As it appeared on Bacon’s Rebellion by Patrick Houck

It’s not so much what he’s saying but what he’s consciously leaving out.

Campaigning for Republican candidates in the state’s General Assembly, Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin declined to answer Fox News Digital’s polite but provocative question about a potential White House run next year.

According to inside sources, Fox Corporation Chairman Rupert Murdoch has heavily lobbied Youngkin to run for the Republican nomination. While Youngkin demurred when asked about 2024, he had plenty to say about Virginia’s November elections.

Speaking to Fox News Digital from a campaign event in Manassas, he said, “The most important election in the nation, I believe, is Virginia this year. We are laser-focused on holding our House, winning our Senate and getting [state Senate candidate] Bill Woolf and the other great Republican candidates elected.”

From Fox Digital:

“We have demonstrated that you can take a state that was really so much headed in the wrong direction and redirect with commonsense, conservative principles and leadership and policies,” he continued. “We can take a state that was near the bottom, and put it near the top. Folks, this is so important for us to do and that is why I have nothing else in my mind other than 2023.” Asked about those who have been encouraging him to enter the crowded 2024 presidential primary field, Youngkin said he appreciated the recognition of Virginia’s conservative accomplishments. But he did not respond to follow-up questions about whether he would rule out a late entry into the 2024 race. “I meet lots of people and I’m always so humbled by the fact that people are encouraging us to do what we’re doing in Virginia outside Virginia,” Youngkin said. “But we’re focused on Virginia, and what is so nice is that people appreciate what’s happening here. And what we are doing is exactly what we said we’re going to do. We have lowered the cost of living, we have backed the blue, we have re-established excellence in education. It works, it works,” he added. For months, speculation about whether Youngkin would enter the race for the GOP nomination for president in 2024 has swirled, though the popular conservative governor has downplayed and dismissed his consideration for higher office.”

Republished with permission from The Republican Standard.