Gov.-elect Abigail Spanberger made an appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert Monday night, just days before she’ll be sworn in as Virginia’s first female governor.
The conversation included lighthearted jokes about Spanberger’s family and friends, as well as more policy-focused topics such as the National Guard and bipartisan leadership.
Talking Family
Colbert pointed out that Virginia is a state that refers to the governor as “Your Excellency.” Spanberger, in response, shared an anecdote about an event before the election, when the person introducing her said, “In just a few months when we introduce her, everyone will stand and say ‘Her Excellency.’”
“There was a brief lull in the crowd, and you could hear a woman in the back say, ‘I’m not doing that,’” Spanberger said. “It was my sister — my middle sister, making her opinion known to my mother.”
Spanberger and Colbert also chatted about the moment in her acceptance speech when she teased her daughter Catherine by saying “You did not clean your room today, as you promised me.”
“What has been delightful is she’s been coming home from school or from Girl Scouts or all of her activities with a little bit of an attitude because people in public are asking her, ‘Have you cleaned your room?’” Spanberger said. “It takes a village.”
She also talked about her friendship with New Jersey Gov.-elect Mikie Sherrill. The two were roommates during their time in Congress.
Federal Tensions
The conversation shifted to a more serious tone when Colbert asked Spanberger about potential tensions between state and federal governments. Colbert pointed to lawsuits from Minnesota and Illinois against the Trump administration over deployments of the National Guard and ICE agents.
Spanberger called on her experience as a former federal agent. “What I learned every single day in law enforcement is your ability to do your job is built on trust,” she said.
“What we are seeing day in and day out, people going in wearing masks, terrifying communities, is that they’re breaking down that trust and it is actually impeding the ability to keep our communities safe, to enforce the law,” she said. “As governor I will ensure that we are a place where yes, we uphold the law, but that if someone is a victim of a crime, if they are a witness of a crime, or if they are community members, that they are in a place where there is trust that is being built and not degraded.”
Bipartisan Leadership
Spanberger and Colbert also discussed Spanberger’s reputation as one of the most bipartisan legislators when she was a member of Congress.
“If you want to get things done, if you want a Republican president behind your bill, you’ve got to get support for it. If you want a Republican Senate leader to bring your bill for a vote after it passes in a Democratic-led House, you need to have broad bipartisan support,” she said.
As an example, she pointed to her “unlikely friendship” with Texas Rep. Chip Roy, a Republican. She said the two have “very little in common politically,” but pointed out that they were elected to Congress the same year, have the same birthday, and are both UVA alumni.
While they did not agree on much, she said the exception was that “we both agree that members of Congress should not be able to trade stocks when they are serving in Congress.” The two worked together on legislation against trading stocks while in office, which she said “has very broad bipartisan support” in Congress now.
Upcoming Inauguration
Spanberger’s inauguration is scheduled for noon on Saturday, January 17, at the Virginia Capitol State Building in Richmond. The inaugural weekend will include events like a Made in Virginia market, an inaugural parade, and tours of the Executive Mansion.
Feature image of Gov.-elect Abigail Spanberger with Stephen Colbert by Scott Kowalchyk, courtesy CBS Broadcasting, Inc.
