Protesters say Perriello's vote will cost jobs

Calling U.S. Rep. Tom Perriello a “traitor” and a “coward,” roughly 125 protesters picketed the freshman Democrat’s Charlottesville office Thursday to denounce Perriello’s vote for an energy bill that aims to slash greenhouse gas emissions.

The protesters were angry that Perriello supported the American Clean Energy and Security Act — also known as “cap and trade” — that they said would cost millions of jobs and burden consumers with higher electricity bills in the name of promoting clean energy and reducing global warming.

“We will take our country back and set it back on its intended course,” said Keith Drake, chairman of the Albemarle Truth in Taxation Alliance and a member of the Jefferson Area Tea Party organization. “We’re doing this for our children and we’re doing it for our grandchildren.”

Perriello, who did not attend the protest, defended his vote in favor of the bill, a measure that he said would create numerous jobs, tackle climate change, strengthen national security and reduce America’s dependence on foreign oil.

“This is going to be a great win for Central and Southside Virginia,” Perriello said.

Legislators such as Perriello, the protesters complained, could not possibly have weighed the full implications of the massive 1,200-page bill that narrowly passed the House late last week.

The Jefferson Area Tea Party sponsored Thursday’s protest. The group held a rally at the Charlottesville Pavilion on April 15 to criticize what its members consider to be out-of-control taxing and spending by the federal government.

In the crowd at Thursday’s protest, there were several yellow Gadsden flags that depict a coiled rattlesnake and the words “Don’t Tread on Me.” Protesters held signs with such slogans as: “Hooray!! Another Political Prostitute;” “Tom Perriello is a Cap + Traitor;” and “Perriello — An Incompetent, Cowardly, Treasonous Fellow.”

Charlottesville resident Betty Sevachko said the federal government is “throwing her under the bus” with taxes and higher energy costs.

“I’m not going to let them take everything I have worked so hard for,” she said.

One protester questioned whether climate change is real, prompting a loud cheer from the crowd. “It’s a way to control us!” one man yelled.

During Perriello’s successful bid to unseat Republican Virgil H. Goode Jr. last year, one of Perriello’s top campaign promises was to position the 5th District — which stretches from the Charlottesville area down to Danville and Martinsville — at the forefront of the nation’s emerging green energy economy.

“Americans are looking for leadership and solutions,” Perriello said. “The only people against this were oil executives, Saudi princes and energy lobbyists. It wasn’t a hard decision.”

Opponents of the bill, Perriello said, are distorting the facts to further their agenda and score cheap political points. Energy costs may go up for some, he said, but costs will go down for many.

He cited a Congressional Budget Office study that found that the legislation would cost the average household $175 or less in 2020, not including any energy-efficiency savings.

“The reality is that the most people will pay is a postage stamp a day,” Perriello said.

Perriello is one of 13 Democrats in swing districts being targeted by an ad blitz by the National Republican Congressional Committee because of their support of cap-and-trade. While the NRCC has bought radio ads and is making phone calls against other Democrats, Perriello is the only congressman being targeted with TV ads.

“Tom Perriello’s vote for a job-killing national energy tax that will raise consumer costs in the midst of a recession is nothing short of appalling,” said Andy Sere, the NRCC’s regional press secretary. “The fact of the matter is, Tom Perriello proved with last week’s vote that he is categorically hostile to the values of the working families of Central and Southside Virginia.”

Perriello, Sere said, will “pay a political price next year.”

On Thursday, the NRCC’s ad against Perriello came under fire. The nonpartisan Factcheck.org found that the NRCC ad exaggerated claims against the legislation, such as the size of energy cost increases for families.

The NRCC bought airtime for the ad in the Roanoke and Lynchburg markets. According to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, WDBJ-TV of Roanoke declined to run the ad after seeing the questions raised about the ad’s accuracy.

“The NRCC has a track record of running ads so deceptive and misleading that local TV stations refuse to air them or have to remove from the airwaves,” Jessica Santillo, a regional press secretary with the DCCC, said in a statement.

“Clearly, Washington Republicans realize that the truth is not on their side so they resort to deceptive and false attack ads. Virginians deserve to hear the facts about how this bill will reduce our dependence on foreign oil, not be subject to scare tactics.”

The energy bill now heads to the U.S. Senate for consideration, though no exact date has yet been set.

The Jefferson Area Tea Party is planning another protest at 1 p.m. Saturday at Jackson Park in downtown Charlottesville.