According to Virginia Del. Carrie Coyner (R-Chesterfield), the still-unfolding scandal involving Democrat attorney general nominee Jay Jones goes deeper than just a few text messages.

Coyner, who was the recipient of several 2022 text messages from Jones advocating for the assassination of then-state House Speaker Todd Gilbert, said that Jones had made similar comments to her back in 2020 when they were discussing the idea of qualified immunity for police officers.

“We had a pretty heated conversation about public policy and pain involving qualified immunity,” Coyner told Brandon Jarvis of Virginia Scope.

“I served on the Courts Committee for a short period of time. A bill to remove qualified immunity for police officers, which protects police officers from personal liability in their line of duty and their line of work, and he believed that they should not have qualified immunity, and he was trying to convince me to agree with that,” Coyner explained.

“I said, ‘No, police officers have to make a split second decision about whether or not to shoot a gun to protect themselves or protect others. And if they’re having to think about, will this strip my whole family of everything … are they going to be able to make that split-second decision?’” Coyner recalled, adding, “And I said, ‘I believe that people will get killed. Police officers will get killed.’ And he said, ‘Well, maybe if a few of them died, that they would move on, not shooting people, not killing people.’ And I said, ‘that’s insane.’”

“But he firmly believed that if you removed qualified immunity, that police officers would act differently, and I firmly believe that it would not result in good public policy, and it would put police officers and the public’s lives at risk if they have to second-guess themselves on a decision they’re making in a moment where someone is doing something violent,” she said.

Jones — who did put his name behind legislation ending qualified immunity for police officers — did not speak directly with Virginia Scope, but provided a statement claiming that he had never said any such thing.

“I did not say this. I have never believed and do not believe that any harm should come to law enforcement, period. Every single day, police officers put their lives on the line to protect our communities, and I am deeply grateful for their service and sacrifice. As Attorney General, I will work hand-in-hand with law enforcement to support their work,” the statement read.

If Congress does not fund the government by Monday night, it will cost millions of Americans their next full paycheck, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt warned on Monday.

“Millions of American federal workers are under enormous financial stress as a result, wondering how they will pay their bills and take care of their families,” Leavitt said. “If the Democrats do not vote to open the government tonight, federal workers will not receive their next full paycheck.”

More than 620,000 federal workers have already been furloughed as the government shutdown approaches its second week. More and more workers will join their ranks in the coming days unless Republicans and Democrats come to an agreement on a funding bill. That includes more than 1 million active-duty troops whose pay will lapse on October 15 absent an agreement.

Furloughed employees are issued letters they may present to landlords or creditors and will be issued back pay once the shutdown ends. Still, workers are already beginning to feel the strain of the shutdown, with some telling ABC News they are living paycheck to paycheck.

Leavitt on Wednesday placed the blame for that financial strain firmly on Democrats, noting that just five defections would bring an end to the shutdown. That would not only protect federal workers’ pay, but also ensure federal nutrition programs for women and children operate uninterrupted.

Democrats thus far have refused to support funding bills that do not make permanent expanded Obamacare premium tax credits set to expire this year. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) took to X Friday to affirm that “Democrats will keep fighting to save health care for all Americans.”

Republicans say Schumer is keeping the government closed for fear of alienating extreme members of his party, who support the expanded tax credits because they would make it easier for illegal aliens to receive taxpayer-subsidized health benefits.

The Democrats’ “funding proposal would result in nearly $200 billion dollars spent on health care for illegal aliens and other non-citizens over the next decade,” Leavitt said Wednesday.

Republicans are pushing a “clean” funding bill, which would keep the government running without any additional provisions. The House of Representatives passed the bill on Sept. 19 by a vote of 217-212. The Senate has repeatedly failed to pass the bill, with the majority of Democrats voting to oppose.

Democratic Senators John Fetterman, (Pa.) and Catherine Cortez Masto (Nev.) have sided with Republicans.