My 78 yr-old mom hasn’t gotten her eye drops (protect against low-pressure glaucoma) in 23 days. Never waited more than 6. America’s senior citizens are collateral damage in Trump’s war on the US Postal Service.
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Tom Perriello
@tomperriello
Progressive Advocate. Former diplomat, Congressperson, teacher, and justice entrepreneur. Tweets are in my personal capacity.
Always VirginianJoined April 2008
Tom Perriello’s Tweets
The 57 guilty votes represent over 2/3 of the American people.
Did just bait-and-switch the GOP into agreeing to protect Medicare and social security on live national TV?!
FWIW Soros pulled himself up by his bootstraps (unlike Trump) to earn billions (unlike Trump), then charitably donate 80% of his wealth (unlike Trump) to fight repression, bigotry & corruption (unlike Trump), making him feared by authoritarians & kleptocrats (unlike Trump).
To be clear, these are NOT national guard but racist private militias posing as state actors to protect nazis and provoke.
Good journalist should ask every Republican in Congress this question on Veterans Day:
“If a US President admitted to stealing $2million in pledges made to Veterans’ charities, would you support or oppose impeachment for that crime?”
Favorite moment so far- two white supremacists with wooden shields & swords lept in terror as gay black man offered them a bottle of water.
Congratulations to . Let's go win this thing—united. Let's take back the House and ensure VA remains a firewall against hate.
Actually, you lost.
In 1865.
150 years later, you're still not over it.
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We won, you lost, little Tommy. twitter.com/tomperriello/s
Covered 300 miles of campaign trail in VA today. If I got $1 for every voter who asked about Brazile book, my pockets would still be empty.
Every Democrat who stepped up to run to the House of Delegates this year in VA, regardless of outcome, is a hero. We thank you!!
One of the craziest experiences of my entire life is now a Twitter thread - and I could not be happier to know you are shining bright, !
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Replying to @_themayan_
So in 2003 I was 5 years old and my mom decided out of thin air one day that we were going to Africa and we were gonna stay there for 6 months so about 4 months in something OC happened that I won’t go into detail about and long story short I had to leave ASAP
Tonight was an enormous victory for an inclusive Virginia -- congrats to Gov-elect and the people of Virginia for rejecting the politics of hate and embracing opportunity for all
I spoke to them. They said they were there to defend superiority of the white race. I leapt from there to wild conclusion they were racist.
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Replying to @ThomasWictor
Hey @tomperriello, how are they racist? Seems like you are the one who is racist because you ASSume facts not in evidence! #POS
Progress is almost always led by the young because they have not yet accepted the unconscionable as inevitable.
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Enough is enough!
Women's March Youth EMPOWER is calling for students, teachers, and allies to take part in a #NationalSchoolWalkout for 17 minutes at 10am on March 14, 2018. Join us in saying #ENOUGH!
bit.ly/EnoughMarch14
Are we open to the possibility that the President is a white supremacist and authoritarian, not that he failed to get the statement right?
Our Senate is NOT “evenly split.” The 50D votes represent over 41 MILLION MORE AMERICANS than the 50R votes. #EndMinorityRule #EndTheFilibuster
Blocking Medicaid expansion was a major reason so many Republicans lost their House seats in VA this year. Full expansion should be bi-partisan, and every legislator in Richmond should have to cast a public vote before 2019 on a policy that is morally right & good for VA economy.
400,000 Virginians just “won” access to Medicaid by one vote, which will save the middle class money through reduced premiums. When we say “every vote counts,” we really mean it.
Centrists ignore clear evidence that GOP will label all Dems as Socialists, regardless of their actual votes and views.
For those dismissing this alt-right racist hate as fringe, remember neo-confederate CoreyStewart just got half Repub primary vote for VA Gov
Those comparing RedHen’s “Principles & patriotism over profit” stance to the bakery case miss that the Constitution’s equal protection jurisprudence applies to groups facing discrimination. White House Press Secretaries are not an historically or structurally disempowered group.
