It is quite interesting that while the calls for Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax to resign are continuing, the protests that have blanketed Gov. Ralph Northam’s reputation for racist photos have been absent for Fairfax’s sexual assault and rape allegations.
Former Gov. McAuliffe Quiets Calls For Resignations In Virginia’s Executive Branch
As all three political leaders of Virginia’s Democrat-led executive branch have dealt with racial and sexual scandals over the past two weeks, it seems that not only Attorney General Mark Herring (D), but also Governor Ralph Northam (D) may get off scot-free for appearing in racist photos. After a week of rapprochement of protests in front of the Executive Mansion in downtown Richmond and universal calls from his own party for his resignation, former Governor Terry McAuliffe (D) is also backing down his charge for Northam to leave office.
McAuliffe, a presumed 2020 Democratic presidential contender, appeared on CBS‘s “Face the Nation” to speak about the controversies in the Commonwealth, meanwhile peddling his new book “Beyond Charlottesville: Taking a Stand Against White Nationalism,” which is about how “Virginia and the country continue to deal with racism.”
While hitting off the segment with his new book, McAuliffe did not say a word about resignations, seemingly accepting Northam’s extraordinarily vague plan to redeem his image and his governorship with a “focus on race and equity.”
“I think he’s made a decision he’s going to stay in,” McAuliffe said of Northam, who was his own lieutenant governor while he was in charge of the Commonwealth until January 2018. McAuliffe added, “but the way that Ralph survives and brings Virginia back together, he’s got to lean in on these very important issues.”
Nevertheless, as Northam launches his “listening tour” throughout the Commonwealth to learn more about “race, history, and white privilege,” and other obvious things he apparently never knew, Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax (D) is also dealing with a deepening sexual assault scandal that has his staffers jumping ship and his part-time law firm employer suspending him.
Currently, Fairfax is battling back against two accusers, one who said he sexually assaulted her in 2004, and one who said he raped her while in college in 2000.
Dr. Vanessa Tyson, a Scripps College professor, has alleged that Fairfax sexually assaulted her at the 2004 Boston Democratic National Convention. In her statement published by the New York Times, Dr. Tyson said she came forward after the news of Fairfax’s likely elevation to the top political position in Virginia as the governor is embroiled in racial controversy, because it “flooded” her with “painful memories, bringing back feelings of grief, shame, and anger that stemmed from an incident with Mr. Fairfax.”
Meredith Wilson, a student at Duke University in 2000, while Fairfax also attended the North Carolina college, came forth days later with allegations that she was raped by Fairfax in a “premeditated and aggressive” fashion.
Fairfax has called the accusations “false and unsubstantiated,” a “totally fabricated story,” and “demonstrably false.” The lieutenant governor has also accused staffers of embattled Governor Northam for leaking the sexual assault allegations and engaging in a “vicious and coordinated smear campaign” to derail his pathway to the governor’s office.
When news of the second sexual assault allegation broke, McAuliffe wasted no time in calling for Fairfax’s “immediate” resignation on Twitter.
“The allegations against Justin Fairfax are serious and credible. It is clear to me that he can no longer effectively serve the people of Virginia as Lieutenant Governor. I call for his immediate resignation,” he said.
However, McAuliffe is now quieting his own requests and demanding an investigation into the allegations.
Commenting on the situation, McAuliffe said, “Very serious allegations have been made. They need to be investigated…So we will go through that process.”
Showing a willingness to investigate the alleged crimes, Virginia House of Delegates Speaker Kirk Cox (R-Colonial Heights) has said any inquiry must be bipartisan and “very deliberate.” However, House Democrats have blocked any probe by the General Assembly from moving forward, scuttling last week’s impeachment push by Delegate Patrick Hope (D-Arlington).
Regardless, McAuliffe’s remarks on Sunday suggest that Democratic leaders are coming around to accepting the scandalous status quo in Richmond. It could be that the party faithful have realized that a Republican would be in line for the governorship if all three in the executive branch resigned, or that, considering they came out and denounced Northam, Fairfax, and Herring, they feel they can remain in a position of moral high ground on issues of race, gender, and social justice.
Despite the situation looking more and more like a political double standard, Virginia’s top-three elected Democrats may end up holding on to their positions for the time being. Whether any of the three can go on to win higher offices still remains to be seen.
The other lurking question facing Virginia Democrats is whether the tainted triumvirate hurts the party as it looks to take control of both houses of the General Assembly in November’s elections, following its 15-seat gain in the House of Delegates in 2017. With a one-member majority in both the House and Senate, the longer the scandals roll on, the more dissatisfied the Democratic base could become, losing excitement at the ballot box.
Fairfax Scandal Deepens As Staffers Resign, Accusers Look To Testify
Although Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax (D) presided over the Virginia State Senate during Monday’s session on Bank Street in Richmond, the effects of his scandal have deepened as four of his aides have resigned amid the sexual assault controversy. Currently, Fairfax is battling back against two accusers, one who said he sexually assaulted her in 2004, and one who said he raped her while in college in 2000.
