As we previously reported, the closing days of the Virginia gubernatorial race provided us with sharp contrasts between Democratic nominee Terry McAuliffe and Republican nominee Glenn Youngkin.

On one hand, you had one bitterly angry-looking guy continuing to obsess over former President Trump while spouting off the usual Democrat pablum about so-called “racist Republicans,” while on the other hand, you had an energetic and amiable-looking guy whose final rally was passionately centered around parental rights and empowering Virginians to forge their own paths forward.

The emphasis by McAuliffe with the eager assistance of the liberal mainstream media on race over the last several months, particularly in the final weeks as Youngkin gained ground and eventually edged ahead in the polls after McAuliffe declared in late September that “I don’t think parents should be telling schools what they should teach” has been a strong indicator of the sheer desperation he must feel, especially considering not long ago he was considered a shoo-in to win a second non-consecutive term.

Where he stands right now is most assuredly not where McAuliffe thought he’d be at this point. So accordingly, his final pitch to Virginians has been “bbbut Trump” and “raaaacism” and “vote for me for four more years of woke.”

But Youngkin, in what may have been the best answer I’ve heard him give on the issue of racism accusations since their battle began, lowered the boom on McAuliffe Monday night in an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity.

Youngkin told Hannity he was not going to accept a lecture on race from the guy who told Gov. Ralph “Blackface” Northam in February 2019 to step down and then enthusiastically accepted his endorsement and campaign help 15 months later. After addressing the “race” issue, Youngkin got right back to one of his central campaign themes: parental involvement in their children’s education:

“He’s just running the playbook that he wrote,” Youngkin said of McAuliffe. “He’s the godfather of the modern-day Democratic party and he doesn’t know what else to do other than introduce race into this. I’m not going to be lectured by a guy on race who embraces someone who wore blackface and then asked him to leave and then gets him back and then has somebody on his ticket who wore blackface.”

“This isn’t about race, this is actually about parents coming together across Virginia and standing up for their children for a quality education, and they have not felt that school boards or government has listened to them and I’m going to stand up for parents, I’m going to stand up for kids, I’m going to stand up for teachers, and we are going to do what Virginia schools should do, which is educate our children to have a great life,” Youngkin said.

Watch:

Glenn Youngkin: "I'm not going to be lectured by a guy on race who embraces someone who wore blackface" pic.twitter.com/DE4Z4VlSfh

— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) November 2, 2021

To emphasize Youngkin’s point about McAuliffe’s flip flop on Northam, I encourage people to watch a video of McAuliffe being asked about the Northam issue six months after the controversy erupted. McAuliffe had already waffled on his call for Northam to step down at that point, and the answer he gave to the interviewer who asked him about it was straight out of Wackoville. I transcribed the video (which you can read here), but you really need to watch it to get the full impact of the contortions he put himself through to justify his flip flop.

Next to the blackface scandal, it was one of the most cringeworthy, embarrassing moments not just in Virginia political history but in U.S. political history in my view. It really was that bad. Watch:

Here's the video of Terry McAuliffe defending and downplaying Ralph Northam's Blackface/KKK photo in 2020. #VAgov pic.twitter.com/yMq7es96F8

— Team Youngkin (@TeamYoungkin) October 22, 2021

Simply put, McAuliffe, like most Democrats, strategically uses race – even against members of his own party – when it suits him. When it doesn’t, he tucks the race card into his back pocket to trot out again when it’s convenient, which he has done to Glenn Youngkin. What makes it doubly bad is that this is a southern state he’s doing it in, which makes it even more obviously deliberately manipulative. So far, it appears the tactic has not only failed but backfired as more and more people including some very prominent black Virginians like former Virginia Gov. Doug Wilder (D) have indicated.

Virginia is a purple/blue state. Some would suggest it’s solidly blue. If so, it’s due to NoVa Democrats and their seeming stranglehold on statewide politics. That said, we’ve seen Republican miracles happen statewide in blue states in the past, so Virginia voters shouldn’t let the purple/blue coloring of the state dissuade them from letting their voices be heard today loud and clear. If Glenn Youngkin doesn’t win today, it’s not because he didn’t put up a helluva fight; it will be due to the uphill battle Republicans face in states like Virginia.

But it can be won by a Republican. And it must be.

It’s time for entrenched, race-baiting Democrats like McAuliffe at all levels of government to finally understand that Average Americans of all backgrounds have reached their breaking point with the repeated manipulation of voters based on their physical characteristics rather than concentrating on issues-based campaigns that DON’T pit “minority” groups against each other, and to reject them outright at the ballot box.

Enough already. It’s time to move beyond this insulting tactic and truly move Virginia – and this country – forward.

Flashback: Terry McAuliffe Just Loses It When Asked by Virginia Sheriff if He Supports Defunding the Police