The next is the transcript of the interview with Virginia Gov.-elect Abigail Spanberger, a Democrat, that aired on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” on Nov. 9, 2025.
MARGARET BRENNAN: We flip now to the Democratic governor elect of Virginia, Abigail Spanberger, she joins us this morning from Glen Allen, simply exterior of Richmond. Welcome to Face The Nation.
ABIGAIL SPANBERGER: Thanks a lot for having me.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Effectively, Virginia boasts one of many highest numbers of federal employees within the nation, and as you already know, a lot of them should not getting paid. You understand, some in your celebration take a look at your election on Tuesday and the win in New Jersey and say that’s permission to carry the road in Congress and refuse to fund the federal government or fold on the shutdown. Ought to congressional Democrats view your victory that means?
ABIGAIL SPANBERGER: Completely not. Our victory was a victory that was based mostly on a marketing campaign that was addressing considerations associated to prices and chaos. My marketing campaign throughout the previous two years have been centered on listening to the challenges that persons are dealing with all throughout Virginia. It is rising prices in well being care, housing, power, and it is the chaos popping out of Washington that has been impacting Virginians so severely, starting with the DOGE efforts, after all, persevering with with chaotic commerce insurance policies, and now on this authorities shutdown. Virginians have to and Virginians wish to see the federal government reopen, and my expectation is that we are going to see a congress, a Senate, and finally a president, driving us in that path.
MARGARET BRENNAN: However ought to congressional Democrats open the federal government after which speak about well being care?
ABIGAIL SPANBERGER: The federal government must open and it must open instantly. We want the president to reveal management, bringing folks collectively, endeavoring to get via no matter negotiations have to get via, whether or not it is earlier than or after. My precedence is the, is specializing in the wants and the, the devastation, frankly, that greater than 300,000 Virginians are dealing with. And that is simply the federal staff, authorities contractors, they are going to by no means get made complete. The whole lot of Virginia’s financial system is impacted by the shutdown, simply as we have been impacted by Doge assaults, and the federal government must reopen rapidly.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Effectively, and that is why I am asking, as a result of there are what, 825,000 enrollees on meals support within the SNAP program. They’re in limbo proper now. You’ve got instant ache, so at what level do you weigh that towards the potential of well being care premiums? I imply, this ache could be very actual and really acute for folks in your state proper now.
ABIGAIL SPANBERGER: And it has been occurring now for weeks, weeks too lengthy the federal government must reopen as a result of along with the ache that we’re already seeing–
(CROSSTALK)
MARGARET BRENNAN
However eight Democrats might cross the aisle and achieve this.
ABIGAIL SPANBERGER: We completely want everybody to vote to open the federal government. And that is to not say that the challenges we’re dealing with inside our well being care system should not additionally instant and acute. Even the passage of the One Large, Lovely Invoice may have catastrophic impacts on Virginia, taking $26 billion out of our well being care, resulting in the closure of at the very least six rural hospitals. We have already seen three rural clinics announce their closure. Tons of of 1000s will lose their Medicaid, and so the impacts on well being care are already catastrophic. We can not compound that ache by conserving the federal government closed.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Let’s take a break and end this on the opposite aspect of it. Please stick with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MARGARET BRENNAN: Welcome again to Face The Nation. We return to our dialog with Virginia Governor elect Abigail Spanberger. Governor-elect, synthetic intelligence has created a very massive demand for these knowledge facilities, and Virginia has the world’s largest focus of them. Energy payments are up almost 7% in your state over the previous yr. Is that pushed by the AI increase? And if that’s the case, how do you offset these rising power prices?
ABIGAIL SPANBERGER: Effectively, what we have seen within the, within the analysis thus far is that it’s not, the elevated prices should not pushed by the rise in knowledge facilities. There’s some dangerous power insurance policies in a few of our neighboring states which have pushed up costs, significantly in southwest Virginia. However trying in the direction of the long run, we have now to be clear eyed about the truth that we may have an power disaster headed into the long run. And so right here on the bottom in Virginia, we at present have a fee case the place it is going to be vital that enormous scale power customers, significantly knowledge facilities, that the general public, know that they’re paying their fair proportion for the power that they’re utilizing. And we have now to extend our power manufacturing right here at dwelling in order that we are able to meet the demand, actually of bigger scale power customers, however, but additionally of elevated demand from, from our communities. And it’s a actual problem that we have now to get forward of. And that is why among the many first affordability plans that I laid out was one centered on power. It is a problem that’s pervasive throughout our communities and significantly acute in southwest Virginia.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Only a few days in the past, Cornell College reached a $60 million cope with the Trump administration in an effort to see their federal funding restored. That is the fifth such deal because the administration started this stress marketing campaign on universities. I do know you went to College of Virginia, as did I, and should be following that. UVA minimize offers with the federal government, together with kicking out the president of the varsity. You known as that extortion. However now, as governor, are you going to should play ball with the Division of Schooling and the Justice Division in an effort to maintain federal authorities funding going?
ABIGAIL SPANBERGER: So it ought to, It ought to shock everybody that universities, private and non-private, are receiving calls for from the federal authorities and that {dollars}, analysis {dollars}, are being withheld, that our universities are underneath assault. And positively what we have seen within the case the College of Virginia, a well-liked, skilled, wonderful president was pushed out, and on the bottom right here, we didn’t see our governor in any means step up in protection of our college. And the concept the federal authorities can be withholding federal {dollars}, together with {dollars} already appropriated by Congress for analysis, in an effort to compel universities to take sure actions, it’s absolute federal authorities overreach, and as governor, I can be clear eyed about guaranteeing that we have now constructions in place, together with boards of tourists throughout our universities that wish to defend tutorial freedom and albeit, the viability and vitality of extraordinary establishments just like the College of Virginia.
MARGARET BRENNAN: I wish to ask you about your celebration. In 2020 when Democrats misplaced Home seats, you stated we have to not ever use the phrase socialist or socialism ever once more. There are some who look to Tuesday’s win in New York Metropolis of a Democratic socialist and say that your, your celebration is definitely being rewarded for echoing progressive insurance policies. Does that victory create a branding downside for Democrats?
ABIGAIL SPANBERGER: Effectively, actually, you already know, I am enthusiastic about what we did right here in Virginia on Tuesday. I campaigned addressing, wanting to handle the problems of prices and stopping the chaos. I am a capitalist, I am a Democrat, and I gained by 15 factors in Virginia. You look to New Jersey, and an analogous story in Mikie Sherrill’s win now the governor elect there. And so I believe, you already know, actually, we’re an enormous tent celebration, however once I take a look at what led to the success that we had right here, and the, you already know, the mandate for actual governance right here within the Commonwealth of Virginia, it was based mostly on what I campaigned on, the efforts to actually deal with the challenges that persons are dealing with in a daily foundation. And now it is on us to ship and show that that basically really the the mandate that we have now to work on decreasing prices and strengthening our faculties and conserving our communities secure and and creating regular management right here within the Commonwealth of Virginia, significantly in gentle of the chaos popping out of Washington, that not solely was it a profitable message, however the profitable path in the direction of governance.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Thanks very a lot in your time this morning, Governor-elect Abigail Spanberger, the, who would be the first feminine governor ever of the state of Virginia. We’ll be proper again.
