Virginia Attorney General hopeful Jay Jones is under fire after disturbing messages in which he fantasized about shooting then-House Speaker Todd Gilbert and even invoked the death of Gilbert’s children. The messages sent in 2022 resurfaced recently and have stirred bipartisan outrage, raising serious questions about his temperament, judgment, and fitness for public office. While Jones has apologized and taken responsibility, many are asking how trust can be rebuilt after such violent rhetoric. In a political climate already fraying at the edges, candidates must be tempered and show restraint with their words. Otherwise civility erodes and violent rhetoric leads to awful results. In the end, public service requires leaders who embody both integrity and self-control, even in the heat of political conflict.