I don't really know this man, but I think this is pretty damn awesome:
Perriello spokeswoman Jessica Barba said Perriello met with and respected those who oppose the health care bill but ultimately made the decision he deemed best for his district. Perriello's 5th District stretches from Charlottesville to Danville.
"A lot of the political pundits and all the conventional wisdom is saying that this is going to cost him the election next year," she said. "He didn't come to Congress to get re-elected."
Thank you Rep. Perriello, I wish more Democrats would decide they didn't go to Congress to simply get re-elected.
In response to Rep. Perriello voting 'Yes' on health care, teabagger heads have exploded. According to TPM:
The local Tea Party organization in Danville, Virginia, is taking their opposition to freshman Democratic Rep. Tom Perriello to a whole new level -- announcing that they will burn him in effigy, along with a similar image of Speaker Nancy Pelosi, at a rally called "Fired Up For Freedom."
Ah yes, burning people in effigy, THAT'LL get them to do what you want them to do. /snark
I like the mentality that Congressmen and Congresswomen don't go to Congress to simply be re-elected, but instead to do the right things for their districts. I wish more of them thought that way.
Last night Rep. Perriello held a tele-town hall where he addressed the concerns of his constituents:
Perriello answered all calmly and respectfully, laying out his reasons for supporting the bill and addressing those areas he felt still needed work, such as tort reform and interstate competition.
"The good news is we’ve gotten some of the first pilot projects at the federal level looking at (tort reform)," Perriello said. "...The bad news is we weren’t able to get as far as I wanted to get."
Perriello said the bill would reduce costs for middle class families and small businesses, would address rural disparities and would reduce the federal deficit in the first and second decades. He stressed that Medicare Advantage would be protected, the "donut hole" would be reduced to decrease prescription drug costs for seniors and people would not be refused coverage based on preexisting conditions.
One aspect of the bill that Perriello supported would be a move toward wellness-based and preventative care by rewarding hospitals for more holistic treatment rather than symptom-based treatment. He was also insistent that a public option would help to increase competition, but is not the "end all be all," for reform.
I don't think Tort Reform will really do much, but the fact that he's sticking by his guns even in the face of such animosity as I referred to above, is a real sign of courage for me. He's also standing behind the Public Option. Unfortunately he did vote "Yea" on the Stupak Amendment (in case you were wondering), but according to the Blue Dog website, he's NOT a Blue Dog.
So even if he's not concerned about getting re-elected, maybe we could help him out a bit:
Here's his campaign website: http://www.perrielloforcongress.com/
Here's his Act Blue Page: http://www.actblue.com/...
Update [2009-11-13 16:26:45 by Muzikal203]: jim bow also points out that he voted for cap-and-trade, which was definitely another tough vote.
[UPDATE #2] If you're like me, and don't know much about him, I found this tidbit from his Wikipedia page to be interesting:
Perriello, a resident of Albemarle County, has spent much of his career working in West Africa and the Middle East to create strategies for sustainable peace, and he was involved in the peace processes that helped end the civil wars in Sierra Leone and Liberia. As a public entrepreneur, he has helped to launch organizations and movements focused on social justice and human rights. He is a founding partner of Res Publica, which develops innovative solutions to global justice and security threats, and of Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good, which has worked since the 2004 election to help balance and expand the faith and values discourse in America.
and this from his campaign website:
Washington is broken. When private interests give money to public officials for personal and private gain, that is corruption. Tom has refused all contributions from lobbyists and corporate PACs. His record of public service in Africa and Afghanistan has brought him face to face with corrupt regimes and he has a long record of standing up for the rights of the public, not special interests. He believes we must strengthen ethics rules and hold lobbyists and politicans accountable for corrupt deals. He will also support public financing of elections so campaigns are not controlled by special interest money.