Bacon's Rebellion

Democracy Thrives in Sunlight

Live by the Sword

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sherlockj
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Del. Jerrauld C. Jones. Credit: Washington Post

by James C. Sherlock.

This is a follow up to Jim Bacon’s story about Levar Stoney, his contributor and city statue removal contractor, credible accusations of corruption and Attorney General Herring.

From the Washington Washington Post:

“In what may become a heated Democratic primary contest for Virginia attorney general, state Del. Jerrauld C. “Jay” Jones Friday attacked Attorney General Mark R. Herring (D) Friday for authorizing an investigation into allegations of impropriety surrounding Richmond’s mayor — a standard move in an ongoing court case that Jones called a Trump-like abuse of power. “Using the office of the Attorney General to investigate your political opponents is the same tactic employed by Donald Trump,” Jones (D-Norfolk) said in a statement, referring to the fact that Richmond Mayor Levar A. Stoney has endorsed him, and not Herring, for the Democratic nomination for attorney general this year.”

Welcome to the quicksand of the left, General Herring.

You are now officially accused of abuse of public office for “authorizing an investigation” into allegations of corruption on Stoney’s part. Not indicting, investigating. As is your job.

Del. Jones saw an opening, and he jumped through it instantly. He is an attorney and knows that it is the job of the AG to investigate credible charges of corruption in public officials, but the subtext is race.

Of course.  Jones, Stoney and the contractor are black. Herring is white. That will be the story of the Democratic AG contest going forward.

Herring has $5 million in his campaign chest but has lived by the sword of race — see the Loudoun County Schools “finding” — and is now at risk of dying by it.  Look for donations to pour in to Jones’ campaign.

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26 responses to “Live by the Sword”

  1. Steve Haner Avatar
    Steve Haner

    Hmmm, is Stoney’s ex wife still a section chief over there? Messy, messy…But a bit of a cheap shot on Jones’ part nonetheless. Interesting he is sending a message that he will make such decisions on political basis rather than being above politics. Just a guess from somebody who used to be inside there — if there was zero evidence of questionable activity, if the preliminary look found everything copacetic, the State Police would not have been authorized to keep digging. May still be nothing, innocent until proved and all that, but it is not prima facie nothing.

    1. sherlockj Avatar
      sherlockj

      It was indeed a cheap shot.

      Jay Jones, who I like and has represented me in a legal matter on one occasion, certainly knows it was Herring’s job to refer the matter for investigation.

      This move surprises and disappoints me, but he and Stoney can now combine to make Jones a strong contender on the back of this issue. Ain’t beanbag.

  2. Dick Hall-Sizemore Avatar
    Dick Hall-Sizemore

    It was a cheap shot and a totally misleading one. I was surprised and disappointed at Jones.

    Here is the background of the involvement of Herring and the State Police as I explained yesterday:

    Last summer, because the Richmond Commonwealth’s Attorney recused herself from investigating the complaint registered by a Richmond City councilwoman, a Richmond judge appointed Timothy Martin, the Augusta County Commonwealth’s attorney as special prosecutor. Martin, not having the resources to conduct a thorough investigation, asked the State Police to help. Statutory law, Sec. 52-8.2, prohibits the State Police from investigating any elected state or local official “except upon the request of the Governor, Attorney General or a grand jury.” So, the State Police asked the Attorney General for authorization and Herring provided it. That is fairly routine in such cases. In fact, Herring could hardly have refused. If he had, there would have been charges of a cover-up or protecting Stoney. The special prosecutor, Martin, remains in charge of the investigation. https://www.dailypress.com/news/dp-nw-herring-authorizes-probe-richmond-statue-contract-20210116-zarg45c37fdbjcf3iv4ii7jw7y-story.html

    The back story is that Herring has authorized the State Police to investigate Sen. Joe Morrissey and Stoney, each time at the request of a prosecutor. Both Morrissey and Stoney have endorsed Jones, and he is trying to make an issue of Herring’s involvement. By the way, the misdemeanor charges against Morrissey were dropped. https://richmond.com/news/local/herring-authorizes-state-police-investigation-into-richmond-mayors-removal-of-confederate-statues/article_3fbcccaa-7572-5b9d-b331-0675b322895b.html

  3. Nancy_Naive Avatar
    Nancy_Naive

    Hey guys, cheat shots are fodder for opinion pieces. Seriously, where would you be without someone taking them every now, then, and again?

    Please don’t t’row me in d’briar patch.

  4. James Wyatt Whitehead V Avatar
    James Wyatt Whitehead V

    We shall find out which one is Br’er Rabbit, Br’er Bear, and Br’er Fox!

    Everybody’s got
    A laughing place
    A laughing place
    To go ho ho
    Take a frown
    Turn it upside down
    And you’ll find yours
    I know ho ho

  5. LarrytheG Avatar
    LarrytheG

    Damned if you do, damned if you don’t.

