Left-wing political commentator Joe Scarborough is calling on Jay Jones, the Democratic Party nominee for attorney general of Virginia, to drop out of the race following the emergence of a number of disturbing text messages in which he fantasized about murdering his political opponents and their children.

“He should probably be forced to drop out of the race,” Scarborough told viewers on Monday morning.

Scarborough’s wife and co-host, Mika Brzezinski, appeared to agree with her husband’s assessment during a panel discussion. “But it’s unclear whether this Attorney General candidate will stay in the race. I think there’s a growing sense that he probably should not. We heard President Trump last night. But even some Democratic leaders, John Hyman, have started to say, like, look, this is inappropriate,” one panelist said, noting that President Donald Trump and several other prominent lawmakers have called on Jones to resign.

“And especially at a time right now with such concern about violent rhetoric and political violence,” the panelist added, to which Brzezinski replied, “Who says that?”

Jones previously served two terms in the Virginia legislature from 2018 through 2022

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In 2022 text messages to a colleague, Jones stated that he wanted to put “two bullets” in the head of then-Republican House Speaker Todd Gilbert. He then doubled down and threatened Gilbert’s wife and children over the phone, according to a report from the National Review.

“I’ve told you this before. Only when people feel pain personally do they move on policy,” the Democrat nominee told Republican House Delegate Carrie Coyner. Jones then directed his violent rhetoric towards Gilbert’s children. “I mean do I think Todd and Jennifer are evil? And that they’re breeding little fascists? Yes,” he went on.

A number of prominent Republicans, including Governor Glenn Youngkin and Vice President JD Vance, have called on Jones to suspend his campaign and drop out of the race. “This violent, disgusting rhetoric targeted at an elected official and his children is beyond disqualifying,” the governor posted on X.

“There is no ‘gosh, I’m sorry’ here. Jones doesn’t have the morality or character to drop out of this race, and his running mates Abigail Spanberger, Ghazala Hashmi, and every elected Democrat in Virginia don’t have the courage to call on him to step away from this campaign in disgrace.”

Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA), the Democratic Party nominee for governor, condemned Jones’ comments but stopped short of calling on him to step aside.  “I will always condemn violent language in our politics,” Spanberger said, adding that she had spoken “frankly” with him after the texts surfaced,” Fox News reported.

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