Death threats and sewage in the James
The latest in Virginia politics
There are only 12 days until election day.
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Virginia State Police are investigating a death threat against Terry McAuliffe
The Virginia State Police (VSP) is investigating a threatening email directed at Democratic gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe.
“If I get the opportunity I will shoot Terry! – MAGA,” the email reads in its entirety.
Law enforcement confirmed they are investigating the threat Wednesday.
“The Virginia State Police is in receipt of the threat and has forwarded it to our Behavioral Threat Assessment and Management Team, as is done with any email of an alarming/threatening nature that is received by a candidate running for elected office,” said a spokesperson for VSP.
Police protection was provided for McAuliffe Wednesday during his event in Charlottesville, according to VSP.
There are less than two weeks until election day and McAuliffe and his Republican opponent Glenn Youngkin are locked in a tight race for governor.
“This is the type of violent, dangerous behavior we’ve come to expect from supporters of Donald Trump. Glenn Youngkin needs to immediately condemn this threat and denounce Donald Trump and the ‘MAGA’ movement once and for all,” said Jake Rubenstein, a spokesperson for McAuliffe.
“Political violence is a threat to our democracy and is absolutely unacceptable,” said Macaulay Porter, a spokeswoman for Youngkin.
No arrests or charges have been placed at this time.
Youngkin blames McAuliffe for sewage in the James River with a new mailer
Republican gubernatorial candidate Glenn Youngkin is sending mailers to voters that blame his Democratic opponent Terry McAuliffe for raw sewage spilling into the James River.
According to a report from WTVR in 2020, 11 billion gallons of sewage were dumped into the James River between 2014 and 2018. The combined sewage overflow (CSO) system does not fall under the governor’s purview, however, with it being part of the City of Richmond’s infrastructure.
“Since Terry McAuliffe was governor, over 10 billion gallons of raw sewage and untreated wastewater have been dumped in the James River,” the mailer from the Youngkin campaign reads.
Members of the General Assembly passed legislation in 2020 that requires Richmond to upgrade its system to stop combined-sewage overflows by 2035. Officials in the Richmond Department of Public Utilities have said in the past that they are working on upgrading the system, but estimate it will cost half of a billion dollars to fix it.
The combined sewage and stormwater system overflows into the James River whenever Richmond receives an extended period of rain. The overflow events can be tracked in real-time on Open Street Map.
In Youngkin’s mailer, it says he has a realistic plan to clean up the river. “Only Glenn Youngkin’s day one plan includes funding to finally restore the health of the James River,” the mailer reads. However, Youngkin’s day one plan on his website does not mention anything related to protecting the James River from sewage overflows.
“This is another Trumpian conspiracy theory from Glenn Youngkin, who refuses to acknowledge the human impact on climate change,” said Renzo Olivari, a spokesperson for McAuliffe. “As Virginia’s 72d Governor Terry made real progress for Virginia in tackling climate change and protecting our environment. While Glenn has disparaged the United States’ efforts to fight climate change, Terry has a real plan to get Virginia to 100% clean energy by 2035.”
When asked if he believes in climate change and what his priorities to counteract it would be, the Youngkin campaign referred Virginia Scope to a clip from a recent town hall.
“We have a challenge from climate change, I know that,” Youngkin said during the town hall. He says Richmond has stonewalled against protecting the Hampton Roads from rising sea levels, noting he would start an independent committee that will raise funds for Hampton Roads to address rising sea levels.
Youngkin would not directly answer if he believes humans play a role in climate change, saying “we all live here and we actually have a climate challenge so I guess all living beings, all living things have some role.”
Youngkin and McAuliffe are locked into a tight race with only 12 days left until election day. A new poll released by Monmouth University Wednesday showed a 46-46 tie among registered voters.
Election day is Nov. 2.
More gubernatorial links
Obama to campaign with McAuliffe on Saturday afternoon at VCU
‘Everyone should be very worried’: Dems seek wake-up call as Virginia goes to the wire
Trump broke the suburbs for the GOP. The rebuilding could start in Virginia.
Democrats’ struggles in Congress sap enthusiasm for McAuliffe in Virginia
Virginia gives Democrats a test of Black turnout before 2022
Republican Glenn Youngkin’s Agenda Includes Big Tax Cuts For Virginia
Glenn Youngkin tells Fox News schools issue uniting campaign
Virginia gubernatorial forum with McAuliffe and Youngkin live streaming on WAVY.com Thursday night
Campaign Geography
Terry McAulife will be in Central Virginia today to be present as Governor Ralph Northam and his wife vote early.
McAuliffe is also hosting an event with Vice President Kamala Harris in Dumfries.
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RSLC releases new ads attacking Democrats in eight House races
The Republican State Legislative Committee (RSLC) PAC released new digital ads Wednesday attacking Democrats in eight competitive House of Delegates races.
“Virginia House Democrats have broken the promises they made in 2019 in order to pursue the agenda of Democrat-controlled Washington, sending the cost of living for Virginians sky-rocketing, making them less safe, and leaving them voiceless in their kids’ education in the process,” said RSLC Communications Director Andrew Romeo. “Virginians want delegates who will stand up to Washington’s far-left and will hold these delegates accountable on Election Day.”
New polling from Monmouth University shows a dead heat in races up and down the ballot with less than two weeks until election day.
The additional seven ads can be found below:
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