Campaign News

By Walter Shapiro
from Politics Daily

BEDFORD, Virginia – Normally when a freshman congressman makes an appearance at a middle school to deliver innocuous remarks in honor of Veterans Day, the local police do not send out a protective cordon. But here in southern Virginia, 35-year-old Democrat Tom Perriello has been a target of conservative protesters for months -- and that was before he cast one of the deciding votes Saturday night in favor of health care reform.

Wednesday, though, the Bedford police over-reacted, since a driving rain and a patriotic holiday kept the demonstrators down to a handful. In fact, by the end of the ceremonies at Bedford Middle School, the anti-Perriello contingent had dwindled to just Chris Ashman (whose bedraggled sign read, "We Wanted Liberty and You Gave Us Tyranny") and his wife, Nicole ("Abortion Is Murder – And I Am Not Paying for It").

by the Register Bee Editorial Board

Hank Davis told more than 100 people at the “Tom in Your Town” community meeting at Chatham Middle School the Board of Supervisors never sees as many citizens at its public hearings.

That’s true, of course.

The crowds that greeted Rep. Tom Perriello, D-Fifth District, in Danville and Chatham this week were large compared to most government meetings. But they were also loud, passionate and concerned about health care, the biggest political issue in America today.

The controversy over health care legislation before Congress has generated a backlash against the protesters, who in some parts of the country have been likened to mobs.

But is yelling at your congressman really an example of mob behavior?

In some circles, that kind of behavior could be considered rude and disrespectful. The First Amendment guarantees freedom of speech. But it’s not a mandate for polite, genteel and comforting speech.

For his part, Perriello stood toe-to-toe with a lot of people who didn’t vote for him, don’t like him or his party and don’t want any health care bill to pass Congress. To his credit, he took the criticism, listened carefully and answered nearly all of the questions put to him.

From The Martinsville Bulletin

Fifth District U.S. Rep. Tom Perriello on Tuesday wrote a letter urging a high-ranking Democrat to support Perriello’s efforts to extend unemployment benefits for people in all states.

Last week, the House of Representatives passed a bill that would extend unemployment benefits to workers in 27 states that have unemployment rates of 8.5 percent or higher. The legislation, which passed with bipartisan support, would extend the benefits for 13 weeks.

Because Virginia’s unemployment rate is 6.5 percent, workers here do not qualify under the legislation. However, some parts of Virginia, particularly in Perriello’s 5th District, have much higher jobless rates.

According to figures released Wednesday, Martinsville has the state’s highest unemployment rate at 20.8 percent. Henry County’s is the second highest at 14.6, a rate that matches that of Danville, which Perriello also represents.

Because workers in southern Virginia would not receive a benefit extension under the House bill, Perriello, D-Albemarle County, voted against the legislation Sept. 22, according to a news release from his office.

By Justin Faulconer, Lynchburg News Advance

A bill authorizing the Department of the Interior to study the National D-Day Memorial’s potential to join the National Park Service now is headed to President Barack Obama’s desk for his signature.

The U.S. Senate passed the National Defense Authorization Act on Thursday, which includes the memorial study that already is under way.

Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., and Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., voted in favor. The U.S. House passed a compromise version of the defense bill Oct. 8.

“Now we’re just one step closer,” said Jessica Barba, spokeswoman for Rep. Tom Perriello, D-5th District, of the legislation that the three lawmakers have lobbied for since June.

The memorial opened in 2001 to honor the largest land, air and sea operation in military history. It was located in Bedford because the community lost 19 soldiers during the assault — the highest per capita loss during the invasion.

Officials at the memorial said earlier this year that it does not have enough money to sustain operations. The memorial has an annual operating budget of $2.2 million and relies on donations, which officials said have dropped because of the economy.

A team from the National Park Service made a “fact-finding” visit to the Bedford site in August.