Has there been any political scare campaign in recent memory as misdirected as the one waged against the now-governor of Virginia Glenn Youngkin?
Democrats portrayed him as an extremist who would be a puppet of Donald Trump. The Lincoln Project famously staged a fake gathering of “white nationalists” at one of his rallies. Seventeen prominent (or once-prominent) Republicans made a show of endorsing Youngkin’s Democratic opponent, Terry McAuliffe, because of the supposedly immense threat posed by Youngkin.
All of that hyperventilation . . . and we get this?
My fellow Virginians, the state of the Commonwealth is substantially better than it was a year ago. Together, we are going to accelerate our efforts to make Virginia the best place to live, work, and raise a family! pic.twitter.com/G037jwU2hc
— Glenn Youngkin (@GlennYoungkin) January 20, 2023
Cutting taxes, focusing on education, supporting law enforcement, being “open for business” — could it be any more normal?
“Let’s find the courage and the conviction to lock arms. Let’s find the courage and the conviction to do the work. And let’s find the courage and the conviction to do it together.” Is this the voice of an extremist? As Jim Geraghty noted when he talked to Youngkin last month, Virginia voters don’t see him as one. His approval rating has often been above 50 percent, and 31 percent of Democrats have said that they approved of his job performance. When asked about his priorities for his second year in office, Youngkin talked to Jim about labor-force participation — a real bomb-thrower, this man.
We knew, back in 2021, that the smear campaign against Youngkin was hysterical. Now, in hindsight, it appears truly insane.