Edit filter log

'{{Infobox congressman | name = Tom Perriello | image = Perriello Official Portrait.jpg | image_size = 240px | state = Virginia | district = [[Virginia's 5th congressional district|5th]] | term_start = January 3, 2009 | preceded = [[Virgil Goode]] | party = [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] | date of birth = {{birth date and age|1974|10|9}} | place of birth = [[Ivy, Virginia]] | date of death = | place of death = |alma_mater = [[Yale Law School]] <small>([[Juris Doctor|J.D.]])</small><br>[[Yale University]] <small>([[Bachelor of Arts|B.A.]])</small>| profession = [[Lawyer|Attorney]] | spouse = |parents=Dr. and Mrs. Vito Perriello, Jr. | residence = [[Ivy, Virginia]] | religion = [[Roman Catholic]] | website = [http://www.perrielloforcongress.com/ Campaign website]<br>[http://perriello.house.gov/ House website] }} '''Thomas Stuart Price "Tom" Perriello''' ({{pron-en|pɛriˈɛloʊ}}; born October 9, 1974) is an American politician and attorney. He is the [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] congressman from the [[Virginia's 5th congressional district|fifth district of Virginia]]. The district includes much of [[Southside Virginia]], and stretches north to [[Charlottesville]]. He was first elected in [[United States House of Representatives elections, 2008|2008]] after defeating [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] incumbent [[Virgil Goode]] in his bid for reelection. == Early life and education == Perriello is a lifelong resident of [[Ivy, Virginia|Ivy]], a small unincorporated community west of [[Charlottesville]]. However, he is listed in the House roll as "D-Charlottesville." He attended Murray Elementary School, Meriwether Lewis Elementary School, Henley Middle School and [[Western Albemarle High School]] in the county school system, and then graduated from [[St. Anne's-Belfield School]], a private school. He earned [[Bachelor of Arts|B.A.]] (1996) and [[Juris Doctor|J.D.]] (2001) degrees at [[Yale University]], where he also became a member of [[Scroll and Key]]{{cite}}. He attained the rank of [[Eagle Scout (Boy Scouts of America)|Eagle Scout]] in [[Boy Scouting (Boy Scouts of America)|Boy Scout]] [[Scout troop|Troop]] 114 in Ivy, and was a [[page (servant)#U.S. Government Pages|legislative page]] in the [[Virginia House of Delegates]].<ref> {{cite news |first=Vito Jr. |last=Perriello |authorlink=Vito Perriello Jr. |author= |coauthors=and Mrs. Perriello |title=Letter: Dr. and Mrs. Vito Perriello Jr. - Perriellos tell of son's roots |url=http://www.martinsvillebulletin.com/article.cfm?ID=15879 |work=[[Martinsville Bulletin]] |publisher= |location=[[Martinsville, Virginia]] |id= |pages= |page= |date=October 5, 2008 |accessdate=2009-03-19 |language= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote= }} </ref> ==Early career== From 2002-03, Perriello was Special Advisor to the international prosecutor of the [[Special Court for Sierra Leone]], where he worked with child soldiers, amputees, and local pro-democracy groups, and helped to prosecute warlords.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.dailyprogress.com/cdp/news/local/local_govtpolitics/article/perriello_enters_race_for_5th_seat/1944/ |title=Perriello enters race for 5th seat |work=[[The Daily Progress]] |first=Bob |last=Gibson |date=2007-10-06 |accessdate=2008-05-18 }}</ref> He later became the Court's Spokesman and helped to indict Liberian dictator [[Charles Taylor (Liberia)|Charles Taylor]], peacefully forcing him from power. He has worked as a consultant to the [[International Center for Transitional Justice]] in [[Kosovo]] (2003), [[Darfur]] (2005), and [[Afghanistan]] (2007) where he worked on justice-based security strategies.<ref>{{cite news|last=Amos|first=Catherine|title=State Sen. Robert Hurt to run for Congress|url=http://www2.wsls.com/sls/news/state_regional/govtpolitics/article/state_sen._robert_hurt_to_run_for_congress/52675/|accessdate=18 August 2010|newspaper=Danville Register & Bee|date=October 7, 2009}}</ref> Perriello has also been a fellow at [[The Century Foundation]] and consultant to the [[National Council of Churches|National Council of Churches of Christ]]. He helped to launch [http://www.faithfulamerica.org FaithfulAmerica.org], [[Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good]], and is a co-founder of [http://www.darfurgenocide.org DarfurGenocide.org] and [[Avaaz.org]], an international on-line community of 3.3 million members, operating in 12 languages, dedicated to building a global response to "problems without borders" such as climate change. He has also worked with the [[James A. Forbes|Rev. James Forbes]] on prophetic justice principles.