Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin's campaign attacked a high schooler on Twitter

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin's (R) official campaign Twitter account deleted a post on Sunday that singled out a 17-year-old high school student, including his name and photo, 12 hours after posting the tweet.
The student, Ethan Lynne, retweeted an article from Virginia Public Media on Saturday about the resignation of a historical interpreter at the Virginia governor's mansion who quit after Youngkin's team reportedly emptied out her office. The historian, Kelley Fanto Deetz, had focused on the history of enslaved people at the mansion. "Team Youngkin" replied to Lynne's tweet with a photo of him and former Gov. Ralph Northam, next to a old photo from Northam's yearbook page that included somebody in blackface. VPM's Ben Paviour posted a screenshot of the deleted tweet.
"Youngkin ran for office as a sunny, basketball-loving dad-next-door figure who promised to transcend political divisions even as he stoked culture wars related to K-12 education," The Washington Post reports, noting that the governor recently urged a Virginia woman threatening to carry a loaded gun to her local school board meeting if the district didn't drop its mask mandate to "love your neighbors." Youngkin's divisive executive order banning mask requirements was temporally blocked in court on Friday.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Youngkin spokeswoman Macaulay Porter declined requests for comment from VPM and the Post, but Matt Wolking, a Youngkin campaign consultant at Axiom Strategies, explained in a statement that the tweet was taken down because "it was brought to attention that this Democrat Party official" is "actually a minor." He said Youngkin had neither seen nor signed off on the tweet.
Lynne, who has worked as an unpaid intern and volunteer for Virginia Democrats, told VPM he "was appalled and shocked that the governor would attack a minor who was also a constituent and leave the tweet up for over 12 hours." He told the Post he "received no apology, no communication, nothing." Virginia Democratic lawmakers slammed Youngkin's campaign for "cyber-bullying" a minor. State Sen. Adam Ebbin (D) suggested Youngkin learn "you need thick skin" in politics.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Trump uses tariffs to upend Brazil's domestic politics
IN THE SPOTLIGHT By slapping a 50% tariff on Brazil for its criminal investigation into Bolsonaro, the Trump administration is brazenly putting its fingers on the scales of a key foreign election
-
3 questions to ask when deciding whether to repair or replace your broken appliance
the explainer There may be merit to fixing what you already have, but sometimes buying new is even more cost-effective
-
'Trump's authoritarian manipulation of language'
Instant Opinion Vienna has become a 'convenient target for populists' | Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Trump set to hit Canada with 35% tariffs
Speed Read The president accused Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney of failing to stop the cross-border flow of fentanyl
-
Mahmoud Khalil files $20M claim over ICE detention
Speed Read This is the 'first damages complaint' brought by an individual targeted by the Trump's administration's 'crackdown' on Gaza war protesters
-
Trump threatens Brazil with 50% tariffs
Speed Read He accused Brazil's current president of leading a 'witch hunt' against far-right former leader Jair Bolsonaro
-
AI scammer fakes Rubio messages to top officials
Speed Read The unknown individual mimicked Rubio in voice and text messages sent to multiple government officials
-
SCOTUS greenlights Trump's federal firings
speed read The Trump administration can conduct mass federal firings without Congress' permission, the Supreme Court ruled
-
New tariffs set on 14 trading partners
Speed Read A new slate of tariffs will begin August 1 on imports from Japan, South Korea, Thailand and more
-
Elon Musk launching 'America Party'
Speed Read The tech mogul promised to form a new political party if Trump's megabill passed Congress
-
Judge blocks Trump's asylum ban at US border
Speed Read The president violated federal law by shutting down the US-Mexico border to asylum seekers, said the ruling