Washington Examiner chief political correspondent Byron York compared Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY).
York said Spanberger campaigned in the Virginia gubernatorial race on a centrist platform, being “portrayed in the media every day as a moderate.” Her 15% margin of victory in November comes as “progressives and moderates” within the Democratic Party battle for control, with lawmakers like Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) representing the former group.
“So now, she [Spanberger] becomes the governor of Virginia, and what does she do? First of all, she rejoins something called the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, which is a climate group that the former Republican governor had taken Virginia out of,” York said on Fox News Live. “That’s exactly the sort of thing that, say, AOC would do if she’d become governor.”
York also said Spanberger’s decision to sign an executive order terminating any cooperation with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is in line with what Ocasio-Cortez would do. Spanberger’s attempt to “raise more taxes” through various means, including on fantasy sports contests, is the “sort of thing” a progressive Democratic leader would do, York explained.
York noted that these possible tax increases come after Spanberger has made “big promises” on state-supported healthcare and childcare, and needs to find funding “somewhere.”
He concluded that while it’s possible some of Spanberger’s plans for the state “won’t work,” the governor can still issue executive orders to carry out actions, meaning there’s “not a whole lot you can do about it.”
TRANSGENDER SEX OFFENDER RICHARD COX FOUND GUILTY OF CHILD PORNOGRAPHY CHARGES
Spanberger signed a bill on Friday that sends several constitutional amendments on redistricting, same-sex marriage, redistricting, and abortion to Virginia voters. The governor said the new redistricting map, which heavily favors Democrats, is “temporary and responsive.”
The amendments are all expected to pass in November.
