Virginia
Trump leans in on immigration, crime during campaign stop in Richmond • Virginia Mercury
Former President Donald Trump made a campaign stop in Richmond Saturday ahead of Super Tuesday, a day of primary voting that is expected to seal his bid to be the Republican nominee for president in November.
“With your help, we will win big on Super Tuesday,” Trump told the crowd of a few thousand at the Richmond Convention Center. “This November, Virginia is going to tell crooked Joe Biden, you’re fired, you’re fired, get out of here, get out of the White House.”
A recent national poll conducted by The New York Times and Siena College found Trump has a 5 point lead over Biden. But those results may not be mirrored in Virginia: In their last matchup in 2020, Biden beat Trump in Virginia by 10 percentage points. The results of a separate poll from the Institute for Policy and Opinion Research at Roanoke College released Friday found Biden had a 4 percentage point lead over Trump among Virginians. That poll also found that if Trump challenger Nikki Haley, a former South Carolina governor, were the Republican nominee, she would beat Biden in Virginia by a solid 9 points.
Calling himself a “political dissident” Saturday evening, Trump’s speech in Richmond largely focused on immigration and crime. He specifically cited the recent death of Laken Riley, a 22-year-old University of Georgia nursing student whom authorities say was beaten to death by a Venezuelan migrant, and the shooting death of a 2-year-old in Montgomery County, Maryland. Law enforcement has arrested five suspects in the latter case, one of whom is a Salvador national who was slated for deportation last year but was later released by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
“We now have a new category of crime, you know what it’s called? It’s called migrant crime. And this category is turning out to be worse than any crime we’ve ever had in our country,” Trump said. “I was going to call it Biden migrant crime. But if you do that it’s too long. It doesn’t work.”
Trump pledged that if elected, he would “terminate every open border policy of the Biden administration” on his first day in office.
“We will begin the largest domestic deportation operation in American history,” he said. “We have no choice. This is not sustainable by any country.”
Immigration, he warned the audience, was also affecting schools: “In New York, they have pupils from foreign countries, from countries where they don’t even know what the language is. We have nobody that even teaches it,” Trump said. “These are languages that nobody ever heard of. They’re sitting in the school chairs of people, of kids, that were there, and those kids aren’t able to go to school any longer. There’s no place they can go. They’re taking the school, and they don’t speak a word of English.”
Richmond resident Joe Wilson, 27, who said he attended the rally not to support Trump but to witness the movement behind him, said “it’s kind of fascinating the amount of pandemonium he can cause. I just can’t wrap my head around it.”
During his speech, Trump touted himself as “the first president in decades who started no new wars” and claimed that had he been in office in October, Hamas wouldn’t have “thought” of attacking Israel. Dealing with adversaries like China, Russia and North Korea, he said, was easier than “dealing with radical-left lunatics in the United States.”
Trump’s stance on the U.S.’ global position resonated with attendee Brad Slaybaugh, 58, of Colonial Heights.
“Where do you want me to start — you want to talk about China, you want to talk about Russia, you want to talk about Israel, you want to talk about Ukraine, you want to talk about the border, you talk about the economy, talk about fossil fuels?” Slaybaugh said in response to a question about what appealed to him about Trump. “Our status in the world’s fallen. The world is chaos, because we’re not strong and they know it.”
Trump also struck many familiar themes on domestic issues Saturday: He urged oil producers to “drill, baby, drill” in order to secure U.S. energy independence, touted tax and regulatory cuts passed during his term and decried recent nationwide inflation.
Chesterfield residents Thomas and Debra Tubbs, 64 and 65, said cost of living was one of their reasons for supporting Trump.
“A lot of medicine because of him came down in price, especially senior citizens in particular,” said Debra Tubbs. “We go to the store and spend $250, we come out of there with nearly nothing. It’s really affecting everything.”
Trump made no mention of Virginia Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who was long rumored to be toying with a presidential bid of his own. Youngkin’s rise to power in the increasingly blue-leaning Virginia — a feat he accomplished by keeping a careful distance from Trump but avoiding any overt criticism of the former president that could alienate supporters — was seen by many as offering a new playbook for Republicans in less deep-red states.
