Republicans Slam Gillespie Over Negative, Race-Baiting Ads

Backlash Continues, as Gillespie Campaign Gets More Desperate

 Ed Gillespie’s decision to go “full-Trump” in Virginia is coming back to bite him. Today, Gillespie is taking harsh criticism from within his own party for his choice to stake his entire campaign on race-baiting ads on immigration and Confederate statues.

Conservative columnist George Will wrote an opinion piece in the Washington Post about how lost Gillespie has become in the Trump-era Republican party.

So, he is gingerly tiptoeing across the treacherous terrain of Trumpian Republican politics. This involves stoking the anger of those people who seem happiest when furious, but without infuriating everyone else.

He did the former with dishonest MS-13 ads featuring tattooed dark-skinned men (“Kill, rape, control.”) and accusing Northam of refusing to crack down on “sanctuary cities,” of which Virginia has none.

More Republicans sounded off on Twitter expressing their frustration with Gillespie’s Trumpian evolution: 

Former Republican House Delegate and Gillespie endorser, David Ramadan:

Republican pollster Christine Matthews:

Sen. Rand Paul’s Chief Strategist Doug Stafford:

But the backlash isn’t just from Republicans. On MSNBC, a panel pointed to Ed Gillespie as an example of the downfall of the Republican party and calling him “not a profile in courage.”

“He’s trying to go toward that sort of rebel-rousing white grievance thing that Trump does, that he did in Charlottesville. At the same time, he’s accepting help from Trump but wants to sort of not be seen accepting help from Trump. It’s not a profile in courage.”

Joy Ann Reid slammed Gillespie on her show for running on a “white nationalist’s message…with the full backing of the White House.”

Gillespie is now running on the white nationalists’ message, and he’s doing it with the full backing of the White House…Gillespie might not seem like the most obvious advocate for the Confederacy or alt-right defenders. Born and raised in New Jersey, he’s the ultimate Washington insider.

And to top it off, the Washington Post published a scathing editorial saying Gillespie’s campaign ads were “poisonous to Virginia and the nation.”

That didn’t stop Ed Gillespie, the Republican candidate for governor in Virginia, from using Mr. Bowen’s circumstances as fodder for an incendiary and misleading TV attack ad designed to frighten Virginians. The ad targeting his Democratic opponent in next month’s election, Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam, is in keeping with the recent thrust of Mr. Gillespie’s campaign, which, taking a page from the Trump playbook, has been more about scaring and dividing Virginians than inspiring and uniting them.

The only outlet to praise his campaign? Breibart – which tells you everything you need to know about the state of the race.

“Ed Gillespie’s race-baiting, negative campaign has backfired,” said DGA Communications Director Jared Leopold. “Now, even fellow Republicans say Gillespie has gone too far. Ed Gillespie’s divisive rhetoric and disgusting ads will be remembered in Virginia for years to come.”