Warner says ‘things might have been different’ in Va. election if infrastructure passed earlier

Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) said on Sunday that “things might have been different” when it came to the outcome of Virginia’s gubernatorial election had Congress passed its $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure package before Election Day.

“If we could have had this bipartisan infrastructure bill, which — [Maryland Gov.] Larry Hogan is right. The House could have passed it in August. We could have spent the last three months going around Virginia talking about clean water systems, improving our transportation system, making sure our airports didn’t appear to be third world, making sure every home in Virginia had high-speed broadband connectivity,” Warner said during “State of the Union” on CNN.

“So, yes, I think, if we could have been talking about that win and showing the kind of job creation that actually has been taking place, things might have been different,” he later added.

Asked if that difference could have resulted in a win for Democratic gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe, Warner responded, “absolutely.”

“I mean, this was — the voters of Virginia and the voters of America gave us the presidency, the Senate and the House. They expected us to produce. They have been hearing about this bipartisan infrastructure bill for months,” he added.

Sen. Mark Warner says if Congress passed Biden’s infrastructure plan ahead of the VA governor’s race, the results may have been different. “The voters in Virginia and the voters of America gave us the presidency, the Senate and the House. They expected us to produce.” #CNNSOTU pic.twitter.com/gIU4wryVAF

— State of the Union (@CNNSotu) November 7, 2021

Last week, Republicans won Virginia’s gubernatorial race as voters opted to elect GOP candidate Glenn Youngkin over McAuliffe, a former Virginia governor. Virginia Democrats last week also conceded that they had lost control over its state House. 

McAuliffe opted to tie Youngkin to former President Trump while Youngkin turned toward issues like education, including how much sway parents should have over school boards and critical race theory.

“The notion of what happened in Virginia — there is not a school in Virginia that teaches critical race theory. But the governor-elect, Governor Youngkin, stirred up the cultural pot there,” Warner told “State of the Union” co-anchor Dana Bash.