PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) — Less than one month before Election Day, WAVY-TV 10 is checking the political pulse of someone you may have not heard from in a few years.
For 6 years, Republican Congressman Scott Rigell represented the people of Virginia Beach, Norfolk, parts of the Peninsula, and the Eastern Shore. Rigell is now watching from the sidelines while traveling the country in an RV with his wife. He recently told WAVY-TV 10, when it comes to his choice for president, the answer is none of the above.
“Where the Republican Party has gone now, I can’t identify with it,” the former Republican congressman said. Rigell sent shock waves through the GOP in the spring of 2016 when he called on Republicans to vote for anyone but Donald Trump in the Republican primary. Trump won, Rigell quit, and the rest is the unprecedented history of a president’s first term.
“I have zero respect for him as a man, zero,” said Rigell in reflecting on Trump’s 2015 derisive comments about the late Sen. John McCain’s captivity in Vietnam.
“Since Inauguration Day, 2017, Trump headlines have dominated the 24-hour news cycle. It starts with a tussle over turnout, days later Muslims are banned, the FBI director is fired, the Russia probe lands Trump operatives behind bars, and Trump issues a nod to white supremacists in Charlottesville. The House impeaches Trump over contacts with Ukraine and the Senate acquits him. There’s controversy over storm response, while Stormy Daniels and others come forth with allegations. The coronavirus causes a pandemic. Illnesses and deaths soar while the death of George Floyd, at the hands of police, leads to protests and violence across the country.
“Something’s got to give. I don’t think we can continue on the path that we are on. We are more divided than we have been since the Civil War,” Rigell said.
But don’t assume Rigell’s firm rebuke of the president means he’s supporting Democrat presidential nominee Joe Biden, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio -Cortez and other Democrats.
“I just make a call to our national leaders on both sides to be statesmen and stateswomen to bring a sense of what’s best for America rather than what’s going to help the next election. It’s been disheartening to see the lack of Republicans who would come out when the president veers off and does something odd or injurious to our country. At the same time, I am not giving any slack to my Democratic friends because I think they have essentially gone off and done the same thing. Some of the things [Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez] and others have said are truly not consistent with our core values and what has made this country great,” Rigell said.
Additionally, Rigell is concerned about Joe Biden’s left-leaning politics and his cognitive abilities.
“I am not going to vote for Joe Biden; I’m not supporting his positions. I think he has cognitive issues and I think they have increased over the last couple of years. Even if he does win, I join those who don’t think he will be president even through his first term.”
Rigell declared himself an independent and announced he’s not voting for Trump or Biden.
“I’m going on record; I’m writing somebody in,” Rigell said.
The interview was conducted before the nation learned President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump tested positive for the potentially deadly coronavirus. The First Lady has mild symptoms and Mr. Trump on Thursday posted a video to announce he feels great thanks to an experimental treatment protocol that has not been subjected to peer-reviewed testing.
Rigell, the independent, later told 10 On Your Side: “I join Vice President [sic] Biden in offering my prayers and support for a full recovery for President Trump, the First Lady, and their staff.”
In the 2nd District, Republican Scott Taylor is trying to recapture the seat he lost two years ago to Democrat Elaine Luria.
