With Just 19 Days Until Youngkin’s (Mercifully) No Longer Governor, Here Are Ten Examples of the “Mainstream” Political Media’s Whitewashing, Sanewashing, Stenography, etc. of this Supposed “Moderate” Non-Trumpian Republican

With just 19 days until Glenn Youngkin’s pathetic failure of a governorship comes to an end.  Of course, part of the reason Youngkin even HAD a governorship to begin with is that the media has relentlessly whitewashed/sanewashed him, acted as his stenographer, wishcasted super hard that he’d be the “moderate”/”suburban dad” Republican they want SO badly, etc. As for hard-hitting looks at Youngkin’s increasing right-wing radicalization, his embrace of MAGA and alliance with Trump, etc., we got…well, not much on those fronts from the more-concerned-with-maintaining-access-and-terrified-of-upsetting-the-right-wing political “journalists” out there.

So unfortunately, there are innumerable examples of pathetic, lame, weak, stenographic, etc. “reporting” on Youngkin. But just to give a flavor for what we dealt with the past 4+ years, here are some of the absolute worst – most fawning, most credulous, most cowardly, most dishonest, etc. – articles on Youngkin.

1. 1. 1. Molly Ball Pens the Most Pathetically Bad Article Ever Written About Glenn Youngkin? (7/1/22).  As Kindler wrote at the time: “I can’t remember the last time I saw a reporter work so hard to brown-nose a politician and whitewash his record. This isn’t journalism, it’s a campaign brochure. What job in the Youngkin White House are you angling for, @mollyesque?” And as I wrote at the time: “Really bad/embarrassing article, from the title (Youngkin’s been educated??? how so???) to bizarre/at-best-premature claims like “Youngkin’s ‘tip line’ has not led to a new era of teacher McCarthyism”). What on earth is this?”
      2. Three Front-Page WaPo Stories on the VA Governor’s Race…and They All SUCK (Hell, They Even Describe Youngkin as a “6 foot 5 Mystery Date” – WTF???) (10/9/21). The comments on these WaPo articles were brutal, and deservedly so. But first, as I wrote at the time: “Appallingly bad “reporting” by the WaPo. In fact, we know a LOT about Youngkin’s hard-right positions on almost every issue…but apparently this reporter has paid zero attention, preferring to describe Youngkin as a “6 foot 5 Mystery Date” (WTF???).” And as the WaPo comments said: ““How much did Youngkin pay for this whitewash job?” and “What is this? A campaign ad for Youngkin, WAPO?” Just abysmallly bad “journalism” at the Bezos Post, which has only gotten a lot worse since then, sad to say. Yeah, definitely time to cancel your subscription, if you haven’t done so already.
      3. When It Comes to Glenn Youngkin, the Political Media Keeps Failing Us BADLY: Axios Flat-Out Lies About Who Youngkin’s Campaigning For; The Hill Calls Racist/Extremist Paul LePage “Controversial” for Using “Racially Charged” Rhetoric; etc. (9/5/22). As I wrote at the time, this was Axios just flat-out and WILDLY lying, claiming that Youngkin is supposedly “bypassing MAGA-oriented gubernatorial candidates in favor of pragmatists running tough races in blue states.” Again, this is a wild lie, as Youngkin is actually campaigning for serious, far-right extremists like Tudor Dixon in Michigan, Paul LePage in Maine, Heidi Ganahl in Colorado, Joe Lombardo in Nevada, etc, etc.
      4. As Youngkin Spews Out Lies and Right-Wing Blather in Georgia, CNN and the WaPo Treat It All as a Big Game, Whitewash It, Fail to Do Their Jobs as Journalists (9/28/22). As I wrote at the time:  I’m not going to even link to this trash, but suffice it to say that the headlines of these puff pieces/whitewash jobs are: “Youngkin is ‘hugging everyone’ as he tries to build a brand as the GOP’s great unifier” (CNN) and “Glenn Youngkin hosts donor retreat amid presidential speculation” (WaPo), and they both treat Youngkin as a “national star with a great future” (quoting, of all people, fascist Newt Gingrich) who “has become a conservative-movement hero in the fights over the teaching of racial and gender identity concepts in Virginia’s public school” (WTF???), and who very well could be of “presidential timber” (again – WTF???). Minimal if any skepticism, let alone substantive reporting, is apparent in either of these sorry excuses for “journalism.”
