Virginia House Speaker Don Scott had a blunt message on Thursday for the Democrats who just won power across the country: the celebration is over, and the clock is already running.
Speaking at the Majority Democrats “What’s Next” conference in Denver, Scott told the new majorities they were loaned the voters’ trust, not given it. “You have two legislative sessions before America picks its next president. Two. Use them,” he said. “Get your ass to work and deliver for our people.”
Scott, the first African American Speaker in the Virginia House’s more than 400-year history, framed the work in kitchen-table terms. “Don’t you rest until a teacher can afford to buy a house in the town where she teaches,” he said, turning to Texas Senator-elect James Talarico, who had spoken before him. “Don’t you rest until a young family can pay for child care without giving up a whole paycheck to do it. Don’t rest until a full day’s work pays enough to live on. Don’t you rest until the data centers pay their fair share of the power bill, and your power bill goes down.”
Scott speaks from experience on second chances. He told the room his own path ran through a federal prison sentence before voters and colleagues gave him another one, and he argued the party had just been handed the same kind of chance after sweeping the House, the Senate and governor’s races in this month’s elections. “So don’t rest. Don’t you dare,” he said. “This is not the time for resting. This is the time to celebrate, but then go to work.”
Source: Associated Press
