See below for a very interesting Facebook post, coming from far-right VA Del. Tim Anderson (h/t to Brandon Jarvis for noticing this post and tweeting about it!; and for more on Anderson, see Video: Far-Right VA Del. Tim Anderson (R) Urges Parents “All Over Virginia” to Go to Court to Decide Which Books Children Should Have Access To; Cites “Gender Queer,” “A Court of Mist and Fury,” “Handmaid’s Tale,” etc.; “You Would Not Want to Vote For” “Disrespectful, Offensive, Contemptuous” Tim Anderson, Would You? Re-Elect Democrat Nancy Guy Instead!; etc.), a close ally of Trump-worshipping/MAGA-all-the-way VA State Senator Amanda Chase (R) and someone who I never would have thought would break with Trump. As National Review puts it:
Lest you think Anderson is some sort of knee-jerk NeverTrump RINO, he is just about the last state lawmaker you would expect publicly to declare it’s time for Republicans to move on from Trump. Here’s how the Norfolk-based Virginian Pilot described him in June 2021:
Tim Anderson, a criminal defense attorney who lives in Virginia Beach, doesn’t run from controversy. He sprints toward it, not only relishing the fight, but the media attention that comes with it.
It’s impossible to ignore that many of Anderson’s political melees involve race, undoubtedly the reason that Anderson, who is white, has been branded as an outspoken Trump Republican.
…Anderson found ways to be memorable. In a May Facebook video, he used a long-range fire torch to shoot flames at a sign listing what he considered the Democrats’ agenda. He now sells the fire torches on his gun shop website.
So yeah, this “outspoken Trump Republican” now says that he “will not be supporting” Trump if he runs for president again — not of course because Trump is a fascist, sociopath, criminal, etc., but because “One thing Trump does very well in Virginia is mobilizing the left to vote against him and anyone who supports him.” Which, of course, is true now, and also was true in 2017, 2018 and 2019, when Democrats rode an intense anti-Trump wave to a “trifecta” here in Virginia and to victories all over the country. So now, apparently, after the supposed “red wave” fizzled badly in the 2022 midterm elections, and with elections next year for the entire Virginia General Assembly (including Tim Anderson’s seat in a solidly Republican district), Anderson apparently has had enough of Trump.
P.S. By the way, it’s interesting to see how people are reacting to Anderson’s Facebook post. Right now, the top-rated comment seems to be this one: “It doesn’t matter who the Republican nominee is. The media and the Democrats will demonize them to the nth degree. I will support the Republican nominee no matter who it is.” Then “There needs to be an effort to clean up voter rolls in Virginia. Stop early voting. Secure Virginia elections. Paper ballots. That would be a good start.” And “Support him or not … like him or not … if trump runs, he will be the republican nominee.” But then there’s also this – “I completely agree Tim. DeSantis has proven he can be a true leader and not throw food at the table. We need him or someone like him for the future. Trump did some miraculous things for the time. But his ship has sailed.” So we’ll see, but maybe at some point, maybe even soon, at least SOME Trump/MAGA Republicans might be ready to move on to Ron DeSantis (who is no better than Trump, by the way) or whatever other authoritarian sociopath Republicans come up with?
The Trump effect on Virginia – let me explain.
While it appears likely Trump will announce he is running for President – I will not be supporting him.
While Trump was President, we lost a supermajority in the House of Delegates, a majority in the Senate and in 2019 Democrats controlled all state government for 2 years – radically changing Virginia. After Trump lost, the GOP gained Delegate seats back and won all 3 statewide offices. I call this the Trump effect. One thing Trump does very well in Virginia is mobilizing the left to vote against him and anyone who supports him.
I care about Virginia more than anything. Trump running for President is the absolute worst thing that can happen to Virginia state politics. We must take a different direction and the Virginia GOP and Republicans must divorce from Trump – for the sake of Virginia and for the sake of the nation.
I am going to take the first step and say these things publicly that I know many of my colleagues think. It’s a new day. It’s time to move on.
Democrats held seats in the 7th and 10th this year because voters would rather the country be on fire than vote for Trump’s party. Never again.
Like Trump, Love Trump or Hate Trump – if you care about Virginia and conservative values – we must all move in a different direction.
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