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.wsls.com/sls/news/local/southside/article/pastor_calls_poverty_weapon_of_mass_destruction/5035/ |title=Pastor: Poverty 'weapon of mass destruction' |work=[[Danville Register & Bee]] |publisher=(via [[WSLS-TV]]) |first=Bernard |last=Baker |date=2008-02-05 |accessdate=2008-05-18 }}</ref> Perriello, a resident of [[Albemarle County, Virginia|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]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.martinsvillebulletin.com/article.cfm?ID=12367 |title=Perriello wants to bring changes |first=Shawn |last=Hopkins |work=Martinsville Bulletin |date=2008-01-23 |accessdate=2008-05-18 }}</ref> ==U.S. Congress== During the 2009 legislative session, Perriello's first term in Congress, Periello voted for the stimulus bill,<ref name="rc46">{{cite web|url=http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2009/roll046.xml|title=Final Vote Results for Roll Call 46|date=January 28, 2009|publisher=Clerk of the House|accessdate=March 24, 2010}}</ref> the American Clean Energy and Security Act,<ref name="rc477">{{cite web|url=http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2009/roll046.xml|title=Final Vote Results for Roll Call 477|date=June 26, 2009|publisher=Clerk of the House|accessdate=March 24, 2010}}</ref> and the [[Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act|health care reform bill]] in March 2010. In addition, he voted against the Unemployment Compensation Extension Act of 2009,<ref name="rc722">{{cite web|url=http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2009/roll722.xml|title=Final Vote Results for Roll Call 722|date=September 22, 2009|publisher=Clerk of the House|accessdate=March 24, 2010}}</ref> because the bill extended unemployment benefits for only some states and excluded Virginia.<ref name="unemployment act">{{cite web|url=http://perriello.house.gov/index.cfm?sectionid=25&sectiontree=6,25&itemid=381|title=Perriello Fights to Extend Unemployment Benefits in Virginia|date=September 30, 2009|publisher=Tom Perriello|accessdate=March 24, 2010}}</ref> ===Foreign Policy and Defense Spending=== Perriello has been a supporter of the [[War on Terror]] and [[Iraq War]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Personal Statement re:Foreign Policy|url=http://perriello.house.gov/index.cfm?sectionid=10&sectiontree=5,10}}</ref> He has cast many votes for the continuation of US military action in [[Afghanistan]] and [[Iraq]], also in [[Pakistan]].<ref name="war votes">http://www.opencongress.org/people/voting_history/412304_Thomas_Perriello</ref><ref>{{cite|name="Pakistan Invasion"|url=http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-hc301/show}}</ref>He visited Afghanistan as a consultant to The [[International Center for Transitional Justice]] prior to becoming a Congressman.<ref>{{cite news|last=Powell|first=Mickey|title=Perriello: U.S. must quickly develop Afghan plan|url=http://www.martinsvillebulletin.com/article.cfm?ID=20893|accessdate=August 18, 2010|newspaper=Martinsville Bulletin|date=October 13, 2009}}</ref> He opposes removing troops from [[Pakistan]].<ref>{{cite|name="Pakistan Invasion"|url=http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-hc301/show}}</ref> As of August 2010, Congressman Perriello has voted yes on over $700 billion towards American militarism for the 2010 fiscal year.<ref>{{cite news|title=HR 5136|url=http://politics.nytimes.com/congress/votes/111/house/2/336}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=HR 3326|url= http://politics.nytimes.com/congress/votes/111/house/1/675}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title= HR 4899|url=http://politics.nytimes.com/congress/votes/111/house/2/474}}</ref> Congressman Perriello supports the 713+ ('''excluding''' those in [[Afghanistan]], [[Iraq]], [[Qatar]], [[Jordan]], and all [[black site]]s) military bases the [[US military]] currently occupies overseas.<ref>{{cite|name|Defense Department Base Structure Report|url=http://www.defense.gov/pubs/pdfs/2009baseline.pdf}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=HR 5136|url=http://politics.nytimes.com/congress/votes/111/house/2/336}}</ref></ref>{{cite|name="Including those not mentioned the number is estimated to be at well over 1,000 bases}}</ref> ===Committee assignments=== *'''[[United States House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure|Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure]]''' **[[United States House Transportation Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings and Emergency Management|Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings and Emergency Management]] **[[United States House Transportation Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment|Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment]] **[[United States House Transportation Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials|Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials]] *'''[[United States House Committee on Veterans' Affairs|Committee on Veterans' Affairs]]''' **[[United States House Veterans' Affairs Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity|Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity]] **[[United States House Veterans' Affairs Subcommittee on Health|Subcommittee on Health]] ===Electoral history=== ====2008==== {{Main|United States House of Representatives elections in Virginia, 2008#District 5}} In the 2008 election, Perriello launched a campaign based on [[conviction politics]], achieving a surprise win over Republican incumbent [[Virgil Goode]], a longtime figure in Virginia politics, after having trailed Goode in the polls by 32% only three months earlier. Goode had represented a large portion of the district for 38 years, including representing much of the southwest portion of the district in the [[Senate of Virginia]] prior to serving in Congress.