Trump, Vance blast Democrats for backing Virginia AG candidate over texts fantasizing GOP lawmaker's murder

Vice President JD Vance and President Donald Trump separately slammed Democrats who continue to back Virginia attorney general candidate Jay Jones as his campaign unravels over texts envisioning the murder of a former top Republican lawmaker and his young children.

Jones - who sent messages claiming he would shoot former Virginia House Speaker Todd Gilbert, R-Shenandoah, over Cambodian dictator Pol Pot and former German Chancellor Adolf Hitler - will also face off with incumbent Attorney General Jason Miyares at the University of Richmond on Thursday in their sole debate.

Vance also appeared to respond to outrage over a leaked group chat, first reported by Politico, in which young Republican activists - many from New York - praised Hitler and used racist slurs, reportedly referring to African Americans as "watermelon people."

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Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has not publicly denounced Jones or called for him to drop out, but immediately demanded "every Republican from President Trump on down" condemn the group chat "unequivocally."

Vance pushed back, tweeting that he wouldn't join the outrage given Democrats' silence on Jones.

"This is far worse than anything said in a college group chat, and the guy who said it could become the AG of Virginia," he said.

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"I refuse to join the pearl clutching when powerful people call for political violence," Vance said, sharing a snippet of Jones' text to Virginia Del. Carrie Coyner, R-Hopewell, that read: "only when people feel pain personally do they move on policy."

Speaking during a ceremony eulogizing conservative activist Charlie Kirk, who was allegedly murdered by a left-wing extremist, Trump said political violence and violent rhetoric from the left must stop.

"We've seen that a candidate for attorney general in Virginia boasted that he would want to see [a] Republican legislator in Virginia shot in the head and to see his children murdered -- They actually said this," Trump said.

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"And now he continues to run for office, and most people continue to back him."

Trump offered incredulity at the idea Jones could envision such violence and not either drop out or be forced out of the race.

"Pretty amazing, right - that's a bad one; let's see how that turns out," he said.

"Especially in the wake of Charlie's assassination, our country must have absolutely no tolerance for this radical left violence, extremism and terror."