Richmond, Virginia (AP) — Republican Glenn Youngkin has spent months discussing plans to roll back the Democratic “left, liberal, progressive agenda”. Senate Democrats about it.
Yongkin’s victory Was part of a Republican sweep on Election Night when I saw the GOP Retake It could reverse the administration of the State Capitol with offices across the other two states in Virginia. But in the Senate, where no one ran for elections this year, the Democratic majority will still be small.
“We are the Senate Democratic Alamo,” said one Democrat, Scott Surovell.
A few days after Yongkin’s defeat Terry McAuliffeThe conversation at Richmond, a former governor and longtime Democratic fundraiser, has turned from a rhetoric of the campaign to a bipartisan rosy story, with elected officials from both parties having a common foundation for next year’s session. Expressed hope to provide the opportunity to find. According to Senate minority leader Tommy Norment, Yongkin plans to call Democrats and Republicans and meet with Senators later this month. He also joined Governor Ralph Northam. lunch, And made a public statement suggesting that he might rely on the Democratic Party in the question.
“He said he intends to govern in a bipartisan way during the campaign. All his campaigns are to unite Virginians under a particular vision of the future, and he intends to fulfill that promise. That’s what Yonkin spokesman Devin O’Malley said.
During the campaign, Yongkin positioned himself as a unity that transcended the resentment of the country’s factions. However, he also selectively engaged with the press, trying to avoid details of controversial issues such as abortion and gun control, and refused to admit that President Joe Biden was legally elected. Collected sharp criticism from the Democratic Party.
In a statement on Friday, Susan Swecker, chairman of the state’s Democratic Party, said the “fight for the future of Virginia” had begun.
Yongkin has made a few appearances in the news media, including Fox News host Tucker Carlson, but has not held a formal press conference to ask a wide range of questions. In a post-election statement, he toned the reconciliation, thanked his supporters, and said to those who voted against, “Thank you for fighting for what you believe. I’m looking forward to getting it .. “
NS Former Private Equity Executive The first-time candidates campaigned for what he called the Game Plan for Day 1, but most of them require legislative approval and cannot be enacted on Day 1.
This includes a variety of tax cuts, including the elimination of state grocery taxes, a 12-month suspension of gasoline taxes, and a one-time rebate.His platform also called for increasing funding for law enforcement, raising teacher wages, opening new charter schools, and restoring and banning the requirement to present photo ID to vote. Is Critical race theory, It argues that racism is systematic in the American system. According to the National School Boards Association, it is not currently taught in any public school from kindergarten to high school in the United States.
Independently wealthy and promised to donate the salary he received as governor to a charity, Yongkin set up a transition office in a state government building this week. He told a conservative radio host that Jeff Getman, a top Treasury campaign staff member and former employee under President Donald Trump, would chair his transition. The inauguration ceremony is January 15th.
According to O’Malley, Yongkin visited food banks and mosques on Friday to look up an extensive bipartisan phone list. He declined to comment on whether Yongkin was a powerful player on the State Capitol and was in contact with Dominion Energy, which aroused the candidate’s anger. It confirmed Secret Anti-Youngkin Political Action Committee.
Other details regarding key staff and ministers were not announced immediately.
Senate majority leader Dick Saslow said he made a “very nice and friendly call” with Yongkin, who was not policy-minded.
“Education may have a common ground, and the environment may have a common ground. There can be so many things in common. You just have to wait and see. “Saslow said.
With a majority of 21-19 in the Senate, the newly elected Republican Lieutenant Governor Winsam Sears will vote for a tiebreaker. Democrats can’t afford a single North Korean defector if they want to block the bill.
That reality sharpened the focus on two Democrats, Joe Morrissey, a Catholic who personally opposes abortion, and Chap Petersen, a moderate in northern Virginia. The two rarely vote against the caucuses on a variety of issues. However, the Republican Party also has several members who support the party’s vote.
“This area may help bipartisan cooperation,” said Republican Senator Richard Stuart.
Morrissey and Petersen compared with US Senators Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Cinema. Forced reduction To President Joe Biden’s radical policy initiative. However, some Democrats said the comparison was exaggerated and the caucuses would stick together. Saslaw was determined that there would be no complete party change.
Morissy said she would not vote for the Texas abortion law and sees the Roe v. Wade decision guaranteeing women’s abortion rights as part of the country’s structure. But he also suggested that some restrictions should be considered and said there must be a compromise.
He also expressed skepticism about how long the post-election honeymoon will last.
“At the beginning of every session, everything is Kumbaya and everyone is holding hands. It often takes about a week for a bipartisan division to occur after that,” Morrissey said. “It is important that moderates on both sides fill these gaps.”
Todd Gilbert, a minority leader in the House of Representatives and a candidate for a speaker if the Republican Party regains a majority, said at a news conference that education was a priority for his caucuses.
He said Republicans will focus on fine-tuning the recently enacted marijuana legalization bill rather than abandoning it. Asked if the Republicans would try to revive the abortion restrictions that they rolled back when the Democrats had full control of the state government, he suggested not focusing on this issue.
Gilbert predicted that the House of Representatives and the Senate might actually have a smoother relationship than when the Democrats dominated his room. Two groups of Democrats often talked despised to each other, and the House of Representatives passed the bill on a regular basis, but the more moderate Senate only soared them.
“I think we’ll do well from an institutional point of view,” Gilbert said.