Remember this guy?
Back in November when #Old45 was still trolling his golf course in my hometown of Sterling, Virginia, and throngs of protesters clashed almost every weekend, I reported on an incident involving Raymond Deskins, a notorious pool float-wearing Trump supporter who coughed on two protesters. A video that caught part of the incident went viral. Pool Boy Deskins, who was previously found guilty of a federal crime in 2012, can now add assault and battery to his offenses in the General District Court of Loudoun.
Turns out the story has an even happier ending. As the Loudoun Times-Mirror reports, in lieu of serving a year in prison and paying a $2,500 fine, Deskins agreed to pay $3,000 to the Loudoun chapter of the NAACP, which will use the money to fund scholarships for high school graduates of the 17 high schools in the county.
The idea came from Kathy Beynette and Patricia Razeghi, the two women Deskins attacked by “exhaling violently” upon them. Or, as the Loudoun Times-Mirror described it, “During the incident, Deskins taunted the protesters, shaking his pool float and walking toward the women before taking a deep breath and blowing on them.”
That may not have sounded like much, but the clutch of Trump supporters outside Trump National was infamous for showing up in unmasked groups and flaunting their cavalier attitudes about the COVID-19 pandemic as a way to intimidate and mock Trump protesters. Additionally, as Beynette reports, despite the presence of three Loudoun County deputies on site and the regular presence of security for Trump, law enforcement refused to intervene. Instead, all the legal work was eventually left in the hands of the two victims, who had to seek a citizen-obtained warrant from the county magistrate to press charges. This process stretched over several months that began with two weeks of quarantine after their exposure to Deskins. This meant being isolated from family during Thanksgiving and then spending the holidays working on their case.
This incident with Deskins only hints at the unrest that roiled this neighborhood, especially during the election season. Black Lives Matter and NAACP supporters received some of the most targeted taunts and attacks at Trump National from Trump supporters. It was for this reason that Beynette and Razeghi thought it appropriate to have the outcome of this trial benefit them. Beynette and Razeghi are more than thrilled that some good was salvaged out of this disgusting encounter and tumultuous period of time.
To their benefit, Loudoun County, which Trump favored for his golf outings (especially after COVID-19 curtailed his travel plans), also turned deep blue during his administration. It featured a season-long series of Black Lives Matter marches in the summer of 2020 organized by NAACP President Michelle Thomas. The marches connected voter registration drives and GOTV efforts. Beynette and Razeghi were active with these and other grassroots groups. Democratic county board members from neighborhoods and towns surrounding the golf club also asked for an investigation. This included Phyllis Randall, the first woman of color to chair a county board in Virginia and who spearheaded the removal of a Confederate statue from the county courthouse, and Juli Briskman, supervisor of the Algonkian District where the Trump National golf club sits. Briskman became known nationally as the cyclist who gave Trump the middle finger as his motorcade passed her. The action initially resulted in her losing her job, but she went on to run for office—and win.
And just so it's clear, both Trump and now Deskins lost!