      5. IL Governor’s Chief of Staff Says Karen Tumulty’s WaPo Op-Ed Arguing Youngkin’s a “Sane” Republican Is “one of many reasons democracy is in such peril” (7/3/22). Tumulty mostly retracted this a few months later. But in July 2022, she actually argued, “Why Glenn Youngkin — or someone like him — must run in 2024.” As JB Pritzker’s Chief of Staff, Anna Caprara, wrote at the time: “This take – and others like it – is one of many reasons democracy is in such peril. The idea that Glenn Youngkin – 15-week abortion ban, teacher tip line, CRT hysteria pushing Youngkin – is somehow a ‘sane Republican’ is ludicrous.” Also: “Voters didn’t believe Youngkin would be a far right Governor because the press told them he wouldn’t be a far right governor! And guess what – he’s a far right governor! Guy just vowed to sign any abortion ban that comes to his desk!”
      6. Full Transcript of CNN’s “Town Hall” with Glenn Youngkin, Which Failed (as 100% Expected) to Press Him on a Wide Range of Important Issues (3/10/23). This isn’t a “mainstream media” article, but instead a CNN “Town Hall,” with the egregiously bad Jake Tapper completely failing to press Glenn Youngkin on his crap, let alone to correct Youngkin’s slippery and dishonest blather. So what was the point, exactly, of giving him a national platform to a pathological liar like Youngkin to spew his lies (as MediaMatters described it, “CNN gave Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin a town hall to spew right-wing talking points about education”)? Unfortunately, this is what Jake Tapper, CNN, and to a large extent the “mainstream” political media in this country does ALL THE TIME (just check out the Sunday morning shows if you want to see this in action) – namely, to invite on Republicans who spew out lie after lie, with no correction (or, at best, minimal correction) to viewers/listeners. The damage done by this uncritical amplification of right-wing LIES really can’t be overstated. And yet, if anything, the media keeps getting WORSE, not better, as they increasingly kowtow to Trump, get bought up by MAGA billionaires, etc. And yes, this is a huge part of the reason why our democracy is in such deep trouble right now.
      7. The strategists who made the ‘Youngkin Republican’ (11/5/21). Ryan Lizza (yes, this guy) did a supposed “Deep Dive” (BTW, that phrase really needs to be banned from journalism) on why Youngkin won in Virginia, by…yep, talking to “Youngkin campaign strategists Jeff Roe and Kristin Davison, and the mistakes they think McAuliffe’s campaign made.” Seriously? This is supposed to be journalism, uncritically amplifying what paid hacks for a Republican candidate have to say? I mean, I guess it would actually take more effort for “journalists” to scrutinize the claims made by right-wing operatives, rather than just laundering them, regurgitating them, etc. But is that actually what a journalist is supposed to do? If so, then what’s the added value of being a journalist? Seems like major NEGATIVE value to me, to pass on lies, disinformation, propaganda, etc. without  even identifying it as such.
