The Democrat running to be Virginia’s next attorney general fantasized about murdering Republicans in newly released text messages — and instead of being cast aside by his party, he’s been protected by it.
In a newly released 2022 exchange with Republican House Delegate Carrie Coyner, Jay Jones said it would be a “good thing” if his former legislative colleague’s children died.
“Three people, two bullets. [Republican House Speaker Todd] Gilbert, Hitler, and pol pot. Gilbert gets two bullets to the head. Spoiler: put Gilbert in the crew with the two worst people you know and he receives both bullets every time,” Jones said in a message. When Coyner pushed back about Jones “[hoping] [J]ennifer Gilbert’s children would die,” Jones confirmed that “Yes” he was.
“Only when people feel pain personally do they move on policy,” Jones continued.
Jones also called the Gilberts’ young children “little fascists.”
Under normal circumstances, such comments would be career suicide. But instead of being forced to resign or lose his key endorsements, Jones has found refuge.
Gubernatorial candidate Abigail Spanberger said she “spoke frankly with Jay about my disgust with what he had said and texted. I made clear to Jay that he must fully take responsibility for his words,” and that she would “always condemn violent language in our politics.” Lieutenant gubernatorial candidate Ghazala Hashmi said that “political violence has no place in our country and I condemn it at every turn” and that Jones “must take accountability.”
The Virginia Beach Democrats put out a statement that “reaffirms its full support of Jay Jones” despite “past mistakes.” The Democratic Committees of Virginia’s 2nd Congressional District also doubled down on their “full support of Jay Jones.”
But these supposed condemnations mean nothing. These individuals and organizations choosing to continue supporting Jones — while excusing or simply moving past what he said — proves they believe violence toward Republicans is tolerable.
In fact, it’s these types of reactions — or lack thereof — that make assassinations like the Charlie Kirk murder possible. When Democrats dismiss, downplay, or excuse violent rhetoric from their own side, they normalize and implicitly condone such violence. In fact, the collective Democrat response to Jones’ disgusting messages sends a clear message that wishing for the murder of Republicans isn’t disqualifying, it’s tolerated.
Notably, Spanberger herself would not say whether she would renounce an endorsement from a local school board member who celebrated Kirk’s assassination, as reported in these pages by Shawn Fleetwood.
There is a clear pattern: When violence or hatred targets conservatives, the left shrugs. It’s that pattern which led to Biden-appointed Judge Deborah Boardman sentencing Nicholas Roske — who now goes by “Sophie” — to just eight years in prison for attempting to assassinate Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. Roske brought a Glock 17 pistol, ammunition, lock picks, duct tape, pepper spray, and other items used in burglaries to Kavanaugh’s home in Maryland. Prosecutors recommended, at a minimum, 30 years.
But Boardman’s leniency sent the message that attempting to murder a conservative justice just isn’t all that serious.
The media handle acts of left-wing violence by shifting blame and responsibility, or attempting to bury the motive when it doesn’t fit the preferred narrative. A recent shooting at a Dallas immigration facility left one migrant dead. The alleged shooter, Joshua Jahn, opened fire indiscriminately on an ICE transportation vehicle before dying of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Authorities later confirmed rounds found near Jahn were inscribed with “ANTI-ICE.”
Yet The New York Times and Axios were less interested in the shooter’s motives and more concerned that Republicans were noticing the left-wing motive of the attack. The Times lamented that President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance were “suggest[ing] liberals were to blame for the violence.” (This after The Times acknowledged the rounds had anti-ICE engravings and that the shooter had previously voted Democrat). Axios’ Josephine Walker said that Republicans who point out the string of left-wing violence are participating in a “partisan blame game before facts confirmed.”
The message is the same: Violence against the right is covered, not because the violence itself is wrong, but because such violence needs to be dismissed or downplayed because it’s politically inconvenient. And by refusing to take the actual violence seriously — as The Times and Axios made clear — they send the message that such violence is implicitly acceptable.
And that’s why the Jones scandal matters. When a major party decides that calling for the murder of political opponents is excusable, when leaders issue polite condemnations but continue to lend their support, they aren’t just excusing one statement: They’re endorsing the culture behind those statements.
When Democrats chose to stand behind Jones, they confirmed exactly who they are and what kind of violence they’re willing to tolerate.
Brianna Lyman is an elections correspondent at The Federalist. Brianna graduated from Fordham University with a degree in International Political Economy. Her work has been featured on Newsmax, Fox News, Fox Business and RealClearPolitics. Follow Brianna on X: @briannalyman2
