Former VA Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling, a conservative Republican and Trump voter, nails it on Winsome Earle-Sears’ rambling statement (see below) about the intra-GOP civil war over John Reid, Glenn Youngkin, etc. Bolling is confused, as are most of us, about what Earle-Sears is saying:
“I’m not really sure what this statement means…Does Winsome Sears support John Reid’s position? Does she reject the allegation that Reid had posted sexually explicit images of gay men on a Tumblr site? Will Winsome Sears campaisn along side John Reid? Will they make join appearances and run as a Republican team?”
And, Bolling states, “It is hard to measure the damage done by this unfortuante situation, but it is significant…It has also done significant damage to Governor Youngkin within the GOP.”
Great stuff if you’re a Virginia Democrat, of course, but not so much if you’re a Virginia Republican, given that the Republican ticket was already facing a major uphill battle given that Trump’s in the White House (and Virginia almost ALWAYS votes opposite for governor of the party in the White House), Trump’s VERY unpopular in Virginia, Abigail Spanberger is a super-strong candidate, etc. Plus, of course, this Republican ticket is either THE most extreme or second-most extreme in Virginia history, with the possible exception of the 2013 “Extreme Team” ticket of Ken Cuccinelli, EW Jackson and Mark Obenshain. And no, Virginia voters are almost certainly NOT going to go for that in November…
SEARS ISSUES STATEMENT ON JOHN REID
After days of waiting, Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle Sears has finally issued a statement on the John Reid controversy. This is her statement, verbatim:
“President Lincoln said, ‘A house divided against itself cannot stand.’ Those biblical words from Matthew 12:25 embody the positive mission of our campaign — to unite and inspire Virginians of all backgrounds. This week, focus on the lieutenant governor nominee distracted from that mission and cannot continue. John Reid is the Republican nominee for lieutenant governor. It is his race, and his decision alone to move forward. We all have our own race to run. I am going to continue to make the case to the people of Virginia that Abigail Spanberger will tear down all the successes we’ve made in Virginia. We cannot let that happen. Our campaign is focused on results, unity, and winning in November.”
Say what? I’m not really sure what this statement means.
Does Winsome Sears support Governor Youngkin’s position? Does she personally believe that John Reid should withdraw from the campaign?
Does Winsome Sears support John Reid’s position? Does she reject the allegation that Reid had posted sexually explicit images of gay men on a Tumblr site?
Will Winsome Sears campaisn along side John Reid? Will they make join appearances and run as a Republican team?
In parsing Ms. Sears statement, it appears as though she is acknowledging that Mr. Reid cannot be forced from the ticket, but otherwise trying to not take a position on the matter, vowing to run her own campaign, indpendent of Mr. Reid’s campaign.
Thus, the awkwardness of this situation continues.
At this point, we can only assume there are no other shoes to fall. That no one can prove that the Tumblr site in question was in fact John Reid’s site or that he posted inappropriate images to this site. Certainly, no one has provided positive proof to the contrary. Just implicaitons.
If that is the case, why not acknowledge that, rally behind Mr. Reid, and move forward as a turly united ticket?
It is hard to measure the damage done by this unfortuante situation, but it is significant.
It may have actually strengthened Mr. Reid’s support among his strongest allies. It certainly has boosted his name identification!
But it may have damaged Reid with the evangelical base of the Republican Party and voters in some rural parts of Virginia, where Republicans must run strong to have any chance of winning a statewide campaign.
It has also done significant damage to Governor Youngkin within the GOP, with many Reid supporters now publicly turning on the Governor, who they believe jumped the shark in calling for Reid to drop out of the campaign.
It’s still very early in this campaign, and perhaps it will all blow over in time, barring some further revelations. But it does not seem as though the sides are going to be able to bury the hatchet and emerge as a truly united front. That’s unfortunate, espeically if you are a Republican.