    This is the crucible of public office these days and truth be known,
    politics has always been a “contact” sport.

  6. James A. Bacon Avatar
    James A. Bacon

    Thanks for posting this, Jim. I was hoping to say something myself, but I just haven’t had time to do it.

    You nailed it. Jones is playing the race card in his contest with Herring…. which is sweet justice because Herring has been positioning himself as a progressive on race for years. But it’s hard for a white guy to trump a black guy in that regard.

    Here is the operative sentence in the press release you quoted from: “This Martin Luther King Day weekend, we should all be reaffirming our commitment to building a more just and equitable Virginia. Instead, Mark Herring is playing politics with Confederate statues, causing more unnecessary pain to Black Virginians. We must lean into the urgency of this historic moment with actions that reflect our commitment to true racial justice, not political gamesmanship or retribution toward our political opponents.”

    That was not a one-off statement. Jones issued another press release attacking Herring for his stance on the death penalty.

    “It is no secret that this practice impacts Black citizens more than any other group, and this is not only alarming but a necessary reform to our justice system that treats every person fairly and similarly under the law.”

    “I also fervently disagree with my primary opponent, Mark Herring, on this matter. We should not expand the use of the death penalty or continue to defend the statutes that impact minority communities disproportionately. This is a long held position of mine and it is shameful that those with the ability to influence the conversation in a meaningful way have thus far remained silent until it has ultimately become a popular place to land.”

    Republicans, as we have lamented, have deep, deep schisms. But Democrats do, too. The press just doesn’t talk about them as much. It will be interesting to see if, in our age of hyper-wokeness, someone plays the race card against Terry McAuliffe.

    1. sherlockj Avatar
      sherlockj

      Count on it.

    2. LarrytheG Avatar
      LarrytheG

      re: ” the race card against Terry McAuliffe”

      nah… I think he’s smarter than that and besides if someone tosses the confederate statues thing to McAuliffe, Chase and Cox… McAuliffe might just step back out of the way and watch, maybe point at or stir up more.

      On these issues, the Dems have a case of acne, the GOP, flesh-eating disease…

    3. sherlockj Avatar
      sherlockj

      The statement by Jones on the death penalty is particularly strange since he and Herring have the same position – end it.

      From January 9:
      RICHMOND, Va. (CBS19 NEWS) — Attorney General Mark R. Herring issued the following statement expressing his support for efforts by Governor Ralph Northam and legislative leaders to end the death penalty at the state level in the 2020 legislative session.

      “It is time for Virginia to end the death penalty and I will support Governor Northam’s efforts to make it happen this year. Its abolition must be part of our work to reform a flawed and imperfect criminal justice system.”

      It reminds me of when years ago a Mississippi politician accused his opponent of being “a well known heterosexual”. He won the race.

  7. CREGUY Avatar
    CREGUY

    I can’t believe I’m typing this (b/c I think the Governor’s race will be an enormous Democratic victory), but I suspect Virginia will have a Republican Attorney General in 2022.

    1. LarrytheG Avatar
      LarrytheG

      not going to disagree with that..

      1. LarrytheG Avatar
        LarrytheG

        and add to that – why can’t the Va GOP do something similar for the GOV ? Looks like Chase’s main role is to kneecap Cox… GO GOP!

  8. Steve Haner Avatar
    Steve Haner

    Hmmm, is Stoney’s ex wife still a section chief over there? Messy, messy…But a bit of a cheap shot on Jones’ part nonetheless. Interesting he is sending a message that he will make such decisions on political basis rather than being above politics. Just a guess from somebody who used to be inside there — if there was zero evidence of questionable activity, if the preliminary look found everything copacetic, the State Police would not have been authorized to keep digging. May still be nothing, innocent until proved and all that, but it is not prima facie nothing.

    1. sherlockj Avatar
      sherlockj

      It was indeed a cheap shot.

      Jay Jones, who I like and has represented me in a legal matter on one occasion, certainly knows it was Herring’s job to refer the matter for investigation.

      This move surprises and disappoints me, but he and Stoney can now combine to make Jones a strong contender on the back of this issue. Ain’t beanbag.

  9. Dick Hall-Sizemore Avatar
    Dick Hall-Sizemore

    It was a cheap shot and a totally misleading one. I was surprised and disappointed at Jones.

