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Abigail Spanberger, the Democratic candidate for governor of Virginia, refused to call on her party's attorney general hopeful, Jay Jones, to drop out of the race during a debate Thursday night. She is among many other Democrats who also refused to do so after text messages surfaced in which Jones fantasized about killing his Republican colleague in 2022.
Jones, a former delegate from Norfolk, Virginia, has faced growing calls (mostly from Republicans) to withdraw from the race for Virginia attorney general. But Virginia Democrats and other party leaders across the country have refused to bow to the pressure they are under to demand that Jones leave office.
The Jones texting scandal has become a flashpoint in the Virginia election, particularly considering it came at a time of heightened sensitivity to inflammatory and violent political rhetoric following the murder of Charlie Kirk and two assassination attempts on President Donald Trump.
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Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., remained silent when asked repeatedly by Fox News Digital whether Jones should drop out of the race. Warner was also pressed on whether he would demand Jones return a $25,000 donation made to his campaign in August, or whether he regretted the show of support in light of the controversy over Jones' violent political speech, but he once again looked away and remained silent.
Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., was also unwilling to ask Jones to drop out of the race. He told Fox News Digital that he still supports the embattled candidate for his state's attorney general position. “I think those statements weren't his own and he apologized, and I wish other people in public life would sincerely apologize for things,” the Democratic vice presidential nominee said in 2016. “I've known Jay Jones for 25 years.”
Several other Democrats outside Virginia who were similarly approached by Fox News Digital walked away or declined to respond when asked about Jones' controversy, which revolves around a text message exchange he had in 2022 with another lawmaker.
During text messages, Jones fantasized about putting “two bullets” in the head of then-Virginia House Speaker Todd Gilbert. He also joked about the murder of Gilbert's children.
“Three people, two bullets. Gilbert, Hitler and Pol Pot. Gilbert takes two bullets to the head,” Jones wrote. In a later text, Jones also wrote: “Spoiler: put Gilbert on the team with the two worst people you know and he'll take both bullets every time.”
“Jay. Please stop,” the lawmaker who received Jones' evidence said at the time. Jones has since apologized, calling the comments “disgraceful and disgraceful” and said he had personally reached out to Gilbert and his family.
Jay Jones, who is running to become Virginia attorney general in 2025, has come under fire for a series of text messages calling for the deaths of political opponents and comments about police officers. (Maxine Wallace/The Washington Post/Getty Images)
“I'm really not familiar with the situation in Virginia,” said Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., when asked if Jones should retire.
“I haven't thought about it,” said Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D.R.I.
Meanwhile, Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., called the texts “horrible,” but when asked further about whether Jones should retire, Wyden said, “I'm going to leave it at that, thank you.”
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Other Democrats approached by Fox News, such as Sens. Andy Kim, D-N.J., and Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., condemned the political violence but admitted they were not following the matter involving Jones.
“I can't say I did everything I could to really understand it, but what I will say is that what I saw was absolutely horrible,” Kim said. “I hope that in this moment, when there is so much concern about political violence, we can say, 'Yes, we need to make sure we hold ourselves to a high standard, especially those in elected office.'”
Republican responses to the Jones texting scandal were radically different. Speaking to Fox News Digital, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, called the text messages “staggering, particularly with the spate of political violence we've seen.”
“There are too many on the left who celebrate political violence,” Cruz continued, adding: “When charlie kirk was murdered, we saw leftists, university professors, leftist school teachers, politicians, journalists celebrating that atrocious murder.”
“And all the Democrats in Washington are turning a blind eye,” Cruz added. “In my opinion, the notion that someone who advocates for the murder of children because they disagree politically with their father is manifestly unsuitable for public office, especially the head of Virginia law enforcement. And I wish there was at least one Democrat with the courage to say so publicly.”
From left: Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-Conn., Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-Conn., Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore. (Getty Images)
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“It's really disgusting to call for the murder of a rival, to call for the death of his children. I mean, I think hopefully we can all agree that that goes beyond the bounds of what is reasonable here, and that he should resign,” Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., said when asked about the controversy. “What's surprising, though, is that I haven't heard from any Democrats; I hope you're asking other Democrats that question. I haven't heard anyone say anything about it, which is pretty sad.”
During a debate Thursday night between Republican and Democratic candidates for Virginia governor, Republican candidate Winsome Earle-Sears repeatedly pressured her Democratic opponent, Spanberger, to call on Jones to resign.
“Jay Jones pleaded for murder, Abigail, the murder of a man, a former speaker, as well as his children who were 2 and 5 years old. You have little girls. Would he have to pull the trigger? Is that what he would do?” Earle-Sears asked Thursday night. “Please ask him to leave the race. Have some courage.”
Fox News Digital's Peter Pinedo and Charles Creitz contributed to this report.
