Glenn Youngkin's campaign deletes tweet attacking minor after outrage — but the governor still hasn't apologized
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin has been in office for a little over a month but it appears to be one of the worst of his political career.
The Republican has been faced with increased criticism after attempting to ban masks at schools. He's encountered Virginia voters shouting at him to wear a mask in a public grocery in a progressive community. Now he's being forced to face backlash from a public attack his campaign made against a minor.
The campaign Twitter account went after a 17-year-old high school student who tweeted a Virginia Public Media story about the governor's mansion clearing out the office of the historian who teaches about slavery to tourists. Youngkin's team disputes the characterization. As of this weekend, the historian had resigned.
Glenn Youngkin\u2019s campaign Twitter account attacked a Hanover County high school student, @ethanclynne, last night after he shared my story. The Tweet was deleted after blowback and I\u2019ve asked Youngkin\u2019s team for an explanation. Ethan says he hasn\u2019t heard anything from them.pic.twitter.com/YWMmLCOQys— Ben Paviour (@Ben Paviour) 1644156229
The campaign for the governor has deleted the tweet, but according to the teen, he hasn't heard anything from them, much less an apology from the governor. He has tweeted a quote from former President Ronald Reagan.
"Last night, the Governors official campaign account attacked me, a high-school senior and 17-year-old on Twitter. I want to thank everyone for all of the calls/texts of support. They deleted it, but I have received no communication from the Governor's office," the statement from the teen read.
“In school, we are taught how to spot bullying, and their tweet last night, perfectly fit that description,” he continued in his statement. "It is disgusting, disturbing, and unbecoming of the Commonwealth to see the Governor and his office stoop this low, especially on a public platform."
pic.twitter.com/xXftkrEeL7— Ethan Lynne (@Ethan Lynne) 1644158390
In a statement, the campaign attacked the teen further, claiming that he was a “Democrat Party official," which isn't true, he worked as an unpaid intern. The statement claimed that because elected officials had retweeted the youngster he is fair game for attacks from the Republican governor.