Fwiw Confederate Gen. Robert E Lee making the case against Confederate monuments...
Now, how many brave Republicans in VA and Congress will condemn Neo-confederate nominee Corey Stewart and his association with white nationalists?
Dems, I'm amazed how much higher Dem energy is in red VA areas where we have candidates down-ballot. Contest every office, every zip code!
Tragically, the Kurds are getting the same response from Senate Republicans as the people of El Paso, Charleston, & Las Vegas - all prayers, zero spine.
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Replying to @LindseyGrahamSC
Pray for our Kurdish allies who have been shamelessly abandoned by the Trump Administration. This move ensures the reemergence of ISIS.
LtGov Fairfax should resign. I hope he will be replaced by a strong, experienced woman of color ready to serve as Governor when Northam inevitably steps aside. Virginians voted for a Dem Governor and deserve one who can immediately restore dignity and lead an inclusive VA.
A vote for is a vote for me, you & >8mil Virginians who want healthcare, strong public ed, debt free CommCollege, & civil rts.
3 reasons a Queens DA race is natl news:
1. 2.3m people live there (>pop of 14 states)
2. Cabán, a public defender & bold reformer, replaces very regressive DA
3. Young reformers toppling Dem machine can no longer be dismissed as just being a once-in-a-generation talent
It will get spun as a “battle”, but is outright begging Biden & Dem leaders to let her help them succeed. I hope key Dems pause to read this with an eye towards engaging rather than dismissing her points about how to avoid midterm blowouts.
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"The leadership and elements of the party — frankly, people in some of the most important decision-making positions in the party — are becoming so blinded to this anti-activist sentiment that they are blinding themselves to the very assets that they offer." twitter.com/mattduss/statu…
Sounds odd but I genuinely think every part of the Dem coalition - moderates, progressives/CPC, Squad, & leadership - “won” big last night politically and played their parts brilliantly. Hear me out…
Worth noting that local Dem Committee endorsed a guy over in her 2018 primary, arguing she wasn’t electable. But, with strong support from & , she refused to yield. Just like she did today on behalf of us all.
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Katie Porter is a national treasure and what she just did will save lives. twitter.com/RepKatiePorter…
Not buying this “Dems attack Obama’s legacy” talking point. I was proud to vote for Obamacare AND proud Dems are now offering bolder healthcare reforms. Giving us hope that we can change the system is Obama’s legacy.
“Countries that skip the accountability phase end up repeating... but the next time the crisis is worse. People who think that the way forward is to brush this under the rug have missed the ticking time bomb under the rug.” My take in
As painful as yesterday was for Virginia, I hoped that today would bring healing, truth and transformation. I pray Sunday will be that day.
This isn't just about an old racist photo. It has opened wounds when we should be building a more inclusive Virginia.
Churches burned, death threats against civil rights leaders, synagogues attacked - and 3rd straight year of hate crimes spiking, according to FBI. This is happening, not hypothetical.
GOP: we can’s convict before Trump leaves
GOP: we cant convict because Trump has left
GOP: this trial isn’t legit because no witnesses
GOP: calling witnesses makes this a kangaroo court!
Got it
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Bring out the 
Next VA Gov will shape district maps that last until 2031. To prevent a 14 year hangover, take two walk packets today, Mon & Tues. #GameOnVA
Friends in DC/NOVA looking for a beautiful weekend? Come to see the beautiful Blue Ridge and have a meal (with generous tip) at Red Hen restaurant in Lexington VA. #TastefulResistance
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.@PressSec got kicked out of the Red Hen restaurant in Lexington, Va tonight. Apparently the owner didn’t want to serve her and her party out of moral conviction. pic.twitter.com/jr3bfiY3XYpic.twitter.com/jr3bfiY3XY
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Libs, be warned! As day breaks in Cville without memorials to Lee or JohnnyReb, our awareness of or even ability to discuss the Civil War vanished. Confused, we sought out libraries, documentaries & books, but are powerless to learn history absent statues of racist losers.
