Virginia’s already tense off-year elections have taken a shocking turn — and not the kind that fades after a few news cycles. Text messages from Democratic attorney general nominee Jay Jones have emerged that are so grotesque, so clearly beyond the pale of normal political discourse, that they’ve managed to unite Republicans and even some Democrats in alarm. And now, President Donald Trump himself is weighing in, calling on Jones to end his campaign immediately.
In a Sunday Truth Social post, Trump didn’t mince words. “It has just come out that the Radical Left Lunatic, Jay Jones… made SICK and DEMENTED jokes, if they were jokes at all, which were not funny… concerning the murdering of a Republican Legislator, his wife, and their children,” he wrote, giving his “complete and total endorsement” to incumbent Attorney General Jason Miyares. Trump’s response reflects a growing sentiment among Republicans — and increasingly among voters in Virginia — that Jones’s candidacy has entered what one strategist called “resignation territory.”
The scandal began when texts obtained by National Review revealed Jones, then a former state delegate, sending violent messages about GOP House Speaker Todd Gilbert. “Three people, two bullets,” one message read. “Gilbert gets two bullets to the head.” Another placed Gilbert alongside “Hitler and Pol Pot.” The messages, reportedly sent to Republican delegate Carrie Coyner, prompted an immediate rebuke from her. Jones’s later apology — “I am so deeply, deeply sorry for what I said… I would take it back if I could” — has done little to quell outrage.
Jay Jones “should probably be forced to withdraw from the race.”
You know it’s serious when you’ve lost MSNBC. pic.twitter.com/JNRaIS4DKR
— RAGA (@RepublicanAGs) October 6, 2025
Governor hopeful Abigail Spanberger released a statement condemning the comments, calling them “disgusting” and saying she spoke “frankly” with Jones about taking full responsibility. But her refusal to call for his withdrawal has only deepened the political fault lines. To conservatives, Spanberger’s hesitation underscores a troubling double standard: violent rhetoric from the left is excused as “a lapse in judgment,” while far lesser comments from the right become career-ending scandals.
Vice President J.D. Vance was blunt: “The Democrat candidate for AG in Virginia has been fantasizing about murdering his political opponents,” he posted on X. “I’m sure the people hyperventilating about sombrero memes will join me in calling for this very deranged person to drop out.”
At issue isn’t merely one candidate’s poor judgment — it’s a culture of political tolerance for vitriol when it comes from the “right” side of the aisle. The texts aren’t just offensive; they’re emblematic of a rot in political culture where violence is joked about when convenient and condemned only when politically useful.
And all this unfolds as Americans confront a real spike in politically motivated violence, including the recent killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Against that backdrop, Jones’s words land not as off-color humor, but as a chilling reflection of how normalized hatred has become in politics.
The question for Virginia voters now is not whether Jay Jones regrets his words — he’s said as much — but whether such words can coexist with the office he seeks. For a would-be attorney general, whose duty would be to uphold the rule of law, the optics are disqualifying.
If Jones refuses to withdraw, the voters may have to do the job for him.