    Here is the background of the involvement of Herring and the State Police as I explained yesterday:

    Last summer, because the Richmond Commonwealth’s Attorney recused herself from investigating the complaint registered by a Richmond City councilwoman, a Richmond judge appointed Timothy Martin, the Augusta County Commonwealth’s attorney as special prosecutor. Martin, not having the resources to conduct a thorough investigation, asked the State Police to help. Statutory law, Sec. 52-8.2, prohibits the State Police from investigating any elected state or local official “except upon the request of the Governor, Attorney General or a grand jury.” So, the State Police asked the Attorney General for authorization and Herring provided it. That is fairly routine in such cases. In fact, Herring could hardly have refused. If he had, there would have been charges of a cover-up or protecting Stoney. The special prosecutor, Martin, remains in charge of the investigation. https://www.dailypress.com/news/dp-nw-herring-authorizes-probe-richmond-statue-contract-20210116-zarg45c37fdbjcf3iv4ii7jw7y-story.html

    The back story is that Herring has authorized the State Police to investigate Sen. Joe Morrissey and Stoney, each time at the request of a prosecutor. Both Morrissey and Stoney have endorsed Jones, and he is trying to make an issue of Herring’s involvement. By the way, the misdemeanor charges against Morrissey were dropped. https://richmond.com/news/local/herring-authorizes-state-police-investigation-into-richmond-mayors-removal-of-confederate-statues/article_3fbcccaa-7572-5b9d-b331-0675b322895b.html

  10. Nancy_Naive Avatar
    Nancy_Naive

    Hey guys, cheat shots are fodder for opinion pieces. Seriously, where would you be without someone taking them every now, then, and again?

    Please don’t t’row me in d’briar patch.

  11. James Wyatt Whitehead V Avatar
    James Wyatt Whitehead V

    We shall find out which one is Br’er Rabbit, Br’er Bear, and Br’er Fox!

    Everybody’s got
    A laughing place
    A laughing place
    To go ho ho
    Take a frown
    Turn it upside down
    And you’ll find yours
    I know ho ho

  12. LarrytheG Avatar
    LarrytheG

    Damned if you do, damned if you don’t.

    This is the crucible of public office these days and truth be known,
    politics has always been a “contact” sport.

  13. James A. Bacon Avatar
    James A. Bacon

    Thanks for posting this, Jim. I was hoping to say something myself, but I just haven’t had time to do it.

    You nailed it. Jones is playing the race card in his contest with Herring…. which is sweet justice because Herring has been positioning himself as a progressive on race for years. But it’s hard for a white guy to trump a black guy in that regard.

    Here is the operative sentence in the press release you quoted from: “This Martin Luther King Day weekend, we should all be reaffirming our commitment to building a more just and equitable Virginia. Instead, Mark Herring is playing politics with Confederate statues, causing more unnecessary pain to Black Virginians. We must lean into the urgency of this historic moment with actions that reflect our commitment to true racial justice, not political gamesmanship or retribution toward our political opponents.”

    That was not a one-off statement. Jones issued another press release attacking Herring for his stance on the death penalty.

    “It is no secret that this practice impacts Black citizens more than any other group, and this is not only alarming but a necessary reform to our justice system that treats every person fairly and similarly under the law.”

    “I also fervently disagree with my primary opponent, Mark Herring, on this matter. We should not expand the use of the death penalty or continue to defend the statutes that impact minority communities disproportionately. This is a long held position of mine and it is shameful that those with the ability to influence the conversation in a meaningful way have thus far remained silent until it has ultimately become a popular place to land.”

    Republicans, as we have lamented, have deep, deep schisms. But Democrats do, too. The press just doesn’t talk about them as much. It will be interesting to see if, in our age of hyper-wokeness, someone plays the race card against Terry McAuliffe.

    1. sherlockj Avatar
      sherlockj

      Count on it.

    2. LarrytheG Avatar
      LarrytheG

      re: ” the race card against Terry McAuliffe”

      nah… I think he’s smarter than that and besides if someone tosses the confederate statues thing to McAuliffe, Chase and Cox… McAuliffe might just step back out of the way and watch, maybe point at or stir up more.

      On these issues, the Dems have a case of acne, the GOP, flesh-eating disease…

    3. sherlockj Avatar
      sherlockj

      The statement by Jones on the death penalty is particularly strange since he and Herring have the same position – end it.

      From January 9:
      RICHMOND, Va. (CBS19 NEWS) — Attorney General Mark R. Herring issued the following statement expressing his support for efforts by Governor Ralph Northam and legislative leaders to end the death penalty at the state level in the 2020 legislative session.

      “It is time for Virginia to end the death penalty and I will support Governor Northam’s efforts to make it happen this year. Its abolition must be part of our work to reform a flawed and imperfect criminal justice system.”

      It reminds me of when years ago a Mississippi politician accused his opponent of being “a well known heterosexual”. He won the race.

  14. CREGUY Avatar
    CREGUY

    I can’t believe I’m typing this (b/c I think the Governor’s race will be an enormous Democratic victory), but I suspect Virginia will have a Republican Attorney General in 2022.

    1. LarrytheG Avatar
      LarrytheG

      not going to disagree with that..

      1. LarrytheG Avatar
        LarrytheG

        and add to that – why can’t the Va GOP do something similar for the GOV ? Looks like Chase’s main role is to kneecap Cox… GO GOP!

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