Appreciate Puerto Rican voices being respected by & in their call for binding self-determination. This is about democracy and decolonization, not Senate seats or Statehood per se. 🇵🇷
That was it. Done. Any elected Republican who fails to condemn Trump directly for that final answer about whether he believes Putin more than US intelligence and FBI investigates is failing a basic test of patriotism and oath of office.
Wow! This is a HUGE win for Dems in Northern Virginia -- the resistance is working! Congrats to Jackie Smith!
2009-10 saw regular death threats against Congresspeople & our staff - esp people of color. We were spit on, kicked and called N-lovers. NO good journo should compare those tactics then or current bullying by POTUS to a citizen civilly refusing to serve a sr public official. None
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During my time with Perriello, my tire was slashed; we received threatening calls, letters, and office visits while facing harassment at every townhall during his term.
We publicly faced opposition, proudly standing by our choices, instead of cowardly tweets.
This ain't new. twitter.com/GarrettforVA/s
The SC Senate race is officially one to watch now. I’ve known since college and have been blown away by his tireless dedication to and effectiveness at getting things done on the Hill for folks back home in SC.
For those sitting outside VA waiting for 2018, watching these HoD candidates win tonight -- a year ago most of them had never considered running. #Runforsomething
As progressives continue to hold our side accountable, it is worth remembering that the leadership of the self-proclaimed “moral majority” have proven themselves to be neither moral nor representatives of a majority.
"Lie" is too weak a word. Trump's budget literally eliminates funding for the Appalachian Regional Commission.
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The Democrats in the Southwest part of Virginia have been abandoned by their Party. Republican Ed Gillespie will never let you down!
Today’s real story is not about the losers ranting outside but the winners inside writing laws. It’s about activists & candidates who overcame rigged maps, voter suppression & the to make possible common sense gun reform demanded by >80% of Virginians. #IStandWithVirginia
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Replying to @shannonrwatts
One day of extremism will NEVER undo years of activism that has resulted in stronger gun laws, better corporate policies and wins at the ballot box - not to mention derailing the @NRA's leaders and its agenda. This bell can't be unrung. #IStandWithVirginia
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So proud of my beloved Virginia tonight. Thanks to tireless efforts of tens of thousands this year, likely that Medicaid will be expanded for 400k w/new Delegates.
Problem for Flake too - Republicans have become the identity politics party bc the corporate economic message has no popular constituency.
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.@EdWGillespie went full Trump on race partly bc Virginians rejected his Econ agenda that had bankrupted US & wrecked middle class pensions.
These outfits simply scream: “We’re mad that over 80% of Virginians support common sense gun reform so we want to act out in ways that ensure it’s closer to 95%.”
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Replying to @socialistdogmom
these boys look ready to... lobby their legislators?
DC should be a state. Pass it on.
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DC should be a state. Pass it on. twitter.com/IndivisibleMoC…
Trump’s war on the USPS is a double-threat to America’s seniors - slowing down vital Rx and other deiceries now and then forcing them to vote in person in the Fall. Do GOP Senators really want to answer for this to elder constituents?
Dem Ldrs DRAMATICALLY underestimate how much GOP Senators under 50 (& Romney) do NOT want their political lives defined by a vote to “exonerate” Trump.
They may do it (and patriotism & principle should be enough for House leaders), but this misread is political malfeasance.
Several Repub Senators will lose their seats for voting today against Medicaid expansion supported by 80% of Virginians - just like Repub Dels did in ‘17. But I take no joy in this when their vote blocked coverage for 400,000 Virginians and costs the middle class higher premiums.
