UPDATE 10/13: See below for a press release from DPVA…
Fox News Catches Sears in an Outright Lie About Virginia’s Unemployment Rising Under Her Watch
Sears: “Actually, unemployment is down”
Shannon Bream: “Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics […] [shows] that when you took office, there was a 2.7% unemployment rate and that it’s now 3.6.”
VIRGINIA – In an interview on FOX News Sunday, Winsome Earle-Sears was caught in an outright lie about Virginia’s unemployment rate claiming “unemployment is down.” Fox host Shannon Bream then pointed out that data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows the unemployment rate increasing from 2.7% to 3.6% while Sears has been Lt Governor. This year, unemployment in Virginia rose for seven straight months – the longest stretch since the 2008 Great Recession.
Transcript:
- Shannon Bream: So let’s talk about the employment situation here in Virginia, because, the truth is, a lot of jobs [inaudible] live in Northern Virginia and throughout the Commonwealth. They’ve lost their jobs because of DOGE and other cutting. Your opponent has pointed to that. She said this, that my opponent, Winsome Earle-Sears, has defended Trump’s firing of Virginia workers at every turn. She says you don’t take the economic consequences of DOGE and what President Trump is doing seriously. And she points out unemployment is up under the Youngkin-Sears administration. So how do you answer that?
- Winsome Earle-Sears: Actually, unemployment is down. […]
- Bream: She does point to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which we hope is going to be non-partisan and neutral, showing that when you took office, there was a 2.7% unemployment rate and that it’s now 3.6. Do you quibble with the data?
- Sears: Well, what I’m telling you is that we’re creating jobs.[..] So how is it possible that, you know, we have to figure out what is the data? What are they measuring? I don’t know. I don’t know where they’re getting their stats from. I haven’t seen what your stats look like.
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See below for some clips (courtesy of the amazing Aaron Rupar!) of Winsome Earle-Sears’ debacle of an interview this morning on Fox “News” (in air quotes, because obviously it’s not news). It’s pretty bad when even a right-wing-friendly, Trump-loving network like Fox “News” brutally fact checks Earle-Sears on one of her biggest lies (that, supposedly, “unemployment is down” under the Youngkin/Earle-Sears administration). In fact, as the Fox “News” fact check points out, Virginia’s unemployment rate is UP since Youngkin/Earle-Sears took office in January 2022, from 2.7% then to 3.6% in August (and rising). So…either Earle-Sears is just completely clueless about Virginia’s economic situation, or she’s just flat-out lying and assuming nobody will fact check her or take a minute to look up the correct numbers.
Also, see below for video of Earle-Sears saying: “We’re gonna keep working [for Trump’s endorsement]. Would I like the president’s endorsement? Of course I would. He’s doing really good things for America, all of the jobs he’s repatriating here.” That really says it all right there about Earle-Sears: a) she’s desperately seeking the endorsement of America’s by-far-worst-ever president; b) she flat-out lies that Trump is “doing really good things for America”; c) she flat-out lies again, claiming that Trump’s “repatriating” “all of the jobs.” WTF?
Last but not least, check out Earle-Sears talking callously and ignorantly/falsely about health care in Virginia:
“And so this is why I look at the politicians and what they’re doing and how dare they try to instill fear in Virginians? For example, the hospitals that are closing? They were closing long before the bill passed. And that’s because we are losing population in our rural areas. And you know, she latches on to this to say, well this equals that. It doesn’t. Her math doesn’t compute. And here’s the other thing. When it comes to the bill, all the bill is saying is you’re going to make Medicaid go back to its original purpose; if you’re able- bodied and you’re receiving Medicaid, then you must either…have 80 hours of work or 80 hours of volunteer service or 80 hours of training that you’re doing or some hybrid of all three of those. I know you work longer than 80 hours a month. I do. I know many people work longer than 80 hours. So why should you have Medicaid when you’re able-bodied? This is the taxpayers are paying for you…I know exactly that of which I speak.”
Just WTF is she babbling about? Almost every word of this is either completely false, largely false or distorted/delusional. On the “able-bodied” talking point, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF), in fact:
- “Most Medicaid adults under age 65 are working already, without a ‘work requirement.'”
- “Evidence shows Medicaid work and reporting requirements are confusing to enrollees and complex and costly for states to implement.”
- “Research shows access to affordable health insurance and care promotes individuals’ ability to obtain and maintain employment.”
The thing is, this isn’t just an isolated case of ignorance by Winsome Earle-Sears, as she’s like this on pretty much EVERY SUBJECT, including her embarrassingly clueless comments about wind and solar power, her lack of basic economic knowledge, etc. Why on earth would ANYONE want someone like this in charge of Virginia???
BREAM: You don’t have Trump’s endorsement. What does that mean?
WINSOME EARLE-SEARS: We’re gonna keep working. Would I like the president’s endorsement? Of course I would. He’s doing really good things for America, all of the jobs he’s repatriating here. pic.twitter.com/kTPiMusENH
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 12, 2025
