Wittman’s Silent Complicity is Deafening
And dangerous.
Welcome to the Wittman Watch newsletter!
Last week we wrote about the lies and deceptions in the Republican scheme to break the ACA, and we kicked off our Myth of the Week series: Is Wittman good for the military & veterans?
ICYMI: here’s the video from the VA-01 candidate online forum that was held on January 15th. Get to know the contenders to oust Wittman!
Scroll down to see our social media roundup for the week.
When Wittman says nothing, it’s a loud statement we can’t ignore
The 2025 Virginia elections revealed that voters had strong concerns about many issues. Some are evergreen, such as the stagnant minimum wage; affordability and availability of housing; and expensive childcare. Other issues were the result of the global pandemic. And still others were produced or exacerbated by the excesses of the Trump presidency: tax cuts for the rich, removal of climate protections, and the economic chaos of H.R. 1. With the help of Congressional Republicans, the Trump administration slashed social safety nets and introduced new obstacles and skyrocketing expenses for healthcare.
Through all the chaos, confusion, and catastrophe, there’s been one constant element: VA-01 Congressman Rob Wittman’s silence. And by silence, we mean both literal silence and a lack of condemnation — of corruption, criminality, and cruelty being unleashed upon all kinds of people in America. Wittman routinely fails to condemn the administration’s wrongs and acknowledge the harm inflicted on his constituents and the nation as a whole.
Wittman’s silence equals complicity. By refusing to criticize policies that hurt us, he has aligned himself with the corrupt, illegal, and criminal acts of the Trump administration.
Let’s take stock of the issues on which Wittman has been silent that are deeply impactful to First District voters.
Trump’s illegal invasion of Venezuela and threats against Greenland
Wittman commended the invasion of Venezuela that has killed at least 80 people, including civilians, and voted to reject Congressman McGovern’s Bipartisan War Powers Resolution. So far he’s kept quiet on Trump’s threats to annex Greenland, another sovereign nation, against the will of its own people.
Wittman’s silence about previous, similar geopolitical situations reveals his hypocrisy on the issue. VA-01 candidate Salaam Bhatti rightly points out:
The Republican representative I’m challenging commended Trump’s unjust attack on Venezuela. If Wittman truly cared about narcoterrorism, he’d have spoken out against Trump pardoning [the] former Honduran President, one of the biggest narcoterrorists.
Wittman’s silence over the pardoning of Juan Orlando Hernández demonstrates that he has priorities other than protecting Americans from narcoterrorism. Will he claim responsibility for the further harm to national security or costs that may result from the invasion and occupation of Venezuela? His history tells us he’s most likely to keep his mouth shut. This is an unconscionable choice from the Vice Chair of the House Armed Services Committee.
Jobs and unemployment
A mere four months into the second Trump administration, Northern Virginia had to brace for steep job losses, both federal and in the private sector. Those job losses peaked by October. Fast-forward to December, when 2025 capped off the worst year for hiring since 2020. Under DOGE’s reign of terror, tens of thousands of federal employees lost their jobs. Immigration restrictions made companies hesitant to hire non-citizens. By the end of 2025, unemployment rose to 4.4%.
Wittman was particularly ineffective about DOGE’s havoc; he actually “voted to codify billions of dollars in DOGE cuts.” He voted that way in a state that has 234,000 federal workers. For once, he didn’t stay silent, insisting he was concerned about “waste, fraud and abuse.”
Maybe this time he should have kept his mouth shut. That would have saved us the $10bn that it cost to pay workers whom DOGE ordered to stay at home.
Affordability
Despite dire economic data, President Trump has called affordability concerns a “hoax.” Rob Wittman must agree, because he’s been silent about this outrageous claim. Does Wittman think his constituents’ affordability concerns are “fake news” and a “fake narrative” perpetrated by Democrats?
When the government shut down in October 2025, food banks saw a massive increase in clients. The state of Virginia launched a food drive to address food insecurities resulting from the pause in the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
The food bank surge happened alongside already-increasing food prices. Some hoax! Does Wittman think we shouldn’t believe our own eyes and wallets when we shop at the grocery store?
The affordability crisis has affected all areas of our lives. Senator Schuyler VanValkenburg (VA-16) raised the alarm about Virginia’s housing market. Millions of Americans covered by the ACA are facing price hikes after subsidies expired. And Virginians’ power bills are soaring.
The evidence is loud and clear. Who does Wittman think should take responsibility for America’s affordability crisis? President Trump’s policies? Tariffs? We’ll never know because he’s been — wait for it — silent about it.
Trump’s blocking of Virginia’s offshore wind project
Wittman hasn’t openly or strongly objected to the Trump administration’s pushback against renewable energy, an action that put the brakes on Virginia’s offshore wind project, threatening 11,000 jobs, increasing energy prices, and destroying a driver of $2 billion of economic activity. His statement reads in part:
As it relates to the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind Project, ratepayers have contributed to the completion of this project, and it is critical that this investment is upheld. I will continue to monitor and advocate for the Commonwealth on this effort.
Note the passive voice: “it is critical that this investment is upheld.” Wittman specifically avoids stating that he will ensure the upholding. “Monitoring and advocating” isn’t the same as condemning the Trump administration for the unlawful blocking of wind energy projects.
In putting a stop to the offshore wind project, Trump ignored a judge’s ruling. Why doesn’t Wittman object to this egregious behavior? Why does he fail to respond to this energy crisis?
Maybe Wittman secretly agrees with Trump’s action. Maybe he fears being targeted by Trump if he takes a stronger stance. Or maybe, for all his faux-environmentalist bluster, he simply doesn’t care about his constituents and Virginia’s renewable energy needs.
