In the capital city that has known Robert F. McDonnell as both highly regarded governor and humiliated criminal defendant, Thursday’s news that prosecutors will not put him on trial again drew mostly cheers.
Republicans who had always insisted that McDonnell had broken no laws stifled I-told-you-so’s, sticking to expressions of relief for the onetime GOP rising star and his family. Even many Democrats, including Gov. Terry McAuliffe and a state senator who had called on McDonnell to step down as the $177,000 gifts scandal began unfolding during his last year in office, said they were glad it was over.
“I think it’s time to move on,” Sen. J. Chapman “Chap” Petersen (D-Fairfax) said hours after the prosecutors said in a court filing that they would not retry McDonnell and his wife, Maureen, on corruption charges for accepting lavish vacations, sweetheart loans and catering for a daughter’s wedding from a business executive who wanted their help in promoting his dietary supplement.
