NY Times calls E. W. Jackson 'a beguiling extremist

Since when does a candidate for lieutenant governor merit the attention of an entire New York Times editorial? Since E.W. Jackson (R) came on the scene.

Jackson gained notoriety recently for a slew of offensive remarks he made about gays ("perverted") and Democrats ("anti-God"). Despite the fact that Virginia's lieutenant governor's office has almost nothing to do with the Republican Party as a whole, the Times wrote Tuesday that Jackson's election is representative of the state of the GOP:

The Virginia race should be a prime test of national Republican vows to reconnect with the mainstream majority. Heavyweight donors are lining up to defeat Terry McAuliffe, the Democrat candidate for governor who was President Bill Clinton’s fund-raising guru. Money may not win the election when Republicans can’t seem to resist a beguiling extremist who must face mainstream reality.

@eScarry