Beginning to crawl out from hiding since his shocking racial scandal and hastily-conceived “racial reconciliation” tour, Virginia Governor Ralph Northam (D) is now hitting the campaign trail to promote progressive Democratic lawmakers and candidates in the run-up to the 2019 General Assembly elections. With all 140 seats on the ballot his November, Republicans hold one-member majorities in both the House of Delegates and State Senate, 51-49 and 21-19, respectively.
On February 1, 2019, a photo was released that depicted two people, one dressed in Ku Klux Klan robes and the other in blackface, which appeared on Northam’s 1984 yearbook page from the Eastern Virginia Medical School. He first confirmed that he was in the photo – not saying which one – then backpedaled the day following at a very odd press conference, which included an attempt to moonwalk in front of reporters.
On the evening of February 1, which launched the chaos within Virginia’s Democratic Party, Senate Democrats released a statement saying:
“After seeing the yearbook pictures that surfaced of Governor Northam today, we were shocked, s saddened and offended. Virginia has a complicated racial history and past, and hose pictures certainly reflect that. Black face was used to ridicule African Americans and the Klan was a source of terror and intimidation. The racism angered by these images was real then and resurrected by these images today. We are beyond disappointed.”
“The Ralph Northam we know is a pediatric neurologist, a dedicated public servant, and a committed husband and father. Nevertheless, it is with heavy hearts that we have respectfully asked him to step down.”
In the days following, Democratic lawmakers and candidates began being pressured to return campaign donations from Northam or “The Way Ahead,” his political action committee.
However, one Democratic state senator is hosting a fundraiser this weekend featuring the governor, just two months after he called for him to resign.
Even though State Senator Dave Marsden (D-Fairfax) signed on to call for the governor to step down from office to let Virginians heal from the shocking incident, he has completely flipped on his position to place a stark condemnation on Northam.
“There was a lot of damage done by this whole incident. The African American community was deeply hurt by this. It’s very, very painful,” he said in a recent report from the Richmond-Times Dispatch. “But at this point in time he appears to be staying in office. If indeed he has work to do on moving the ball forward on racial understanding, he needs a venue to do that, and that’s what I’m trying to provide.”
“It doesn’t change our position that we feel the governor should resign. But this is a big year coming up and Democrats have a big opportunity to take both chambers,” he added.
Here’s that quote again, but translated from Richmond double-speak into normal human English:
“Governor Northam, you must resign. But since you’re not going to, would you mind holding a fundraiser with me?”
Democrat principles are absolute. Past incidents of racism must not be tolerated, and we must believe all women and hold the perpetrators of sexual assault accountable.
Unless, of course, that means a Republican might wind up in the Attorney General’s office, a sitting lieutenant governor might be forced to resign, or shunning a Democrat governor means there won’t be as much money to run campaigns in November.
In all those cases, Democrats have others.
As Groucho Marx once said, which would probably be supported by Marsden as well, “Those are my principles, and if you don’t like them…well, I have others.”