Youngkin, whom Trump took a swipe at in a bizarre social media post in November 2022, did not attend the rally. He told the Richmond Times-Dispatch he had a previously scheduled family commitment. Youngkin’s name was also not included on a list of 40 Republican leaders endorsing Trump that his campaign released Friday. Nor were Republicans Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears, who has called Trump a “liability to the mission,” Attorney General Jason Miyares or Congresswoman Jen Kiggans.
In addition to Del. Wren Williams, R-Patrick, who addressed the crowd before Trump took the stage, in attendance for the event were U.S. Rep. Bob Good (R-Campbell), and state Sen. John McGuire (R-Goochland). Good and McGuire are locked in a heated battle to represent Virginia’s 5th Congressional District.
The Tubbs said they thought former Ambassador and South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley would be a good pick for Trump’s vice president as a way to win over female voters. Haley stopped in western Henrico Thursday for a rally of her own ahead of Super Tuesday.
“She’s got a lot of good ideas,” said Debra Tubbs. Thomas Tubbs quickly added, “He’s got the balls to carry it out.”
Earlier in the day, Democrats held a counter rally in Richmond featuring U.S. Rep. Jennifer McClellan (D-Richmond), who focused on the threat Trump could pose to reproductive rights if elected to a second term. Most recently, Trump has floated the idea of a 15- or 16-week ban on the procedure.
“Even though Virginians stopped MAGA Republicans’ attempts to pass an extreme abortion ban here in Virginia by voting at the ballot box this past November, the stakes could not be higher for reproductive freedom this November,” McClellan said.
While other Trump rallies have drawn sharp counter protests, Saturday’s event sparked little organized activity from opponents. A truck playing a video in support of Haley’s bid drove around the rally site before it began, and a few people held up signs, one of which called Trump a dictator.
“Your Fellow AMERICANS are NOT the Enemy,” read the other.
A hospital in Virginia shut down its neonatal intensive care unit after three pre-term babies were found with “unexplainable fractures” – more than a year after several newborns suffered similar injuries.
Henrico Doctors’ Hospital in Richmond paused all admissions to its NICU and initiated an internal investigation after medical officials made the disturbing discovery in late November and December.
“Out of an abundance of caution, we are not admitting any additional babies into our NICU at this time,” the hospital said in a statement on its website, adding that it informed families, authorities and regulatory agencies of their findings.
“While fractures occasionally happen with pre-term babies since they lack full fetal bone development, we are actively working to determine how these fractures occurred.”
The medical center said the injuries shared similarities to an incident involving four babies last summer, explaining that they are taking immediate steps to enhance safety measures in the hospital wing.
Safety improvements include mandatory training for staff who interact with minors, refined examinations, new security, an observer system, and live-streaming technology allowing parents to view their babies.
Footage from the NICU has also been provided to “proper authorities,” with healthcare professionals reviewing hospital surveillance, the medical center said.
“The process is thorough and time-consuming, but they are making steady progress,” the hospital wrote.
“So far during our review of the videos, no misconduct or accidental actions have been found. The safety of our NICU babies is our highest priority and we are actively working to pursue additional precautions to prevent any future incidents.”
The Virginia Department of Health, along with state police, is also probing the unsettling situation, according to Fox Richmond.
Henrico police said no charges have been filed.
“Henrico County is prepared to utilize all available resources to ensure a thorough investigation,” police said in a statement to the outlet.
“Henrico police are partnering with Child Protective Services within Henrico’s Department of Social Services, Virginia State Police, and the Virginia Health Department, and the Attorney General’s Office to ensure all evidence is examined meticulously.”
MORGANTOWN, West Virginia — New West Virginia head coach Rich Rodriguez has been hard at work putting together his staff, attempting to keep players on the current roster, and finding players in the transfer portal.
Since Neal Brown was fired earlier this month, West Virginia has lost 18 players to the transfer portal, including Jaylen Anderson, Ryder Burton, Raleigh Collins, Hudson Clement, TJ Crandall, CJ Donaldson, Will Dixon, Aiden Ellis, Ric’Darious Farmer, Ayden Garnes, Josiah Jackson, Trey Lathan, Sullivan Weidman, Tomas Rimac, Bryce Briggs, Josiah Trotter, Johnny Williams IV and Obinna Onwuka.
