Former Virginia House of Delegates Minority Leader Todd Gilbert was sworn in Monday as the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Virginia.
Gilbert will be responsible for representing the U.S. in civil and criminal litigation and will lead an office of nearly 30 federal prosecutors and support staff.
U.S. Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) recommended Gilbert in an April 3 letter to the White House.
Instead of nominating a Democrat, perhaps as a minor form of resistance, Warner and Kaine instead chose Gilbert and said in the nomination letter that they found him “exceptionally qualified for the position of U.S. Attorney.”
Gilbert supports MAGA positions and has called abortion “a lifestyle convenience” and denigrated those who want justice for Palestinians.
While Kaine and Warner could read the political tea leaves and knew a Republican would ultimately get selected for the role, many are scratching their heads as to why this guy. Why this Republican?
Known for his far-right positions, Gilbert has opposed the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid expansion at the state level in Virginia. He has also repeatedly blocked an effort to remove the ban on gay marriage from the Virginia Constitution.
Gilbert, on his X account, has demonstrated his extremely partisan bias, saying Democrats will “continue to make life harder, less prosperous and more dangerous for all Americans.”
Also, despite a 12-member jury of New Yorkers convicting Trump on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records to cover up a sex scandal in 2024, Gilbert called the criminal proceeding “fundamentally unfair” and said it was a “rigged show trial, replete with legal errors, obvious biases and political agendas.”
Great. One can only wonder what this kind of statement implies for political enemies of MAGA for the man tapped to now lead federal prosecutions in Virginia. The Western District of Virginia comprises 60 percent of Virginia and approximately 2.2 million of its citizens.
Gilbert was ultimately nominated by President Donald Trump and appointed by Attorney General Pamela Bondi. He took the oath of office administered by United States District Judge Thomas T. Cullen yesterday.
“I am honored to serve as the United States Attorney for the Western District of Virginia,” Gilbert said. “In my heart, I have always been a prosecutor and to return to that role now is the opportunity of a lifetime.”
Gilbert was a former state prosecutor with nearly 15 years of experience in four different Commonwealth’s Attorneys offices, all located within the Western District of Virginia including Lynchburg, Shenandoah, Warren and Frederick.
Gilbert served nearly 20 years in the Virginia legislature as a member of the Virginia House of Delegates, serving as the 57th Speaker of the House from 2022-2024.
Gilbert was raised in the Shenandoah Valley and graduated from the University of Virginia and the Southern Methodist University School of Law.
His wife, Jennifer Wishon Gilbert, is a native of Bedford County, attended Virginia Tech and worked as a broadcast journalist for WDBJ in Roanoke.
Republican Del. Terry Kilgore assumed the role of caucus leader in place of Gilbert.
Editor Chris Graham contributed to this story.
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Crystal Graham
