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Democratic Party nominee for Virginia attorney general Jay Jones has been pressed for accountability and questioned why voters should trust his judgment following revelations of politically violent rhetoric he made in 2022 about wanting to kill his GOP rival and a reckless driving conviction for which he was accused of trying to circumvent his community service requirements.
His GOP opponent, outgoing Attorney General Jason Miyares, accused Jones of going 116 miles per hour on Interstate 64 in Virginia in his opening remarks to a debate Thursday night at the University of Richmond.
Miyares claimed that on the day Jones showed up in court after being arrested for dangerous driving, four people, including Jones, had all been arrested driving at roughly the same speed. But, Miyares said, Jones was the only one who did not receive a prison sentence or a suspended prison sentence. Miyares also claimed Jones sought to undermine his requirement for 1,000 hours of community service that was part of his sentence, alleging he performed the service for a political action committee he controlled.
JOE SCARBOROUGH TELLS DEM CANDIDATE JAY JONES TO LEAVE RACE FOLLOWING VIOLENT COMMENTS AGAINST GOP LEGISLATOR
Jay Jones, Democratic Party candidate for Virginia Attorney General (left) and Jason Miyares, Republican candidate for Virginia Attorney General (right). (Julia Rendleman; Parker Michels-Boyce via Getty Images)
“I’ve been held accountable. And several years ago I made some very serious mistakes, but I’ve been held accountable not only by members of my party, but also by the Virginia State Police,” Jones said when asked why Virginia voters should trust his judgment.
The criticism of reckless driving coincides with criticism of text messages Jones sent to someone about his Republican political rival in 2022. Jones fantasized in the text exchange about putting “two bullets” in the head of then-Virginia House Speaker Todd Gilbert. Jones also fantasized about violence against Gilbert’s children during the text exchange, which also earned him a lot of heat during the campaign for attorney general.
“I’ve taken responsibility for my mistakes, and I know that people in Virginia right now demand and deserve leaders who accept when they make mistakes and can own up to it and who have always been held accountable. This job now requires someone who will hold Donald Trump accountable,” Jones said when the debate moderator pressed for a clear answer on why voters should trust his judgment.
Jones continued: “Over the last nine months, Jason has had 50 chances to sue the administration, to protect us, to protect our workers, to protect our health care, to protect our K-12 funding, law enforcement funding. And his office has done nothing because he is too weak and too afraid to stand up to the president.”
WATCH: KAINE DEFENDS JONES AMID TEXTS FROM AG CANDIDATE PREDICTING MURDER OF GOP LEADER: ‘ALWAYS A SUPPORTER’
Miyares, however, pushed back. He argued that he had “sued both administrations,” meaning the Biden and Trump administrations. Miyares touted his support for veterans and their GI benefits in court and walked back comments about how he was tough on crime to “protect all Virginians.”
“Every day I work to make Virginians safer and more prosperous. That’s our mission,” Miyares said. “This office is an executive office. If Jay Jones wants to lead the fight in Washington, then he should run for Congress.”
Miyares frequently referred to Jones as a “politician” and not a prosecutor throughout the debate. Miyares added that Jones was hurting Virginians with his soft-on-crime stances, such as voting in favor of an early release program for felons.
The Virginia Capitol is seen in Richmond, Virginia, March 4, 2010. A Virginia Senate committee has voted not to approve Patricia West as Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s choice to lead the state’s parole board on January 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, file)
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While lambasting Jones for his policies Thursday night, Miyares pointed out that one of Jones’ public safety agenda items was protecting children. He took the opportunity to delve into the “two bullets” scandal that received national attention.
“How can someone who has already worked in one of the crimes against children, in all areas of the federal and local state legal department, take you seriously? Being the lead prosecutor knowing that you believe that children should die to advance a political agenda,” Miyares questioned. “How can you ever say that you want to represent people to think differently than you do politically? Now that we know you want to see violence against those people because they have bad ideas.”