Since Rodriguez has taken over, he has brought two players from Jacksonville State – former Martinsburg High School players Jarod Bowie and Jacob Barrick – as well as Tulsa offensive line transfer Walter Young Bear, Jordan Scruggs, a cornerback from South Alabama and Oran Singleton, a wide receiver from Eastern Michigan.
Rodriguez now has his eyes set on several players who are set to Morgantown in the coming weeks. Here’s who West Virginia is currently targeting in the transfer portal:
1. Cam Vaughn: Vaughn tells me that he has already visited West Virginia, but has other visits set up in the coming days. Vaughn, a freshman from Temple, Georgia, 49 receptions for 804 yards and 5 touchdowns last season under Rodriguez at Jacksonville State. Vaughn is a big (6’2) receiver with great speed who would be a perfect big-play receiver for the Mountaineers. (8/10 confidence)
2. Fred Perry: Perry, a 5’11 safety from Vienna, Georgia, is another former Jacksonville State player who has visited West Virginia since Rodriguez became the head coach of the Mountaineers. An All-Conference player last year, Perry finished his junior year with 97 tackles (42 solo), nine tackles for loss, three sacks, two forced fumbles, two pass breakups and two quarterback hurries. (9/10 confidence)
3. Hauss Hejny: Hejny, a 6’0 freshman quarterback from Aledo, Texas, Hejny had 15 rushes for 65 yards at TCU during his freshman season, but did not throw a pass. Hejny has followed several WVU-related accounts over the last couple of days on social media and clearly has interest, but it remains to be seen if West Virginia has the same level of interest. Since entering the portal last week, Hejny has reportedly been contacted by BYU, James Madison, UCF, Utah, and Utah State. Hejny would be an ideal backup to presumed starting quarterback Nicco Marchiol, but he may want to play immediately. With elite speed and athleticism, Hejny could make his way on the field next season in certain spots while he develops under Marchiol for the next two seasons. West Virginia has its starter, but will need to add depth with freshman Khalil Wilkins not yet ready to step in to lead the program yet. (7/10 confidence)
4. David Pantelis: In four seasons with Yale, David Pantelis has 127 career receptions 1,778 career receiving yards, and 17 career touchdowns. That’s an average of 14 yards per reception. He also averaged 52.3 yards per game. Pantelis was exceptional in 2024, finishing the season with 69 receptions for 1,018 yards and 11 touchdowns in 11 games. (8/10 confidence)
5. Adam Tomczyk: A 6’3 250 pound defensive end, Tomczyk is an under-the-radar player who the coaching staff has identified as a Power 4 talent who can contribute immediately. According to his social media footprint, Tomczyk and West Virginia have major mutual interest right now. (9/10 confidence)
6. Matthew Henry: A 6’1 wide receiver from Miami, Florida, Henry had 63 receptions for 1,179 yards and 6 touchdowns this season at Western Illinois before entering the transfer portal. Henry is an ultra-talented receiver who has a ton of experience. (8/10 confidence)
7. Mo Westmoreland II: A two-time JUCO All-American, 2 time Conference USA first team All-Conference player and Conference USA’s Sack Leader in 2024 with 7.5 sacks, Westmoreland is an experienced, proven player on the defensive line that West Virginia is very high on. (9/10 confidence)
8. Chris Henry, Jr.: The son of former West Virginia wide receiver Chris Henry and the “nephew” of Adam “Pacman” Jones, Henry, Jr. is the #1 rated wide receiver, the #1 player in California and the #6 overall rated player in the nation, and is reportedly being heavily recruited by Rodriguez and the Mountaineers. Although he is currently still “locked in” as a commit at Ohio State, there are multiple programs, including West Virginia, attempting to steal him from the Buckeyes. Henry recently told national recruiting analyst Tom Loy that Oregon, Tennessee, Alabama and West Virginia are all heavily pursuing him, despite his current commitment to Ohio State. On his interest in West Virginia, Henry said, “Rich Rod coached my pops (the late Chris Henry, Sr.) and my uncle (Adam “Pacman” Jones). It’s West Virginia.” (5/10 confidence)
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