Trump’s criminality and corruption
President Trump is a 34-time convicted felon and adjudicated rapist. We can’t point you to a statement by Congressman Wittman about those facts because it doesn’t seem to exist. Rather than object to a convicted-felon president who was also found liable for sexual assault, Wittman practically rolled out the red carpet for Trump’s second term.
Trump’s abuses of power are legion. Trump enriches himself with crypto currency. He accepts gifts that demonstrate a “blatant disregard for ethics rules.” Trump has created a “pay-to-play administration.” Public Citizen makes the case that the Trump administration is the most lawless in America’s history.
The more the list of crime and corruption grows, the quieter Wittman gets. Does this mean he and Trump are two peas in a pod?
ICE
ICE agents have been responsible for multiple shootings, physical assaults, and the deaths of US citizens and residents. The murder of U.S. citizen Renee Good in Minneapolis sent shockwaves across the country. Her death sparked national outrage, mass protests, district-wide school closings, and Congresswoman Robin Kelly filing articles of impeachment for Kristi Noem, Secretary of Homeland Security.
If ever there was a time for Wittman to break his silence, it was in the wake of this tragedy. But he didn’t. He didn’t file articles of impeachment against Noem or President Trump, nor did he object to the FBI blocking the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension from investigating the case. He just… let everything slide.
In Virginia, ICE arrested a J.R. Tucker high school student. Migrant farm workers in the Commonwealth fear being kidnapped by ICE. ICE sweeps have engulfed Chesterfield County. Congresswoman Jennifer McClellan (VA-04) didn’t stay silent about this ICE overreach; she demanded answers. Why hasn’t Rob Wittman?
He voted for H.R. 1, which budgeted an unprecedented $170 billion for ICE to build more immigration detention centers and increase deportation operations. This has already resulted in ICE detaining at least 170 American citizens, and arresting 130 more who “interfered,” including a dozen elected officials.
ICE agents have been discriminating against people based on their skin color. “Kavanaugh stops” — incidents of racial profiling — have resulted in the detention of U.S. citizens. That means anyone in the First District with brown skin could be profiled next.
Wittman’s silence about ICE’s violence sends the message that he is untroubled about the rule of law, racial profiling, and civil rights. It seems that if these rights are threatened in VA-01 — which has a diverse population of many minorities — Wittman will let it happen without comment.
Dismantling the Department of Education
One would think that being married to a person who’d been a public-school educator for decades would alarm a certain Congressman about Trump’s dismantling of the U.S. Department of Education, but Wittman has been largely — you guessed it — silent about it.
He advocated for federal funding for VCU’s Teacher Residency Program, which includes him “respectfully” requesting that VCU have “the opportunity to rewrite their grant application to ensure it complies with the president’s policy priorities.” That’s a far cry from using all the congressional tools at his disposal to halt Linda McMahon and others from accomplishing their goal of dismantling America’s public school system.
Wittman’s silence about one of the bedrocks of American society tells his constituents that he doesn’t value public K-12 and state schools, the developmental needs of children, or an educated populace. The less educated American citizens are, the more easily an authoritarian government can control them. Is that Wittman’s goal?
Instead of introducing legislation to improve the existing system, Wittman is twiddling his thumbs. Staying silent about the dismantling of public schools amounts to support for destructive policies.
Data centers
The dangers posed by data centers have been well-documented. Virginia is currently the data center capital of America. Why, then, is Wittman so silent about their threat to his constituents’ health and environments?
Relatedly, Wittman is silent about the tech billionaires’ thirst for infinite energy, which has already led to a proliferation of data centers that don’t serve the interests of the communities in which they’re built. Instead, they drive up utility bills, cause pollution, squander water resources, and devour tax subsidies. Meanwhile, as noted above, he has said nothing about Trump’s pause of the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind Project, which would have lowered energy prices across Virginia.
By remaining silent, Wittman puts corporate interests over people. He aligns himself with billionaires who hoard resources, leaving the rest of us with crumbs.
Healthcare
The list of current threats to medical research, our healthcare system, and healthcare coverage is wide-ranging:
In 2025, Wittman said one thing about preserving access to affordable healthcare, but his behavior told a different story. As the Virginia Mercury notes:
Specifically, Wittman, who represents Virginian’s 1st Congressional District, and Kiggans, who represents Virginia’s 2nd District, should prove they did not lie when they pledged to protect their constituents’ access to Medicaid and affordable health care.
While spreading disinformation about the contents of H.R. 1, he’s been silent about its devastating effects, which he voted for wholeheartedly. And now, his constituents are at risk of crushing medical debt, untreated illnesses, and losing healthcare altogether.
Wittman’s silence is complicity.
Wittman’s silence is betrayal.
With Wittman in our seat in Congress, our lives, safety, and prosperity are at enormous risk.
What do you think about Rob Wittman’s silence on issues that matter to you? Comment here or on Facebook, Instagram, BlueSky, or Reddit.
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This November, we’ll make sure our seat is filled by someone who’ll work for us.
Brilliant framing on how silence functions as policy endorsement. The contrast with McClellan's ICE response shows exactly what real reprentation looks like. Wittman's pattern of passive voice statements is basically accountability laundering. I've seen this same playbook in districts where reps bank on voter inatenction during midterms.
Thank you for this complete summary. I have called and written to his office several times a week asking for statements. I do believe his silence is hurting him with normal people who used to be Republicans as well as those who identify as MAGA. If he were smart, and I am glad he isn't, he would go full MAGA to get re elected. His silence will help our District find his replacement (most likely a Democrat). I just hope the Dem Party can find a moderate strong leader who can win handedly. This is not the time for party, this is a time for country. The Dem opponent must be willing to fight the Trump Regime from Day 1.