<ref> {{cite news |first=Alexander |last=Burns |authorlink=Alexander Burns |author= |coauthors= |title=Top 10 political upsets of 2008 |url=http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1208/16879.html |work=[[The Politico]] |publisher= |location=[[Washington, D.C.]] |id= |pages= |page= |date=December 29, 2008 |accessdate=2009-03-19 |language= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote=}} </ref> The traditionally Democratic urban areas of the district gave Perriello significant margins over Goode. While Goode won 13 of the 20 county-level jurisdictions in the district, Perriello won all but one independent city, [[Bedford, Virginia|Bedford]] which went for Goode by only 16 votes. Ultimately, Perriello prevailed largely on the strength of a more than 25,000 vote margin in Charlottesville and surrounding Albemarle County. Perriello's performance showed the most dramatic improvements over past Democratic voting in the more [[Conservatism in the United States|conservative]] areas of the district hardest hit by decades of job loss and economic slowdown. As a presidential candidate, [[Barack Obama]] also improved on past Democratic performance, but he ultimately lost this district by around 7,500 votes (2.5 percentage points). For example, Perriello significantly outperformed Obama in the strongly conservative southwestern portion of the district (ironically, where Goode is from). Perriello may also have been helped by [[coattails]] from atop the ticket, as [[Mark Warner]] won the district in a landslide with 65 percent of the vote.<ref>[https://www.voterinfo.sbe.virginia.gov/election/DATA/2008/07261AFC-9ED3-410F-B07D-84D014AB2C6B/Official/1_s.shtml Virginia State Board of Elections, November 4, 2008 General Election Results]</ref> ====2010==== {{Main|Virginia's 5th congressional district election, 2010}} Perriello will face Republican State Senator [[Robert Hurt (Virginia politician)|Robert Hurt]] in the 2010 congressional elections. On December 3, 2009, political commentator [[Stuart Rothenberg]] listed Perriello as one of the twelve most vulnerable incumbents in the House of Representatives up for reelection in 2010.<ref>Rothenberg, Stuart (2009-12-03) [http://rothenbergpoliticalreport.blogspot.com/2009/12/rothenbergs-dangerous-dozen-house-seats.html "Rothenberg’s Dangerous Dozen House Seats for 2010"], ''[[The Rothenberg Political Report]]''.</ref> ==2010 Tea Party incident== The FBI is currently investigating an incident in which Perriello's brother's address was listed on a [[Tea Party movement]] website, mistakenly believed to be the congressman's address. Mike Troxel, an organizer for the Lynchburg Tea Party, posted the address on his blog, encouraging tea party activists to "drop by." A gas line to an outdoor barbecue grill was cut at the brother's house and is being treated as a threat to Perriello over his vote on [[Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act|healthcare reform]] during the 111th Congress.<ref name="gasline">{{cite news|url=http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0310/34934.html|title=FBI investigates Virginia incident|last=Barr|first=Andy|date=March 24, 2010|publisher=Politico|accessdate=March 24, 2010}}</ref> == References == {{Reflist}} == External links == {{Commons}} {{Portal box|Virginia|Biography|Politics}} *[http://perriello.house.gov/ Congressman Tom Perriello] ''official U.S. House site'' *[http://www.perrielloforcongress.com/ Tom Perriello for U.S. Congress] ''official campaign site'' *{{CongLinks | congbio = P000600 | votesmart = 109344 | washpo = Tom_Perriello | govtrack = 412304 | cspan = 1031364 | ontheissuespath = VA/Tom_Perriello.htm | surge = | legistorm = 985/Rep_Tom_Perriello.html | fec = H8VA05106 | opensecrets = N00029339 | followthemoney = | nyt = | findagrave = }} *{{dmoz|Regional/North_America/United_States/Virginia/Society_and_Culture/Politics/Candidates_and_Campaigns/US_House/Congressional_District_05/Tom_Perriello_%5bD%5d}} {{S-start}} {{s-par|us-hs}} {{USRepSuccessionBox | state=Virginia| district=5 | before=[[Virgil Goode]] | after=Incumbent | years=2009–Present }} {{s-prec|usa}} {{S-bef|before=[[Gary Peters (Michigan politician)|Gary Peters]]}} {{s-ttl|title=''[[List of current members of the United States House of Representatives by seniority|United States Representatives by seniority]]''|years=415th}} {{s-aft|after=[[Erik Paulsen]]}} {{S-end}} {{VA-FedRep}} {{USCongRep-start|congresses= 111th [[United States Congress]] |state=[[Virginia]]}} {{USCongRep/VA/111}} {{USCongRep-end}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Perriello, Tom}} [[Category:American Roman Catholic politicians]] [[Category:Eagle Scouts]] [[Category:American politicians of Italian descent]] [[Category:Members of the United States House of Representatives from Virginia]] [[Category:People from Charlottesville, Virginia]] [[Category:Virginia Democrats]] [[Category:Virginia lawyers]] [[Category:Yale Law School alumni]] [[Category:Yale University alumni]] [[Category:1974 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[sv:Tom Perriello]]'