Virginia Congressman Tom Perriello

Tom Perriello is someone I was really excited to see in Congress. After 8 years of failed Republican foreign policy, we need some people with excellent diplomatic skills in government to help clean up the mess. Perriello has a strong record of diplomatic success in difficult regions. Back when Sierra Leone was one of the world’s most violent hot spots, Tom worked with child soldiers, amputees, and local pro-democracy groups, and played a significant role in the peace and reconciliation process that ended twelve years of violence there. He then became Special Advisor and spokesperson for the International Prosecutor during the showdown that forced Liberian dictator Charles Taylor (who was also responsible for the violence in Sierra Leone) from power without firing a shot. THAT is the kind of diplomatic skill America needs after years of Republican blunders. After this success, Tom served as a national security analyst for the Century Foundation. He has worked inside Darfur and twice in Afghanistan, so he knows about the hot spots of today.

Well, Perriello was elected in 2008 and has already made a good impression. From Perriello's campaign:

Congressman Perriello Receives High Marks On His First Months In Office.

Reviews have been coming in from newspapers around the district for Tom's first months in office and they're pretty unanimous: the 5th District likes what is sees. Tom's been working a double shift for us and local editorial boards are taking note of Tom's leadership and strong independent voice for transparency in Washington. The Roanoke Times wrote:

"Tom Perriello isn't behaving like a freshly minted member of Congress. New back-benchers generally hope that one day, they, too, might rise to prominence. But first they need to demonstrate they are reliable, loyal party stewards so that they can gain the right assignments and, eventually, when they've put in the time, rise to chair an important subcommittee.

Perriello's independent streak has no time for rank-and-file allegiance. He has made haste to challenge entrenched House practices.

He's already pushed for transparency that requires members to post on their Web sites requests for earmarks. And now, he has signed on as an original cosponsor of a bill that would prohibit members from taking campaign contributions and awarding earmarks to the same people."

Click here to read the rest of the editorial.


Join us for the Common Good Summer Kickoff

Summer is just around the corner and with it comes the launch of our Common Good Summer internship program. Talented young people from around the 5th District will spend the summer registering voters, engaging them on the issues, participating in community service projects, and helping elect our 2009 state candidates. Join us Sunday, May 17th at 4:30 for our kickoff event at Cityspace on the Charlottesville Downtown Mall. The event will feature a straw poll for the contested Governor and Lt. Governor primaries. Tickets start at $40 - come out to support your statewide candidate of choice and the hard work of our Common Good interns! For more information or to RSVP visit www.perrielloforcongress.com/strawpoll or contact Anna Scholl at anna@perrielloforcongress.com or (540) 460-1269.

I look forward to more good work from Virginia's new Congressional Rep.