June 18, 2021 News & Press Releases

Youngkin’s Disastrous Week in Review: Hypocrisy, Extremism, and Cowardice


by Democratic Party of Virginia

Richmond, VA — This week, Virginia voters were reminded of Glenn Youngkin’s hypocrisy and far-right extremism every day. Youngkin was held accountable for his hypocrisy and lies about Virginia’s economy, exposed for his unconscionable opposition to affordable health care coverage, and slammed for his cowardly refusal to debate Terry McAuliffe. Youngkin has also doubled down his despicable opposition to marriage equality and common sense gun safety reforms.

Youngkin Was For Terry McAuliffe's Economy Before He Was Against It

This week, new reporting detailed how, prior to launching his campaign and declaring his complete allegiance to Donald Trump, Glenn Youngkin repeatedly praised Terry McAuliffe’s strong economic record. The reality is that under Democratic leadership, Virginia’s economy has grown and thrived. The fact that Youngkin is running on Trumpian lies now that he has turned himself into an extreme Republican politician is pathetic. As detailed by Business Insider:

“As Youngkin remade himself into a Republican politician in the Trump era — ultimately winning the gubernatorial nomination amid a crowded field of conservatives — his appraisal of the state's economic climate changed, too.”

“What's apparent from an Insider review of the first-time politician's press clips and social media feeds is that he is full of conservative outrage: denouncing critical race theory, blocking police reform, and shielding gun rights are all GOP go-tos on the culture war front. He's otherwise pretty much a blank slate on the policy front.”

Now, Virginians are seeing Youngkin’s hypocrisy first hand. Tell the truth, Glenn!

The ACA is Here to Stay… But Glenn Youngkin is Sad

On Thursday, the Supreme Court once again dismissed a Republican challenge to the Affordable Care Act. As a result of this ruling -- and despite the GOP’s best efforts -- the ACA will remain the law of the land, preserving health care coverage for millions of Americans. In Virginia, this means that Medicaid expansion stands and over 550,000 Virginians who received health care due to Democratic leadership will keep their coverage.
Unconscionably, this tremendous progress makes Republican billionaire Glenn Youngkin “sad.” This week, Youngkin was taken to task for his inexplicable position in a new video highlighting how out-of-touch his views truly are.

Meanwhile, Virginia Democrats continued to hold Youngkin accountable for his opposition to expanding and protecting health care for Virginians. DPVA Chair Susan Swecker, Speaker Eileen Filler-Corn, Senator Jennifer McClellan, and Dr. Wendy Klein participated in a press call highlighting the contrast between Youngkin’s extreme agenda and the Democratic goal of continuing to expand health care in Virginia. 

Youngkin Cowers in Fear of Debating Terry 

What is Glenn hiding? While Terry McAuliffe is proud of his excellent record as governor and has a broad, diverse, robust coalition of support, Youngkin is too scared to take the stage and debate.

The reality is that if Youngkin was not afraid to address his total fealty to Donald Trump, he would be prepared to debate. If he had any proposals to address the issues Virginians care about -- or if he wasn’t peddling an extreme agenda he knows is far to the right of most Virginians, maybe he would join Terry in accepting 5 debate invitations.

Instead, Youngkin is continuing to hide from voters. Cowardly.

Youngkin’s Extreme Agenda is Wrong for Virginia

While Youngkin spends his days hiding from voters and refusing to answer tough questions, he is doubling down on his far-right Republican agenda. This week, voters were reminded of Youngkin’s reprehensibly out of touch views when he refused to support marriage equality -- an overwhelmingly toxic position.

Youngkin, who has made it clear that he stands with the NRA over the progress Virginia has made during the last 8 years, has doubled down on his desire to put more guns into our communities and oppose commonsense gun safety reforms.

The contrast between Youngkin and Terry McAuliffe could not be more clear. While Youngkin is running to put more guns on the streets and discriminate against Virginians for who they love, Terry is committed to the fight to stop gun violence and will work tirelessly to build a better, more inclusive commonwealth.

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