Tom Perriello's Jimmy Carter Moment

Tom Perriello’s Jimmy Carter Moment
Congressman Tells Virginians to Adjust the Thermostat to Avoid Energy Tax
Perriello: “Vulnerable freshmen like me are going to take a political hit”

WASHINGTON – Rep. Tom Perriello (D-Va.), in the wake of his baffling vote to impose a new energy tax on his rural, manufacturing-dependent district, tried to do some damage control Friday in the form of a telephone news conference. Instead, Perriello only exacerbated his political vulnerability by channeling Jimmy Carter:

“Perriello said a study by the Congressional Budget Office showed the bill would cost the average household in the 5th District $12 a month, primarily in electricity rates. ‘That cost would disappear if we turn our thermostats up 1 degree in the summer and down 1 degree in the winter,’ Perriello said.” (Ray Reed, “Perriello backs climate change bill, Goodlatte doesn’t,” Lynchburg News & Advance, 6/26/09)

Perriello implicitly acknowledged that his national energy tax is unpopular with his own constituents, who will be forced to bear the brunt of higher consumer costs and more job losses as a result of his ‘yes’ vote:

“‘Vulnerable freshmen like me are going to take a political hit’ for supporting the cap-and-trade bill, [Perriello] said…” (Ray Reed, “Perriello backs climate change bill, Goodlatte doesn’t,” Lynchburg News & Advance, 6/26/09)

“It took years as a world ‘peace activist’ and Ivy Leaguer for Tom Perriello to hone his signature smugness, but it took just six months in Congress for Perriello to demonstrate the utter lack of concern he apparently has for the middle-class families in his district,” said Andy Sere, NRCC Spokesman. “What’s next – Perriello advising Virginia families to bulk up on cardigans?”

BACKGROUND

—Rep. Tom Perriello (D-Va.)’s district: 64% rural (2008 Almanac of American Politics)

—Tom Perriello, 10/29/07: “Mine is an area hit hard by factory closings and lost farming jobs.” (“Conviction Politics…in Practice,” by Tom Perriello, http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/2007/10/29/conviction_politics_in_practic/)

—Democrat Rep. Marion Berry (D-Ark.) on the national energy tax: “Rural America always comes up on the short end of the stick on this stuff.” (Darren Samuelsohn, “Tentative House Floor Plan Envisions Vote By Next Friday,” Environment And Energy Daily, 6/17/09)

—“The Waxman-Markey climate change legislation is too burdensome on the southeast United States, Rep. Artur Davis (D-Ala.) said today.” (Eric Zimmerman, “Davis (D) Cites Regional Concerns In Opposing Cap/Trade,” The Hill “Briefing Room” blog, 6/26/09)