all agree on this, right? Not so fast.
The voting earlier this week showed us something very interesting: Women don't want men making laws getting between us, our families, and our doctors. The vast majority of this country does not want Republican men deciding that six weeks is the cutoff for treatment, or 12 weeks, or, Mr. Youngkin, 15 weeks. The numbers don't lie: Women and those who love them say NO. Taking away a human right that most of us felt was secure will not be compromised away.
After a long string of not-even-close defeats, the Republicans, who are loathe to compromise on anything, suddenly are talking about the need to come to "common ground." It is hard to imagine that these mostly white, buttoned up men think that the women of 2023—who either lived the explosion of feminism or have raised daughters with the feminist awareness of the past 50 years—will be persuaded, bribed, or forced into accepting their intervention into the most basic aspects of our lives. Fifty years ago, women were not all in the workforce. In 2023, those who are trying to force women to give birth also fight tooth and nail against expanded Medicare, family medical leave, and any other programs helping women and families.
The level of delusion is remarkable: In Ohio, the tremendous margin of passage for the constitutional amendment enshrining abortion, birth control, and other good things into the state constitution did not seem to percolate down to the state legislature. The day after the vote, these guys are already trying to find ways to circumvent the will of the people. As Rick Santorum brilliantly deduced from the referendum "pure democracies aren't how to run a country."
Millions of women came out for the Women's March after the disaster that was the 2016 election. We did not disappear. We were waiting for the right opportunity, and after Trump-appointed justices gave us the Dobbs decision, now is the time. Women are not going back to being chattels.
And Republicans think their problem is messaging!
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