Virginia Democrats Stonewall Gov. Youngkin Appointees, Blame ‘Inconsistent Values’

Virginia Republicans are accusing their Democratic colleagues of executing a “political hit job” by refusing to advance a number of nominations made by Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin to various state boards.

Virginia Democrats on the Senate Privileges and Elections Committee voted Tuesday to kill the appointments of several high-profile nominees, including Meg Bryce, an appointee to the state Board of Education, and Yesli Vega, an appointee to the state Board of Health, the Richmond Times-Dispatch reported. Bryce is the daughter of late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia and Vega previously ran for Congress in Virginia’s 7th congressional district.

Sources familiar tell the Caller that Kenneth Marcus, the founder of the Brandeis Center who Youngkin nominated to join the board of George Mason University, was also blocked from advancing.

The Senate Privileges and Elections Committee chooses which nominations move to the Senate floor for a vote by the full body. Republicans on the committee say they are confused as to why the nominees aren’t advancing and accused the Democrats of orchestrating a “political hit job” against Youngkin.

“You have one individual who whose dad was a Supreme Court justice, one that ran for Congress. You have another one who was the chief of staff to Mike Pence. I find it hard that we are going to say they’re not qualified. Now, I’m sure there’s some other reason, but it looks to me like this is more of a political hit job,” Republican state Sen. Bill DeSteph said in Tuesday’s hearing.

RICHMOND, VA – JANUARY 10: Gov. Glenn Youngkin shakes hands with speaker of the House of Delegates Don Scott on Wednesday, January 10, 2024 at Virginia State Capitol in Richmond, Va. (Photo by Minh Connors for The Washington Post via Getty Images)

RICHMOND, VA – MARCH 9: The Virginia House of Delegates convene on Saturday, March 9, 2024 at the Virginia State Capitol in Richmond, Va.
(Photo by Minh Connors for The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Committee Chairman Aaron Rouse, a Democrat, shot back and said that the nominees were not moving forward because “some of these appointees are inconsistent with the goals and values of the specific board that they were going to be appointed to.”

“The fact that someone ran for office is not any reason that we would strike them, we just found their nomination to be inconsistent with the expectations, goals, and values that we hold for the work of those board,” Democratic senator Adam Ebbin echoed.

WASHINGTON, DC – JANUARY 20: Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin speaks during an inauguration event at Capital One Arena on January 20, 2025 in Washington, DC. Donald Trump takes office for his second term as the 47th president of the United States. (Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

TRIANGLE, VA – NOVEMBER 07: Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin and Yesli Vega, Republican candidate for northern Virginias 7th Congressional District, speak to reporters after a campaign event at Locust Shade Park on November 7, 2022 in Triangle, Virginia. Republicans are hoping to take control of the House of Representatives away from Democrats. (Photo by Sarah Silbiger/Getty Images)

Sources familiar with the proceedings told the Caller that Democrats have not clarified which “values” they determined to be “inconsistent.”

“I’m not sure why these individuals were removed. There was little transparency when we inquired with the chair and the senator who made the motion,” a spokesperson for Republican Sen. Tara Durant said in a statement to the Caller.

Republican Sen. Danny Diggs told the Caller, “You will have to ask the Democrats as to what their motives were. I do not know.”

Republicans are particularly concerned about Marcus’s nomination given recent issues with antisemitism at George Mason University. An Egyptian national living in the U.S. was arrested in December for allegedly plotting a “mass casualty” attack on an Israeli consulate. (RELATED: Egyptian Student In US Nabbed For Plotting ‘Mass Casualty’ Attack On NYC News)

Police searched the home of two “Students for Justice in Palestine” leaders at George Mason on Nov. 7 after the pair were accused of engaging in vandalism on campus. Inside, the police found Hamas and Hezbollah flags and signs that read, “death to America” and “death to Jews,” as well as a large amount of ammunition and foreign passports, the Washington Free Beacon reported.

“I spend my time fighting antisemitism, so I don’t know whose values are inconsistent with that,” Marcus told the Caller over the phone. He added that Democrats have not reached out to him regarding his appointment.

Rouse and the other Democrats on the committee did not respond to attempts to reach them for comment.