The measure of your character is what you do and say when you think no one is looking or listening.
But what does it say about you when you declare horrible intentions even when people are listening?
The latest spin from his fellow Virginia Democratic candidates wants us to believe the text-messaged fantasies of Attorney General candidate Jay Jones to kill former Virginia House Speaker Todd Gilbert with two bullets otherwise intended for Hitler and Pol Pot were really just a humorous take on Michael Scott in “The Office.”
Even the socially inept character Dwight Schrute said in response to similar comments, “it isn’t funny and you went too far” but, scrambling for an excuse, any excuse, the Democratic slate has settled on blaming a TV character.
“When you learn he’s quoting Steve Carrell from “The Office,” I think people should take another look at it,” declared Cat Porterfield, in Virginia Beach.
“Jay Jones is a witty guy,” said candidate Mel Cartwright. “I think he was being a jokester.”
Ha ha. Maybe he’s auditioning to replace Stephen Colbert on The Late Show .
But that’s all a distraction from the real issue. The issue isn’t what Jay Jones wrote. The issue is that he doubled down, defending what he said, and more. He’s a believer, not a comedian. And that’s the danger.
When the Republican colleague he was texting with, Delegate Carrie Coyner, told him to stop, this is a man who called her to make certain she understood what he meant. He told her that he wished the Speaker’s wife could watch her own child die in her arms in order to change Gilbert’s politics. Claimed he was justified because she was “breeding little fascists.”
“Yes,” Jones said, “I’ve told you this before. Only when people feel pain personally do they move on policy.” That sounds true to form, and one can suspect when “he said it before”. Coyner asserts (Jones denies this) that two years earlier, the year riots engulfed Richmond, he told her that if a few police officers died, then maybe they would stop killing people.”
These are not off-the-cuff casual words, not the words of someone suffering from diarrhea of the mouth and proclaiming, without restraint, whatever pops into their head in the psychological rush from texting. Nor is this consultant-created language designed to anger, fuel their rage, and “get out the base,” because he clearly never meant them to get out to the public.
These are words that define his character and, as columnist Jeffrey Blehar wrote, are “a frightening peek into a Bleak Moral Worldview.” They are intentional words, language he had time to think about, for which there was no apology – neither publicly nor privately – to the person he said them to, the people he said them about, or the public that read them.
Until, of course, they started to make news. And only after he first blamed his opponent, and found that didn’t work.
Part of the problem may be that Mr. Jones is the political equivalent of a nepo baby. As long-time journalist Bob Lewis wrote in The Virginia Mercury, “He is descended from Democratic Party royalty with an honored legacy of advancing civil rights.” Jones’ grandfather, Hilary Jones, was the first Black member of the Norfolk School Board and the Virginia Board of Education. His father, Jerrauld Jones, honorably served 15 years in the House of Delegates and another 17 years as a Circuit Court Judge.
Young Mr. Jones undoubtedly got some privileged breaks others don’t, even when he violates the law, such as when he was found guilty of speeding 116 miles per hour in a 70 mile per hour speed zone. While other defendants the day of his trial found their licenses suspended, former Delegate Jones only had to complete 1,000 hours of community service – half of which was doing work for his own Political Action Committee. Nice work if you can get it.
“Democrats should not tolerate Jones’s call for violence,” says Democratic strategist Brad Bannon, who describes himself as a pollster/consultant for progressives. “(Democratic gubernatorial candidate Abigail) Spanberger should cut him loose.”
Except she hasn’t. And won’t. Even when given the opportunity a half-dozen times during the gubernatorial debate on Thursday.
Ms. Spanberger remains circumspect, saying she “spoke frankly with Jay about my disgust” and that “he must take full responsibility for his words.” She does not explain how that might happen if he could not even take full responsibility for a speeding ticket. She can’t explain it, because he won’t take responsibility even if he pays the price of defeat.
Many, ranging from Everytown for Gun Safety to numerous Virginia police organizations have judged Mr. Jones’ character and found it wanting. The putative leader of his ticket should be making the same judgment.
Character is usually defined by what you say.
But sometimes it’s defined by what you don’t say.
Chris Braunlich is Senior Advisor and former President of the Thomas Jefferson Institute for Public Policy. He may be reached at [email protected].
