by Brandon Jarvis
Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed a fundraising email sent from his Spirit of Virginia PAC that refers to Virginia as a border state and blames Democrats in the Senate for killing a bill that would have allowed for fentanyl dealers to be charged with murder.
“The crisis at our southern border has turned every state into a border state. We are all experiencing the consequences of the federal government’s failure to secure our country, especially as we watch the fentanyl that’s trafficked across our border wreak havoc in our communities,” the fundraising email begins.
Youngkin then references the 100 National Guard troops that he sent to the southern border earlier this summer. “I have a responsibility to do whatever I can to stop this poison that’s killing people in our Commonwealth,” he wrote. “That’s why I didn’t hesitate when Governor Greg Abbott asked for additional resources to assist in critical border security efforts in Texas.”
He also touts a project that he put into place with law enforcement across the commonwealth aimed at getting deadly drugs off the streets. Only a small portion of the drugs seized were fentanyl, however. “I launched Operation Bold Blue Line – a partnership between Virginia State Police and local police departments across the Commonwealth to keep dangerous drugs off our streets,” he wrote. “Since we launched this partnership, Operation Bold Blue Line has resulted in the seizure of more than 1 ton of illicit narcotics, including 47 pounds of fentanyl.”
Youngkin, after blaming the federal government for failing to secure the border and preventing illegal drugs from entering the country, then shifts his blame to Democrats in the state Senate.
“Unfortunately, our efforts to punish the criminals who sell deadly fentanyl in our neighborhoods have been blocked by the far-left in control of the Virginia Senate,” Youngkin wrote. “Drug dealers who sell poison like fentanyl that results in someone’s death should be charged with murder, and I backed legislation in our General Assembly to do exactly that. But the extreme liberals in charge of our Senate derailed this commonsense proposal, siding with drug dealers over fentanyl victims and their families.”
Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee did kill a bill that would have created felony murder charges for drug dealers but they expressed concerns that it would have stopped efforts to allow individuals to call 911 if someone is experiencing an overdose.
Virginia’s “good Samaritan law” protects people who use drugs from being prosecuted for possession if they call for help when someone they are with is overdosing.
The bill from Youngkin would have allowed authorities to charge dealers with murder if someone who bought from them died.
The House of Delegates advanced the same bill but it also died in the Senate after crossover.
Youngkin points out in his fundraising email that the only way to eventually pass the legislation is to flip the Senate and give Republicans control of both chambers later this year. “The only way we can take meaningful action to combat fentanyl and the criminals who sell it is by bringing new leadership to the Senate in Virginia,” he wrote.
The donation link goes directly to a page for his Spirit of Virginia PAC. “If we flip the Senate, I’ll have committed allies in the General Assembly to pass legislation that targets fentanyl dealers whose drugs are ripping our communities apart,” Youngkin wrote.
Youngkin is doing a full-court press to try and flip the Senate on issues like parent’s rights and law and order. Democrats are putting forth the same efforts to keep control of the Senate to stop Youngkin and Republicans from enacting tougher restrictions on abortion access.
Expect there to be many bombs thrown by each party over the next few months. All 140 seats of the General Assembly are up for reelection.
Election day is Nov. 7 and the first day of early voting is Sept. 22.
