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May 2008
2008 Virginia Fifth District Congressional Race: Tom Perriello's Acceptance Speech May 17th, 2008
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Following are highlights from the speech, given at the Fifth District Nominating Convention in Lovingston, Virginia, as provided by the Perriello campaign:

I think we're at a time where people more than anything else want to see things getting done on jobs, on healthcare, on the war in Iraq. And the good news is, and I know we all feel it in this room, that a new era is dawning. It may be my faith background but I see it as a revival of sorts, a revival of the greatest generation's idea of public service as a noble profession.

I took this idea, this call to service, from my faith but also from my grandfather, Tom Gilooly, whose name I carry forward. Tom was a son of a union president, he was a veteran in World War II, a high school math teacher and a coach and he was a fireman. And he taught us all that you have to take responsibility for yourself but it's what you do for your community and your country that will define you.

I think we're entering a new era for the first time in my lifetime where people are more interested in right and wrong than right and left, more interested in producing results than having the same kind of conversations we've been having. And there is no better standard bearer for this new era of results oriented politics than the next Senator from Virginia, Governor Mark Warner. It is truly an honor and obviously a benefit to be sharing the ballot with Mark Warner and it's tremendous what he's done for the Commonwealth and what he will continue to do for the country.

I believe, as the Good Book says, we will be known by our fruits. So let me tell you what I think I will focus on and fight for up in Congress. First and foremost, will be an economic revival-jobs and economic fairness for the families of the 5th district. And I tell you this: there are no shortcuts to get there. We are not one Wal-Mart away from solving our economic problems. We sometimes have politicians who want to find a quick fix. But there are three things we have to do: we have to invest in our students and workers to make them the most competitive workforce they can be; we need to create a business-friendly environment, keeping in mind that two-thirds of the job growth in Southside Virginia comes from small business. And third, we need to find the industries that are going to bring in the jobs of the next generation. We're putting together an economic revival plan that we'll be rolling out in June, and we hope you all will be a part of that.

I remember being in Pittsylvania County and talking to a man who had just gotten off an eight hour shift at Wal-Mart and was about to go to a seven-hour shift somewhere else. After talking to him about how he was trying to make ends meet, I made a pledge to myself and I make it to you today: I will work a double shift every day in Congress to bring jobs and economic fairness back to the 5th district.

The second thing I will focus on is a revival of our national security agenda. This is an issue that goes beyond party lines. We have to have a solution for victory. I've been on the ground in Afghanistan; I know what it's going to take to win this war. We have these debates here where we're asking the wrong questions. I worked for two years on a new plan in Iraq to change the balance of power and solve the military situation, and a new strategy in Afghanistan.

But there's one thing on which I can't even believe Congressman Goode and I disagree, which is a new GI Bill for our returning veterans and troops. You simply do not send our men and women in uniformed into battle for multiple tours, and then not give them the support they need in the field and the support they need when they get home. Congressman Goode voted two days ago, and there was a simple choice: do you side with millionaires or do you side with our troops. He sided with millionaires. I will fight every day to ensure that our troops and veterans have the support they need in the field and at home.

The third thing that I will fight for is that I think we also need to look deeply at what's going on in our American culture, with our values. The greatest generation's culture of service has turned into a culture of greed. I was talking to a pastor the other day who said that if our society is a referendum between God and Mammon, Mammon's winning. This is a situation where our corporate values have too often become our community values. And we need to restore particularly in our political leaders a sense that it is simply not o.k. to sell out working families to back a corporate agenda. It's not o.k. to leave a job in government and go take millions from lobbyists. It's not o.k. to support a half-a-trillion dollar handout to the pharmaceutical and drug companies and not make healthcare affordable for families in the 5th district.

But the next chapter of Southside's history hasn't been written yet. It's going to be written by who decides to step up. We can step up and decide that we can make this something that works for the working class and middle class of Southside, or we can sit back and watch. We've had leadership that is more focused on excuses than solutions, more focused on whining than winning. What we need to do is roll up our shirtsleeves and get down to business. That's the attitude that has put this campaign on the map. That's the time that has gone from seven months ago, when frankly people didn't take us that seriously, including some of you in this room, perhaps. We've out-raised Congressman Goode three straight quarters. Some of that's because I come from a non-profit background, so I'm used to asking for money. But a big part of it, because there's a moment right now when people are willing to believe. They don't want this race to be about Congressman Goode. They don't want this race to be about me. We want this race to be about what is going to change the lives and improve the lives of the people in the 5th district.


Comments? Questions? Write me at george@loper.org.