GOP gubernatorial contender George Fitch has borrowed a page from the Democratic Party play book, attacking Jerry Kilgore for obscuring his role in the infamous eavesdropping scandal.
“Jerry Kilgore is trying to be all things to all people on the important issues of taxes and spending, and he is unwilling to discuss his possible connection to the eavesdropping scandal that hit the Republican Party in 2003,” Fitch said in a recent press release. “No wonder Jerry Kilgore is afraid to debate me, no wonder he is afraid to debate Tim Kaine.”
“Jerry Kilgore has already spent $4 million and he’s preparing to spend that much and more to mask over questions about whether his actions as Attorney General were on the up and up,” Fitch continued. “That’s why he won’t release his phone records and that’s why he won’t debate. Virginians are entitled to know the full story about Jerry Kilgore’s possible connection to this scandal and the voters are entitled to examine that story in a public debate with me or with Tim Kaine. But Jerry Kilgore can’t afford to do that…”
The eavesdropping scandal itself was real. The extension of that scandal to Kilgore, by contrast, always struck me as contrived, little more than a partisan Democratic effort to taint the future Republican candidate. But, truth be told, I never followed the issue that closely, so I don’t pretend to know. However, it’s hard to imagine that criticisms of Kilgore long made by Democrats will resonate among the GOP stalwarts who vote in the primaries. My instinct: This issue is a loser for Fitch. He needs to stick with his strength, as the candidate who’s serious about cutting spending and taxes.
