Ryan Nobles over at NBC 12 picks up on Julian Walker’s piece over at the Virginia Pilot — this time with a new twist. Delegate Chris Peace (R-Hanover) is now calling on RPV Treasurer Bob FitzSimmonds to resign:
Dear Mr. Chairman,
Thank you for the leadership you have provided the Republican Party of Virginia in recent years. I am writing to request that you once again demonstrate your willingness to tackle difficult issues head on for the good of the party. Specifically, I write that you request the resignation of Mr. Bob FitzSimmonds from the State Central Committee. As Chairman, I further request that you initiate proceedings for formal censure for his lewd and lacivious conduct unbecoming of a party official.
By now, you have seen and heard of the sexist and crude internet based commentaries by State Central Committee Member FitzSimmonds. The bottomline is that the comments regarding Del. Barbara Comstock were disgusting and highly offensive. They degrade women and are unbecoming of a party official. His public comments do not represent my values nor the party I represent. As a party leader, I hope you will agree with me that we cannot allow this type of behavior in the leadership of the Republican Party of Virginia. Our Party Plan requires that party members be held to higher standards. We elected officials and others in party leadership should maintain an even higher sense of decorum and comport ourselves honorably. Mr. FitzSimmonds has fallen short of this standard.
If Mr. FitzSimmonds wishes to regain any public esteem he may have maintained prior to this incident, then he will voluntarily resign his position and issue an apology. His comments were callous and disrespectful not just to a member of this party who is honorably serving her district and our Commonwealth, but by extension to all women. As a Republican elected official and father of a young girl, I find sexism such as this deeply disturbing and ask for immediate action. I look forward to your response as soon as practicable.
Sincerely,
Christopher K. Peace
Delegate
There is breaking information that a circular is now being shared privately among State Central members to ask RPV Chairman Pat Mullins to request FitzSimmond’s resignation formally and publicly. Several letters from others have already been shared, with many people saying RPV is not returning calls for comment.
FitzSimmonds to date has been unapologetic about his comments in all but one regard: his use of twat when he intended (sic) twaddle. The best distillation of the situation so far has been this comment:
Just to make sure that I understand, in response to a woman stating: “Republican women are a force to be reconed [sic] with and I for one want to see this power harnessed effectively in key political races” you intended to reply by labeling those words “sexist twaddle” as opposed to “sexist twat.” Is that correct?
No reply to that so far. In a nutshell, that is the source of a lot of the outrage. Either one sees it and shares the disgust… or one is so obtuse as to not see it, and brush it aside.
Stay tuned…
