The same day as his inauguration in Virginia, Gov. Glenn Youngkin picked a legally dubious fight over mask protections in local school districts. The Republican’s policy forbade mask requirements, and it came with a provocative possible punishment: The new governor’s administration raised the prospect of withholding funding from school districts that defied him.
A predictable court fight soon followed. As NBC News reported, it’s a fight Youngkin appears to be losing, at least for now.
A state judge in Virginia on Friday issued a temporary restraining order blocking Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s executive order making masking in schools optional. In her ruling, Arlington County Circuit Court Judge Louise M. DiMatteo found the seven school districts that had sued to block the order were “likely to succeed” with their argument that Youngkin did not have the authority to overrule the local school boards.
Not surprisingly, the governor’s office said it will appeal the ruling.
But as it turns out, it wasn’t the only discouraging news that Youngkin faced over the last few days. The Washington Post reported:
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin distanced himself Monday from a tweet mocking a teenager that went out Saturday on his campaign account, calling it “unauthorized.” The “Team Youngkin” tweet lashed out at a high school student as well as Democrat Ralph Northam on Twitter this weekend, tweeting out the teen’s name and photo after the boy shared a news story about part of the Executive Mansion where enslaved workers once lived.
Evidently, recent Democratic governors sought to highlight the role of enslaved people at the gubernatorial mansion in the commonwealth. The NPR affiliate in Richmond ran a report — which included an error that was later corrected — suggesting Youngkin intended to move in a different direction.
A local high-school student promoted the public radio report. That wouldn’t have been especially notable, except the new governor’s campaign team thought it’d be a good idea to push back against the teenager, and slam Youngkin’s predecessor in the process.
As a rule, it’s unwise for a sitting governor’s political operation to pick fights with kids via social media.
Youngkin acknowledged the screw-up, saying in a tweet this morning, “I regret that this happened and it shouldn’t have. I have addressed it with my team.”
All of which comes against a backdrop in which Youngkin is dealing with a variety of other controversies, including having pulled Virginia out of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, which will benefit no one — except polluters — while also trying to make Donald Trump’s favorite coal industry lobbyist the steward of Virginia’s natural resources.
He’s also touted a tip line parents can use to report school teachers who reference “divisive” subjects in classrooms. Asked to share the concerns raised via the tip line, Youngkin’s office said they’d remain hidden from the public.
Keep in mind, the new governor isn’t exactly pacing himself: Youngkin was only inaugurated 23 days ago. It usually takes newly elected statewide officials more than a few weeks to generate this many controversies. Circling back to our earlier coverage, there’s a larger significance to this that extends far from the commonwealth. Youngkin assured voters he’d focus on mainstream, kitchen-table issues. The subtext was hardly subtle: Virginians need not fear Republican governance. There would be no radical shifts from the fleece-wearing dad who likes basketball. It worked: GOP candidates cruised to victories up and down the ballot, fueled in part by voters who backed Democrats a year earlier, who assumed Republicans weren’t interested in a dramatic turn to the right. It’s a safe bet other Republicans will push similar messages in this year’s campaigns. It’s a dynamic that has plenty of observers concerned. Eugene Robinson argued in his latest column, “Youngkin, Earle-Sears and Miyares might look like something new — fresh-faced and laudably diverse — but so far, at least, they act more like members in good standing within the Cult of Trump. Someday, I hope, the Republican Party will escape the grip of a certain angry pensioner in Florida. Until then, don’t be fooled — and don’t give them your votes.”
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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