Virginia
Republican investment in Virginia coming ahead of election, GOP Chair says
NAACP urges Biden to halt weapons to Israel
SAs the 2024 U.S. presidential election draws near, pressure is mounting on President Joe Biden to do more to facilitate the end of the war in Gaza.
Virginia’s Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin doubled down on an idea that has been kicked around among pollsters and campaign folks recently: The commonwealth is in play for conservatives in the 2024 General Election.
Virginia has trended blue during presidential races since 2008 but some in the Republican Party believe that could change in November. And a recent poll conducted by Roanoke College shows the two presumptive nominees, President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, neck-in-neck with each garnering support from 42% of voters surveyed.
On CNN’s The Lead with Jake Tapper on Thursday, Youngkin echoed the optimism of Trump’s campaign manager, Chris LaCivita, who told NBC in May that Republicans have an opportunity to expand the map in Virginia.
“It is pretty stunning that in 2020 we saw Joe Biden win by 10 points, and I was fortunate enough to win by two [in 2021], but now we see Virginia very tight,” Youngkin said. “I think America and Virginia is ready to really give President Trump the White House back.”
The Democratic Party of Virginia disagreed with Youngkin’s assertion and said the governor has kowtowed to the former president throughout his term as head of the commonwealth.
“Youngkin’s governorship is over and while he continues to beg for attention from Trump and his cronies, like Chris LaCivitia, Virginia Democrats will beat Republicans and Trump just like they did in 2020,” Democratic Party Chair Susan Swecker said.
Both parties investing in the commonwealth?
Virginia’s Democratic Party, though skeptical of Trump’s ability to win in November, isn’t taking the election for granted. Virginia Democrats, along with the Biden-Harris campaign, have invested resources in the commonwealth over the last few months.
The Biden-Harris campaign has opened six offices across Virginia in both rural and urban areas with more expected to be opened in the coming months. The campaign has also launched a Black voter outreach program in Virginia.
“Trump is toxic and has no campaign presence in Virginia, while the Biden campaign is working to win every vote across the commonwealth,” State Senate President Pro tempore Louise Lucas, a Democrat, said. “[Trump is] welcome to waste his time campaigning here.”
And while it’s true that the Trump campaign has yet to invest heavily in the commonwealth, money, manpower and energy are coming soon to Virginia, Republican Party Chair Rich Anderson said.
“They are building out their operation in Virginia and will soon unveil their team and other particulars. My state party staff and I will meet with them in the near term to nail down the role that RPV will play in partnership with the RNC and the Trump 2024 team,” he said.
Trump’s campaign has said publicly and affirmed to Anderson privately that it considers Virginia to be a top-tier, in-play state, Anderson said.
What about Trump’s convictions, Nikki Haley’s voters, and Independents?
When asked by Tapper, Youngkin predicted that Independent voters in the commonwealth would vote for Trump. Independent voters made up 27% of those surveyed in the recent Roanoke College poll that saw the two presumptive nominees neck-in-neck.
He pointed to the economy, national security, energy policy and the southwestern border as reasons why he believes Virginia will swing red in November.
Roughly 35% of voters in Virginia’s Republican primary voted for Nikki Haley. A number of those voters who attended campaign rally in February in Richmond told USA Today that they would not vote for Trump even if he were the Republican nominee.
Youngkin told Tapper that he believes the Republican Party in Virginia is coming together to support the presumptive nominee, regardless of past candidates and differences of opinion. He also said that he believes voters won’t be swayed away from the former president despite his 34 felony convictions on counts of falsifying business documents.
The leader of the El Salvadorian MS-13 gang was arrested by federal law enforcement officers on Thursday, US President Donald Trump announced on his Truth Social platform.
“Just captured a major leader of MS13,” Trump wrote.
The 24-year-old suspect, Henrry Josue Villatoro Santos, was arrested in Woodbridge, Virginia, just south of Washington DC, local news reported. Officials have confirmed that he is one of the top three leaders of the gang within the United States.
The operation was a joint effort by the FBI, ATF, ICE, Virginia State Police, and the Prince William County Police Department, according to US Attorney-General Pam Bondi. Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel were present for the raid.
Santos was the leader of the gang for the US East Coast, Bondi announced.
“He is an illegal alien from El Salvador, and he will not be living in our country much longer,” Bondi said in a press conference.
Santos, originally from El Salvador, was taken into custody Thursday on what CNN described as an “outstanding administrative immigration warrant.”
During the raid, federal agents found numerous firearms within the place where Santos was residing. He was charged with illegal possession of a firearm.
“It’s time for us to recognize that Virginia is not a sanctuary state,” Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin said in a statement.
Youngkin had recently threatened to withhold state funding for local government if they did not cooperate with federal immigration authorities.
Recruited in middle school?
During an interview on “The Ingraham Angle” on Fox News, Bondi explained who Santos is and how he became the leader of MS-13 on the East Coast.
“We believe he was recruited in middle school – in middle school!” she said.
“He’s been living here illegally with friends and family, and the Biden administration did absolutely nothing to deport these people. You know, as the president says, we didn’t need new laws, we needed a new president to fix this.”
A task force that consisted of the Drug Enforcement Administration, FBI, US Marshals, and others worked together with ICE to collect and share data to catch Santos, Bondi explained to Fox News host Laura Ingraham.
“He was one of the top leaders, and he was living half an hour from where we’re sitting right now, living among us,” Bondi said. “We took one of the worst of the worst off the streets today. Americans are safer because of Donald Trump.”
Bondi said that the Justice Department will try to deport Santos to the Terrorism Confinement Center in El Salvador.
“Let’s send him home. That’s where he belongs,” she said. “You know, he belongs back in that El Salvador prison, and that’s where he should go, but we’re going to – you’re going to see a lot more charges on him.”
What is MS-13?
Mara Salvatrucha, also known as MS-13, is an internationally recognized criminal gang and terrorist organization that originated in Los Angeles, California, in the 1980s by El Salvadorian immigrants that came to the US to escape the civil war at the time.
Some of the original members of the group were trained in guerilla warfare and the use of military weapons, the Office of Justice Programs explained.
MS-13 is also known for the use of fear and intimidation to extort payments from legitimate or illegitimate business owners to conduct their businesses in MS-13 territory.
They are also notorious for rapes and witness intimidations.
Virginia
GPS technology legend and Virginia native Gladys West reflects on her career and contributions
PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY, Va. – The identity of the top MS-13 gang leader who was arrested on Thursday morning in Dale City has been released.
MS-13 gang leader arrested
What we know:
The 24-year-old suspect has been identified as Henrry Josue Villatoro Santos. The suspect was illegally in possession of guns, silencers, and additional items at the time of his arrest.
READ MORE: What is MS-13? Here’s what we know
According to Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin, the arrest took place in Dale City on Thursday morning.
The suspect was charged with being an undocumented immigrant in possession of a firearm.
AG Bondi shared officials have been working on this operation for days and weeks. The suspect apprehended was the top leader of MS-13 for the U.S. East Coast.
“He is an illegal alien from El Salvador, and he will not be living in our country much longer.”
President Trump’s response
What they’re saying:
“Great job by Pam Bondi, Kash Patel, Tom HOMAN, and Kristi N, on the capture of MS13 leader – A big deal!” President Donald Trump wrote on social media.
The Trump administration has deported several top members of MS-13 to El Salvador for incarceration.
The Source: Information from FOX News and The Associated Press was used to write this report.
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