CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – On the day of our interview, Democrat Terry McAuliffe met with leading health experts from UVA in Charlottesville, all talking about the risks and problems from COVID-19.
“The head of infectious diseases for the University of Virginia Medical Center was telling me we are going to live with this for another two years,” McAuliffe said during a one-on-one interview, which is why he’s banking that his tough-on COVID-19 stance will appeal to voters.
“As you know, I want to require that every nurse, every doctor, every teacher, be vaccinated. Every student who attends college needs to be vaccinated. Children in elementary schools need to be wearing masks,” he said.
Opponent Glenn Youngkin is pro-shot but an anti-shot mandate. WSLS 10 News also sat down with Youngkin, and his interview will air Wednesday at 7 p.m.
McAuliffe claims he will be the jobs governor claiming to have brought 200,000 jobs to the state during his last term.
He says economic development will be tough if the state isn’t safe.
And he says the same about crime and funding for police.
“You’ve got to increase pay. You’ve got to increase benefits. You’ve got to do better on their retirement benefits... Your job as governor is to keep your community safe... We make it so tough and we’re not paying what they deserve to be paid. They’re going to go find another profession. So raising that pay for law enforcement is absolutely critical,” McAuliffe said.
But McAuliffe sees the issue of qualified immunity to protect officers’ actions as a case-by-case decision, unlike Youngkin who supports it.
“If there’s a law enforcement officer, who every day goes out and acts in good faith they will have 100% protection of the state. We will stand by that officer through thick and thin. However, if you have a law enforcement officer who breaks the law, infringes upon someone’s constitutional rights - he will not be protected. It’s called ‘qualified’ for a reason,” he said.
McAuliffe also supports the continued removal of Confederate icons in Virginia.
“When I was governor, I banned the Confederate flag from Virginia license plates. Amazon would never have come to Virginia. Not gonna come. Google, Microsoft, all of them. They don’t come to states that discriminate,” he said.
Another clear difference between McAuliffe and Youngkin is the position on abortion.
“I’d be a brick wall,” he said, referring to his intention of protecting a woman’s right to choose.
You can watch McAuliffe’s full interview with WSLS 10 News below: