Just when you think you’ve seen everything in our current political scene, something else happens to push the limits even further.
So, with only days before Election Day, Virginia attorney general challenger Jay Jones is trailing incumbent Jason Miyares by about 5 percentage points after sending texts more suited for an unbalanced felon than the state’s top law enforcement official.
Seemingly inhabiting an out-of-touch Bizarro World, Virginians confidently supporting Jones have raised serious public safety concerns among those still on Earth by prioritizing party loyalty over morality and politics over common sense.
Shocking to say the least, in texts mistakenly sent to Republican State Delegate Carrie Coyner in 2022, Jones called for violence against political rival Virginia State Speaker Todd Gilbert and his family.
Labeling Gilbert as “that POS,” he fantasized, “Three people, two bullets Gilbert, hitler, and pol pot Gilbert gets two bullets to the head Spoiler: put Gilbert in the crew with the two worst people you know and he receives both bullets every time”
Apparently not satisfied with venting such hatred, Jones also texted that if Gilbert and another political rival “die before me, I will go to their funerals to piss on their graves … send them out awash in something.”
But that’s not all. According to a source familiar with Jones’ follow-up call to Coyner, he verbally exaggerated his earlier texts, including even more disturbing comments.
As such, in apparently referencing violence against Gilbert’s children, Jones allegedly said that public policy only changes when policymakers feel pain themselves, such as felt by parents when their children die from gun violence.
And that reprehensible remark was followed by this observation: “I mean do I think Todd and [Gilbert’s wife] Jennifer are evil? And that they’re breeding little fascists? Yes.”
Initially denying his incriminating texts, Jones later expressed remorse for his comments. However, in his only public debate with Miyares, he tried to deflect attention from his offensive statements by labeling his vile messaging as merely “mistakes” and pivoting from his own behavior by condemning progressives’ most frequently cited source of evil, President Donald Trump.
But Jones’ comments were not simply “mistakes.” Mistakes include choosing an unappetizing meal at a restaurant, misplacing car keys, or prematurely selling stocks in a bull market.
Moreover, shifting attention from one’s appalling comments to someone else’s behavior is like an unruly elementary schooler pointing a finger elsewhere when criticized for misbehaving.
Jones’ comments go far beyond “mistakes” and are hardly more acceptable given even questionable behaviors by others.
His remarks reveal his shamefully disturbing thoughts that should unquestionably disqualify him from all consideration for elective office, even less so for possibly becoming Virginia’s next attorney general.
It’s more than disturbing enough to internalize the hateful thoughts Jones expressed. But verbalizing them raises his thoughts from private musings into a likely blueprint for who he really is.
Equally alarming is the near-total lack of resistance against Jones within his own party.
With the election fast approaching, as many as 45 percent of voters still back his candidacy or play word games to spinelessly hide their support.
And some Democratic politicians have also gone conveniently blind to Jones’ outrageous behavior.
Most notably, Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine stated that while Jones’ comments were “indefensible,” he is “still a supporter.”
The senator also claimed that since “I’ve known Jay Jones for 25 years,” his comments “were not in character.”
But if Jones’s texts were so “indefensible,” how could Kaine still be a supporter? And besides, since Jones is currently 36, is Kaine seriously claiming he’s known him since sixth grade?
Still another prominent Democrat side-stepping Jones’ “indefensible” comments is former Virginia Rep. Abigail Spanberger, currently leading in the polls to become Virginia’s next governor.
During a recent debate against her gubernatorial opponent, when asked whether she still endorsed Jones’ candidacy, she shamefully refused to rescind her support, offering an obvious smokescreen that it was up to voters to decide.
But if Jones’ Bizarro World candidacy wasn’t shocking enough, less than four years ago, he was also convicted of reckless driving.
But that offense was not “merely” a minor incident involving some live-forever adolescent. At the time of his arrest, he was 32 and clocked at 116 mph.
And although Virginia mandates a one-year jail sentence for such infractions, Jones struck a deal that included community service, serving at least half of that time “working” at his own Political Action Committee. Nice to have friends in high places.
In all fairness, Republicans can also occasionally exhibit unconditional acceptance of their candidates as a matter of lesser evil political expediency.
Yet there is no example of large numbers of conservatives supporting a candidate calling for the murder of political rivals and their children.
Honestly, there are no other examples of Democrats doing that either. Yet, with less than a week before the election, the idea that their candidate for Virginia’s attorney general could still win seems more like science fiction than reality television. So absurd, in fact, that if it were a Hollywood script, it would instantly be rejected.
So, at a time when politically motivated violence is increasing, party interests that prioritize winning at all costs must be sacrificed for the common good.
Doing less is to turn blind faith supporters of candidates calling for such disorder into unindicted co-conspirators in the Bizarro World horror that will surely follow.
The views expressed in this opinion article are those of their author and are not necessarily either shared or endorsed by the owners of this website. If you are interested in contributing an Op-Ed to The Western Journal, you can learn about our submission guidelines and process here.
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