HENRICO COUNTY, Va. — Governor-elect Glenn Youngkin spent the weekend traveling through Virginia on a “thank you” tour, greeting voters who helped score the Republican ticket their first statewide election win in Virginia since 2009.
Youngkin said his team is busy building his incoming administration. Still, the Washington Post published an article over the weekend where critics voiced concern the Governor-elect has yet to release specifics on his policies.
In an exclusive interview with CBS 6 Saturday in Henrico County, CBS 6 asked Youngkin about the transition process and several issues that have made headlines recently and how he plans to handle them.
At the breakfast near Short Pump, Youngkin explained his reasoning for the tour, and we did learn one thing: how he likes his breakfast.
“When it gets right down to it, two eggs, over easy, patty sausage, hash browns, wheat toast, that’s my morning staple. Occasionally, we’ll substitute corn beef hash,” Youngkin said.
“Listen, I think gratitude is something that's lost in America today, and I want to say thank you. We've been hired to go do a job, Winsome and Jason. But by the way, this is about Virginians coming together and really wanting results.”
Since Election Day, advocacy groups have expressed worry that Youngkin might work to roll back protections for the LGBTQ community. This follows a campaign where Youngkin regularly addressed tense school board meetings that included heated debates over transgender policies in schools. CBS 6 asked Youngkin to respond to those criticisms, and Youngkin said rolling back employment and housing protections are not part of his plan.
“We’re focusing on our day one game plan. We’re getting taxes down. We’re going to go to work in education make sure we raise standards. We, in fact, are going to invest in law enforcement, keep our communities safe. And, we got to get our economy moving. This is where we’re focusing,” Youngkin said.
“So that’s the focus, but is that something that if presented to you, how do you think you’d handle it?” reporter Jake Burns asked.
“As I said, there is a laser focus. I think one of the big differences of being an outside business guy and career politicians is that career politicians seem to lose focus on what they were elected to go do. I know how to deliver results. We’re real focused on our day one game plan,” Youngkin said.
Youngkin promised results on campaign trial surrounding significant problems at the Virginia Employment Commission, an agency that faced a flood of claims and criticism from citizens. Just last week, state investigators released a report that found major failures at the VEC with staffing, efficiency, and leadership.
“The Virginia Employment Commission is right at the top of my list, so I wasn’t surprised to by the JLARC study, and we’re going to work,” Youngkin said. “We’re going to need new ways of doing things. We’re going to need a change management system to deliver results. We’re going to have metrics, we’re going to measure against those metrics and we’re going to deliver outcomes.”
On the campaign trail, Youngkin said he plans to replace the members of the Virginia Parole Board. CBS 6 has reported for more than a year about frustration and anger from victims families with the current parole board. Burns asked Youngkin what he would specifically look for in new parole board members.
“We make sure that we’ve got folks that are recognizing that, yes, second chances are part of our own philosophy. But we have to stand up for victim rights, too. So we’re going to get started fresh with a new view on the parole board, and that’s happening day one,” Youngkin said.
Inauguration day in Virginia is set for Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022.