Monday’s snow hit much of the eastern U.S., as far south as Florida. Coastal Virginia’s unusually heavy snowfall created an unprecedented emergency, with some drivers trapped in their cars on Interstate 95 for almost 24 hours.
Drivers have voiced their frustration with the slow, plodding response from the state’s Transportation Department. Some in the media have blamed Glenn Youngkin, the Republican who just won election.
However, there’s one problem.
Youngkin isn’t governor yet.
Ralph Northam, a Democrat, is still governor.
Youngkin is scheduled to take office on Jan. 15, the last day of Northam’s term. Until then, he is powerless. It was Youngkin’s job to clear the traffic jam, unless he expected Republicans to dig an off-ramp with their bare hands.
Nonetheless, some Democrat-leaning pundits are trying to pin this mess on Youngkin.
Jonah Goldberg, an anti-Trump “conservative,” also joined the chorus. To his credit, he admitted the error and adjusted his argument accordingly.
These tweets came from verified accounts, not bots.
Take a look —
Collateral damage between Glenn Youngkin and the wrath of God.
— Fred Grimm (@grimm_fred) January 4, 2022
I deleted the original tweet because even tho I quickly admitted my error, I’m still getting dumb replies from people who don’t know that or don’t care. pic.twitter.com/Eu2W0rTjxd
— Jonah Goldberg (@JonahDispatch) January 4, 2022
Youngkin, a career financier, beat former Gov. Terry McAuliffe, a Democrat, in November’s gubernatorial race, which had no incumbent. The race attracted national attention for Youngkin’s surprisingly competitive polling in an increasingly Democrat-safe state.
Some locals criticized national media for projecting presidential politics onto a state-level election. Many Virginians took issue with national pundits’ ignorance of McAuliffe’s controversial record, including his ties to the Clintons.
If Monday’s Twitterstorm about Youngkin is any indication, then maybe out-of-state pundits don’t understand Virginia politics after all.
https://twitter.com/MenshevikM/status/1455640717913739268
The Horn editorial team