Youngkin and his group of financial experts negotiated with team owner Ted Leonsis to terminate what the governor called “the largest economic development deal in Virginia history,” but the governor did not cast the same spell on members of the General Assembly. I could never hang it. He had to approve a $2 billion project.
of The failure of the plan erased an opportunity to leave an important legacy for the novice politician who burst onto the scene in 2021 and garnered national attention as the new face of the Republican Party. During his first two years in office, Youngkin enjoyed a treasury full of federal pandemic relief funds and a friendly Republican-controlled House of Delegates. But as his four-year term came to an end, the governor lost control of the Legislature to Democrats and his priorities were lost.
“He's a total lame duck right now,” said Robert Holdsworth, a Richmond political analyst who has studied Virginia governors for decades. “He has shown himself to be extremely immature politically.”
In an interview with The Washington Post on Thursday, Yonkin defended his accomplishments as one of bipartisan accomplishments — including passing and landing tax cuts over the past two years. The country's only Lego manufacturing facility expressed frustration that the Democratic-controlled state Senate blocked the arena.
“I fundamentally believe this was a huge mistake and it didn't need to be made. The Senate didn't need to do this,” he said. Led by Finance and Appropriations Committee Chair L. Louise Lucas (D-Portsmouth), the Senate blocked a bill that would have authorized the arena and removed language from the state budget. Although some House Democrats initially voted in favor of Arena, the plan was unpopular in Alexandria and never developed a strong base in the General Assembly, where even some Republicans did not support it.
Yonkin said she was disappointed but not surprised when Leonsis called her on Wednesday and told her she was going. Stay in the district instead. “I thought he was worried,” Yonkin said. “He had a choice. Listen, every company has a choice. … If we don't say yes and do the work, there's a chance he could go somewhere else.” I always knew that.”
Yonkin had warned lawmakers that failing to approve the arena deal could damage the state's reputation as a good place to do business. Leonsis said as much in an interview with the Post on Wednesday. “In my experience, I had a better experience business-wise in D.C. than I just had in Virginia. It was really, really surprising and eye-opening.”
Those words sting in Virginia, who is proud of herself. Under Youngkin's Democratic predecessor, Ralph Northam, it was twice named the best state for business by CNBC. Last year, he finished in second place.
House Speaker Don L. Scott Jr. (D-Portsmouth) said in an interview that “the last governor who put our country No. 1 in business two years in a row probably would have been more supportive of these projects.” Told. Mr. Scott developed an unlikely friendship with Mr. Youngkin, sharing weekly morning Bible studies during the legislative session, but he accused the governor of not doing enough to build support among lawmakers.
“I think leadership and style are important, and we just didn't have the leadership and style that we needed to complete a project with a lot of risks like this,” Scott said.
Yonkin had a different take on Leonsis' comments. “I think he clearly recognized that the Senate wasn't doing its job,” he said. Yonkin said there was nothing he wished he had done differently and that proof of the administration's “good job” was that the House of Representatives passed the arena bill in the first place. said.
Now, Virginia has to pick up the pieces, Youngkin said. “I strongly believe there's a lot of repair work that needs to be done as a state,” he said, vowing to continue advocating for businesses to locate here.
What remains to be seen is how much damage this project's failure caused Yonkin's own political standing. Whispers about the president began as soon as he was elected, but in 2022, when Yonkin campaigned across the country for 15 Republican gubernatorial candidates, only five won. The glory began to fade. Last year, he worked hard and at great expense to win Republican control of the General Assembly, only to end up with Democrats holding the Senate and flipping the House.
While garnering national attention and appearing on Fox News and other right-wing media outlets, Yonkin teetered on the domestic front. His incitement to culture wars has pleased the Republican base, but his failed efforts to create a tip for parents to file complaints about teachers and principals, as well as accusations of racially insensitive and inaccurate There were also policy failures, such as the widely criticized rewrite of the state's historical standards.
As the country emerges from a pandemic-induced government shutdown, Youngkin will lead a rebound in job recovery, and as state revenue floods, Youngkin will seek tax cuts totaling $5 billion in his first two years in office. It gained partisan support. He also worked across the aisle to secure increases in mental health services and teacher pay.
Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle Sears, a fellow Republican, said in a written statement Thursday praising Mr. Youngkin's accomplishments: “Despite all this and more, the governor is able to stand tall. ” he said.
Despite success in the private sector, Yonkin The governor has made some notable failures in the area of economic development. He was unable to convince the Biden administration to locate the FBI's new headquarters in Virginia, and Maryland won, even though the FBI itself supported building Springfield. And when Ford Motor Co. expressed interest in locating a major battery factory in Southside, Virginia, to supply electric vehicles, Yonkin himself raised concerns that the project was a front for Chinese manufacturers. The transaction was blocked for this reason.
The factory went to Michigan instead.Virginia The site, located in an area starved for jobs, remains unused.
But Youngkin announced a big deal A $1 billion Lego factory will be built in Chesterfield County and the headquarters of Boeing and Raytheon will be relocated there. Asked if he recognized the difference between public and private transactions or if he had learned any lessons, Yonkin said, “It takes a General Assembly that wants to work with us.”
His responsibility is to provide good opportunities, he said. And Yonkin said he believes the administration has worked “tirelessly” to educate lawmakers and engage with them about the arena.
But Holdsworth, the political analyst, said he saw a big difference in Youngkin's approach to major initiatives compared to previous governors. In the 1990s, when Republican George Allen wanted to impose new education standards and the Legislature was Democratic, the governor appointed prominent Virginia educators to key executive roles, including legislators and local officials. He said the campaign had been launched in the state to garner support from the people. The vote has been taken.
Similarly, in the 2000s, Democratic Rep. Mark R. Warner traveled many miles around the state to convince business groups and the Republican Legislature that Virginia needed to raise taxes to maintain its high bond rating. He also walked around and gave endless PowerPoint presentations.
Holdsworth said Youngkin hasn't made any broader efforts to pave the way for the arena or to address the state tax overhaul proposed by the governor in December. Instead, Yonkin began touring the state after the Legislature adjourned on March 9, objecting to what he denies was a “secret budget” passed by lawmakers and the Senate, which does not support Arena. He campaigned against carefully selected Republicans. At the same time, he has vetoed numerous Democratic bills, including Thursday when he vetoed a bill that would have created a legal cannabis market. and raising the minimum wage, two of Democrats' top priorities.
“They just don't understand the political dynamics in Virginia very well,” Holdsworth said.
Mr. Youngkin now has something in common with the lawmakers who killed Arena, shaking off its losses to pass a state spending plan by June 30, when the fiscal year ends. must be found. Otherwise, Virginia could face an unprecedented government shutdown.
Yonkin said he's optimistic he can work with Democratic leaders and said he never considered this area a budget bargaining chip. “We need to re-engage them, but there is a common sense budget that we can deliver together to move Virginia forward,” he said.
Unless that budget includes tax increases, he added.
And Democratic leaders say that's not the beginning.
Jonathan O'Connell in Washington contributed to this report.