Dr. Vanessa Tyson, a Scripps College professor, has alleged that Fairfax sexually assaulted her at the 2004 Boston Democratic National Convention. In her statement published by the New York Times, Dr. Tyson said she came forward after the news of Fairfax’s likely elevation to the top political position in Virginia as the governor is embroiled in racial controversy, because it “flooded” her with “painful memories, bringing back feelings of grief, shame, and anger that stemmed from an incident with Mr. Fairfax.”
Meredith Wilson, a student at Duke University in 2000, while Fairfax also attended the North Carolina college, came forth last week with allegations that she was raped by Fairfax in a “premeditated and aggressive” fashion.
Fairfax has called the accusations “false and unsubstantiated,” a “totally fabricated story,” and “demonstrably false.” The lieutenant governor has also accused staffers of embattled Governor Ralph Northam (D) for leaking the sexual assault allegations and engaging in a “vicious and coordinated smear campaign” to derail his pathway to the governor’s office.
In a raucous press conference in the crowded capitol rotunda, Fairfax reiterated “how important it is for us to listen to women,” but an NBC News reporter caught Fairfax saying “f*** that b****” as he tried to discredit Dr. Tyson during a private meeting last Monday night.
In a recent press release from Nancy Erika Smith, Watson’s attorney with New Jersey-based Smith Mullin, P.C., comments rang out against Fairfax as she claims that he wishes to quash the allegations and defame his accusers in “secret” meetings.
“After Dr. Vanessa Tyson and Meredith Watson reported that Lt. Governor Justin Fairfax raped them, Fairfax said he wanted ‘due process’. Impeachment hearings would have provided just that. It turns out that Mr. Fairfax does not want due process; he wants to assault the character of his victims in secret, not in public, and certainly not under oath,” she said.
Smith stated that Watson and Dr. Tyson are asking for a hearing to testify to the alleged crimes Fairfax committed, expressing that they “reject a secret and delayed proceeding.”
Regardless, Virginia’s second in command is resisting widespread pressure from nearly all elected leaders, both Democrat and Republican, to step down from his post.
As the scandal continues to garner the national spotlight, two of Fairfax’s three government aides, policy director Adele McClure and scheduling director Julia Billingsley have left his staff, as well as employees from his political action committee, executive director Dave Mills of We Rise Together and fundraiser Courtney McCargo.
PAC communications director Lauren Burke and chief of staff Larry Roberts, however, still remain in their posts.
The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports that Mills, interestingly, is the husband of State Senator Jennifer McClellan (D-Richmond) who is now being considered as a serious contender to replace Fairfax as lieutenant governor should he resign or be removed from office.
His removal from office via the introduction of articles of impeachment weakened yesterday following Delegate Partick Hope (D-Arlington) announcing on Twitter late last week, “On Monday, I will be introducing articles of impeachment for Lt. Governor Justin Fairfax if he has not resigned before then.”
After Delegate Hope said he sent draft language for articles of impeachment to his colleagues, he received an “enormous amount of sincere and thoughtful feedback which has led to additional conversations that need to take place before anything is filed.”
Although Fairfax continues to call for an FBI investigation into the sexual assault allegations, it is unclear why he is proceeding that route. As a former U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, he must know that the FBI has no jurisdiction in the matter because the alleged incidents are neither federal crimes, nor is the investigation within the agency’s extent of background checks for certain federal officials.
A spokesperson for Fairfax has also relayed that the lieutenant governor has voiced skepticism about a legislative investigation, stating that he “believes that an inherently political process is not the most likely path for learning the truth.”
With the job of lieutenant governor being a part-time position, Fairfax’s joined San Franciso-based law firm Morrison & Foerster in early 2018. Following the scandal, however, the firm placed him on paid leave.
“We take the allegations against Justin very seriously. As a firm, we believe that it is important to seriously listen to any allegation of sexual assault or harassment, and to treat all persons making such allegations with respect and sensitivity,” the firm’s Chairman Larren Nashelsky said.
Fairfax’s growing sexual scandal is just one-third of the situation surrounding the Commonwealth’s Democrat-led executive branch.
Governor Northam reportedly appeared in a photo in his 1984 Eastern Virginia Medical School (EVMS) yearbook either in blackface or in Ku Klux Klan robes. 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 and his wife, Pam, telling him “inappropriate circumstances.”
Attorney General Mark Herring (D) admitted to wearing blackface to look like black rapper Kurtis Blow at a party at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville in 1980. His admission came just days after he previously called for Northam’s resignation for also appearing in racist photos.
Virginia’s Senior Congressional Democrat Quashed Fairfax Sexual Assault Allegation
Congressman Bobby Scott was made aware of the sexual assault allegation against Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax in December 2017 and January 2018, but did absolutely nothing.
Do VA Dems Know Something About Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax?
“All allegations of sexual assault deserve to be taken with profound gravity. We will continue to evaluate the claims regarding Lieutenant Governor Fairfax,” a press release states.