      8. Youngkin proves a post-Trump model for a GOP resurgence. (If Trump will allow it.) (11/8/21). I like Bob Lewis personally, and he writes some excellent stuff, but…uhhh…what on earth was this article exactly? First of all, remember that Virginia has gone opposite of the party in the White House, with one exception, since 1973, so it’s not exactly surprising that Youngkin won the governor’s race (albeit only by 2 points) when a Democrat – Joe Biden – was in the White House, and with a low approval rating to boot. Yet, according to Bob Lewis, the election supposedly that “Democrats have proved ineffectual at best, disconnected from a huge swath of American society.” Wuuuut? Beyond that, Lewis quotes the former VA GOP executive director, who characterized Youngkin as “Atticus Finch” (lol, not even close!); argued “Youngkin ran a superb campaign” (by “superb,” he glosses over Youngkin’s fear mongering, lies, demagoguery, etc, etc.) and that, supposedly, Youngkin “calmly deflected Democrats’ ceaseless efforts to tie him to Trump” while “refocusing his message on proposals to boost school funding and cutting the state’s grocery and gasoline taxes as food and fuel prices spiked.” I mean…did we watch the same campaign? At all? Because that’s not even close to how most Virginia Democrats, or even neutral observers, would probably characterize what Youngkin did in that campaign. But…yeah, this piece  epitomizes so much wrong with the political press in this country, it’s hard to even know where to start. Ugh.
      9. Youngkin touts Virginia record in Iowa, land of presidential hope (7/18/25). This article in the WaPo is classic stenography, mostly just types what Youngkin says and presents it, uncritically, to readers. The article adds, “Youngkin drew two standing ovations and repeated applause as he told the familiar-to-Virginians story of his unlikely decision to run for governor after a career as a business executive.” And then there’s this paragraph of hagiography: “In Iowa on Thursday night, Youngkin spent about half an hour taking chat-style questions from Kaufmann, telling the story of his election and time in office as a well-honed narrative that seemed to strike a deep chord with his audience. Inspired by his mother, a nurse, to serve others; called by God to quit his corporate job and run for office at a time when Republicans had not won statewide in Virginia in a dozen years; seizing on the grievances of parents who were tired of pandemic-related school shutdowns; winning in a Virginia that he depicts as so blue it seems to almost be California.” So…yeah, ok, sure. Then the article has several quotes from conservatives who think Youngkin’s AMAZING, how Youngkin “inspired me tonight,” etc. Oh, and the article claims, “Youngkin’s emphasis on parental and K-12 school issues set a culture-war template for Republicans to run on around the country over the next few years.” Again…yeah, ok, sure. Anyway, enough of this crap-masquerading-as-journalism. I’ll just leave this item with the top-rated comment on this article, which says it very well: “[Youngkin]’s got as much chance to be the Republican nominee for president as AOC does and she’s not a Republican. He got elected as part of the CRT scam and has laid waste to Virginia for four years. He’s a GQP member, and there’s been a huge backlash against them since the orange autocrat took office. He’s just another delusional politician with no link to reality.”
      10. Glenn Youngkin’s Journey From the Heights of Finance to the Top Tier of G.O.P. Politics (11/3/21). This NY Times piece exemplifies much of the “mainstream” political media’s coverage of Youngkin the past four years, enthusiastically boosting him as the supposed “newest star of the Republican Party, whose campaign will be reverse-engineered for its lessons by both parties”; a supposed “natural campaigner” who “did not fit the former president’s bullying, self-aggrandizing profile”; etc. Also, of course, the “mainstream” political media immediately jumped to talk of Youngkin as a potential presidential candidate, “a contender within his party nationally if its voters decide they are ready to move on from Mr. Trump and Trumpism.”

So, again, these are just ten *examples* of “mainstream” political media coverage of Glenn Youngkin the past four years. The main point is that the “mainstream” political media mostly just bought Youngkin’s bulls*** (sweater-vest, not Trump-like,  a “normie”/”sane”/”moderate” Republican, etc.); really appeared to believe that Youngkin had unlocked some sort of secret political code (as opposed to just following a half-century pattern in Virginia of the governor’s race going opposite of the party in the White House, with one exception – Terry McAuliffe narrowly over far-right extremist Ken Cuccinelli in 2013); didn’t call out Youngkin for his incessant, pathological lying; mostly acted as  uncritical stenographers; pumped Youngkin up for president (or VP) in 2024 or 2028; etc. In the end, is any of that really what the political news media should be doing, and does any of it benefit our democracy in any way? Seems like the obvious answers to those two questions are NO and NO, but the “mainstream” political media apparently views things quite differently…