Youngkin sends written apology to Pelosi following comments about her husband's attack

RICHMOND — Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin sent a note of apology to U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for comments he made after the speaker's husband was attacked last month by an intruder at their San Francisco home.

A spokesman for Youngkin confirmed in an email Wednesday that the governor sent what he called "a personal note" to Pelosi over the remarks made at a campaign rally in October for Republican congressional hopeful Yesli Vega about sending Pelosi "back to him in California." Democrats immediately pounced on the first-term governor, who is expected to be quite visible in GOP circles in the run-up to the 2024 presidential election, for the comments, calling them "absolutely disgusting and unbecoming."

In a statement Wednesday, Youngkin did not reveal the contents of the letter, calling it "a personal note, and it was one between me and the speaker." He said the note was an effort for him to clarify that his statement was not making light of the attack on Paul Pelosi.

More:Nancy Pelosi’s husband suffers skull fracture after attack; suspect charged with attempted murder

The note was first reported by Punchbowl News.

At the Oct. 28 rally for Vega, Youngkin was speaking on the topic of violence when he broached the attack in pushing for Republicans to take back the House of Representatives.

“There’s no room for violence anywhere," the governor said, "but we’re going to send [Nancy Pelosi] back to be with him in California,” Youngkin said at the event.

In the statement his office released, Youngkin repeated a position he has taken since the backlash began: He was only trying to make a point that violence needs to be stopped no matter where it is, but he just conveyed the message improperly.

"My full intention on my comments was to categorically state that violence and the kind of violence that was perpetrated against Speaker Pelosi’s husband is not just unacceptable, it's atrocious. And I didn’t do a great job with that," Youngkin said in the statement. He said the note he sent was "just to reflect those sentiments.”

Youngkin spokesperson Macaulay Porter said in an email that the governor sent the note to the speaker "over a week ago." A spokesperson for Pelosi has confirmed the note was received.

The note comes a few days after Youngkin's office emailed a statement saying that Youngkin wishes Paul Pelosi "a full recovery and is keeping the Pelosi family in his prayers."

A preliminary hearing for the alleged attacker is set for Dec. 14 in San Francisco. David DePape, 42, faces charges of attempted murder, elder abuse and burglary after he allegedly struck 82-year-old Paul Pelosi with a hammer during a break-in at the Pelosi residence.

Vega wound up losing the Virginia House race to two-term Democratic incumbent Abigail Spanberger. But Virginia was able to flip a House seat in the Virginia Beach area when Virginia state Sen. Jen Kiggans toppled Democratic incumbent Elaine Luria. Virginia will go into the 2023 Congress with five of its 11 seats in GOP hands.

More:Election results live updates: Control of Congress uncertain; Georgia Senate goes to runoff

Bill Atkinson (he/him/his) is an award-winning journalist who covers breaking news, government and politics. Reach him at batkinson@progress-index.com or on Twitter at @BAtkinson_PI.

This article originally appeared on The Progress-Index: Va. governor sends 'personal note' to Pelosi following attack comments