Virginia Democrat Gov. Ralph Northam says he will not resign amid racist photo scandal
Gov. Ralph Northam says he is not in the controversial photo that appeared on his yearbook page and is ready to earn the forgiveness of Virginians.
Leading Democrats and groups that make up key parts of the Democratic base all agree – Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam has lost the trust of the people of Virginia and of people around our nation and must step down. Northam should take their advice.
The Democratic governor, who is also a physician, apologized Friday for a racist photo in his 1984 medical school yearbook. At first, he said he was one of the two people pictured – either a man dressed in blackface or someone dressed in the hood and robes of a member of the Ku Klux Klan. Then he said he couldn’t remember which of the two people was him.
And then Northam held a news conference Saturday afternoon to say he does not believe either of the two people in the photo was him and said he is not resigning. But he volunteered that he dressed up as entertainer Michael Jackson when he was a medical student to compete in a dance contest and darkened his face as part of his imitation of Jackson.
NORTHAM SAYS HE IS NOT IN RACIST YEARBOOK PHOTO, BUT ACKNOWLEDGES DARKENING FACE FOR ANOTHER PARTY
The number of prominent Democrats calling on Northam to resign grew through the day, and the governor’s claim that he wasn’t in the racist photo didn’t end the calls for his resignation.
The Virginia Legislature’s Black Caucus said in a statement that Northam “has irrevocably lost the faith and trust of the people he was elected to serve” and added that “changing his public story today now casts further doubt on his ability to regain that trust.”
Tom Perez, chairman of the Democratic National Committee, said Northam no longer has the trust of the public and should resign. “His past actions are antithetical to everything the Democratic Party stands for,” Perez said.
Ultimately, Northam must leave the governorship because politics and government are about right and wrong. We Democrats pride ourselves on our strong belief in diversity and racial justice. We can’t claim we support these values if we stand behind someone like Ralph Northam.
The list of Democrats saying the Democratic governor should resign is too long to list here. It includes former Vice President Joe Biden, who may run for president, and a slew of Democratic presidential candidates: Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, Kamala Harris of California and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts; plus former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Julian Castro, also running for president.
Other Democrats calling on Northam to leave office are: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, of California; Virginia’s two U.S. senators, Mark Warner and Tim Kaine; former Virginia Gov. L. Douglas Wilder, America’s first elected black governor; Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., who is also expected to run for president; former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe; at least four members of Virginia’s U.S. House delegation; and Virginia’s attorney general.
All these Democrats deserve credit for not circling the wagons around Northam and defending him just because they are members of the same political party. They are standing up for what is right and just against the evil of racism. Some things are more important than party loyalty.
But as horrible as the photo of the man in blackface and the person wearing the KKK garb on Northam’s yearbook page was, even worse was his position on the issue of infanticide – the killing of newborn babies. Unbelievably, Northam – who was a practicing pediatric neurologist earlier in his career – recently endorsed a form of infanticide.
Northam actually said he would leave it up to the woman and her doctor to determine if a newborn should live or die. This position is so far out of the political mainstream that few Americans support it – even those who support a woman’s right to an abortion early in pregnancy.
Even if the issue of the racist photo on Northam’s yearbook page had not arisen, his views on infanticide are so beyond the pale that they undermine his ability to serve in elective office.
Ultimately, Northam must leave the governorship because politics and government are about right and wrong. We Democrats pride ourselves on our strong belief in diversity and racial justice. We can’t claim we support these values if we stand behind someone like Ralph Northam.
The people of Virginia are fortunate to have an outstanding lieutenant governor in Justin Fairfax, an African-American lawyer descended from slaves. If Northam does the right thing and resigns, Fairfax could replace him and continue supporting Democratic priorities and policies that are good for the people of Virginia.
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Northam’s backtracking Saturday, claiming he was not in the disgusting photo on his yearbook page, is meaningless and holds no value. From now on he will be associated with the worst aspects of American life – and that association leaves a stain he can never wash away.
Let Northam go back to his career as a physician and save lives, particularly in areas where doctors are needed most. But though he may be in denial today, his overwhelming rejection by leaders and elected officials from the Democratic Party sends a message to him loud and clear: resign from the governorship, the sooner the better.
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