This is an adapted excerpt from the Feb. 18 episode of “The Rachel Maddow Show.”
Something to watch as Donald Trump’s second administration seems to only get wilder and more off-the-chain with each passing day is whether there’s any sign of a limiting instinct coming from the Republican Party, of which this president is ostensibly the leader.
In Virginia, you have to consider politics along a slightly different timeline than everywhere else, because Virginia has off-year elections.
Take, for example, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who, as the Republican governor of a purple state, was once thought of as someone with a bright future in the party. When the Republican Party briefly considered the possibility of running someone other than Trump for president, Youngkin was seen as probably the most electable non-Trump choice they could make. The Republican Party, though, did not go down that road. They picked Trump and Youngkin melted back into the scenery, plodding along as governor of Virginia.
In Virginia, you have to consider politics along a slightly different timeline than everywhere else, because Virginia has off-year elections. This year, in fact just a few months from now, voters in Virginia will elect a whole new legislature and a new governor. That election will be the first big partisan test of how Americans are feeling about the country, about politics and about the two parties now that Trump is back in office.
You may remember that on Jan. 27, Trump issued a memo ordering an immediate freeze of federal funding. That freeze was especially concerning for many Virginians since the state has nearly 145,000 civilian federal government employees and even more people who work as federal contractors. Virginia also gets more contract money from the federal government than any other state in the country, with $100 billion a year in federal contracts paid to various businesses and other entities in the state.
The day after that freeze went into effect, Youngkin wanted to hold an event to announce a new round of Virginia school test results — but what do you think people wanted to ask him about instead?
As The Washington Post reported:
[Youngkin] had a message early Wednesday for everyone claiming President Donald Trump’s on-again, off-again, on-again freeze on trillions of dollars in federal spending would create chaos. … “The steps that President Trump is taking are steps … that he told everyone he was going to do and received a massive, massive vote of confidence by the American people to do,” Youngkin told reporters at an event rolling out Virginia school test scores.
“There may be some disruption to Virginians along the way and I’m very empathetic to those concerns,” Youngkin continued. “We can get through this.”
However, later that day, the administration rescinded the funding freeze order. So, in the end, Youngkin had to eat it politically. He already told his constituents that he accepted what the Trump administration was doing, even though it was causing a lot of harm to his state — and then the White House changed its mind anyway.
Understandably, Youngkin hasn’t been poking his head above the parapet much in the few weeks since that disastrous appearance. But he did try again on Tuesday, attempting to hold a news conference about the looming winter storm barreling its way toward Virginia.
Youngkin was, once again, confronted with questions about the administration’s actions, including its mass purge of federal workers. The governor said his state was preparing an aid package for Virginians who lost their jobs due to the cuts. However, he also defended the president’s actions, which have disproportionately impacted his state. “We first need to recognize that this process that the federal government is going through is needed because of the inefficiency and bloat of the federal government,” he told reporters.
The governor said he wanted Virginians to know “we understand and … we’re here to help.” He promised the state “will have the ability to support [federal workers] through any job dislocation.” However, he declined to provide details about what kind of help they are prepared to offer. Youngkin said that when the plan is ready, “I want to communicate it in a package. We’ll have a good one for you.”
Youngkin is telling the people in his state not to worry, a “package” is on the way. In the meantime, he’s also making it clear that he stands fully behind Trump. While also assuring Virginians he’s trying to figure out a way to clean up the giant deliberate mess the president has made of people’s lives in his state … for which, he wants them to know, he is very empathetic.
Did I mention that Virginia has elections this year? In just a few months? So we’re going to keep watching this dynamic: Republicans who cannot actually bear what Trump is doing to their states but seem too scared to say they’re against it.
Allison Detzel contributed.