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I don’t have words right now for this rage. Senate just killed Medicaid expansion on a party-line vote. Virginia voters—your votes have been completely disrespected. Republicans still don’t care if you get sick and die in poverty.
Hey pundits, instead of reliving 2016 how about applying lessons to 2017. VA votes in 3 days with huge stakes for schools, env, rights.
Maybe, just maybe, what the press covers as Dems in disarray is really a diverse caucus of representatives doing the tough work of compromising in order to govern.
So proud to have just cast my vote for & this morning! I hope you'll join me.
Wow! It is apparently deeply upsetting to MAGA-Twitter to point out that Trump inherited current economic trends from Obama.
. went full Trump on race partly bc Virginians rejected his Econ agenda that had bankrupted US & wrecked middle class pensions.
Mom’s drops are covered by Medicare. The company said “we are getting a flood of these complaints,” and fedexed her new drops yesterday that arrived today.
Get your white supremacist hate out of my hometown.
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It's going South! pscp.tv/w/a-XUnzQ3Njc3
The Kansas Senate is 80% Republican. Its House is 78%.
Both have now passed Medicaid expansion.
Virginia Rs: it's time to get on board. twitter.com/huntermw/statu
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Scariest image today was not of nazi salutes but of KKK in their new robes - full camo and long guns to appear like the National Guard.
No. No. no.
You cannot call Nazis “very fine people” when they invade my hometown and then act like you have a damn about anti-Semitism. No!
After Charlottesville, citizens and reporters worked tirelessly to identify violent Nazis who broke the law. Many got fired, and this created pressure on law enforcement that led to indictments and arrests. FWIW
The rally was instigated and then planned for three months by one side only. They dubbed it #UniteTheRight. Trump blames all sides.
I’d feel sorry for the Republican comms teams working overtime tonight to spin a story even their own congressional majorities don’t buy if they hadn’t spent last month enabling the financial and moral bankruptcy of our country instead of, say, extending CHIP.
Early #s in VA sound positive which means precisely NOTHING. Go vote NOW. Bring your neighbors. Vote by 7pm and assume slight rain delay.
Historians consider Robert E. Lee a mediocre General who
- Lost despite a massive home field advantage
- Wasted thousands of his own soldiers’ lives to extend a campaign he knew was lost out of vanity
- Rejected multiple post-war opportunities from Grant to help reunite the USA
If only there'd been something in Trump's past to make us think he would punish a woman who puts her integrity over his illicit demands.
Are we the birthplace of American democracy, or American slavery? The first state to elect an African American governor, or the capital of the confederacy? This is the duality of our Virginia.
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As painful as yesterday was for Virginia, I hoped that today would bring healing, truth and transformation. I pray Sunday will be that day.
This isn't just about an old racist photo. It has opened wounds when we should be building a more inclusive Virginia.
I get ’s frustration that not one GOP colleague - even from much bluer states - will stand up for our democracy. But WV broke off VA to preserve our Union, and their Senator may need to break traditions to preserve our elections. My take:
Gillespie ran a racist campaign on the “globalized Southern strategy.” After the fatal white supremacy rally in my hometown of Cville, Ed chose to spend millions on ads defending the Confederacy and stoking fear of brown immigrants. Be better than this .
SNL's Che on victory - her opponent was "in fact so homophobic that he refused to get within 8 points of her."
In Virginia, far-right attacks on School Boards appear to be backfiring with suburban moms…
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What’s it like to have politicians like Glenn Youngkin stoke chaos in our schools?
These moms know — and you’d better believe they are voting #McAuliffeForVirginia
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More on Maya and my crazy journey back from Sierra Leone...
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This is one of the wildest stories I've written about: @_themayan_ tells me about the mystery man who helped her travel to the US when she was 5 years old. 15 years later, she found him: it's @tomperriello buzzfeednews.com/article/maryan
As someone who met monthly with tea party groups across my district during that time, I 💯 endorse this. The few TeaPartiers motivated by budget deficits mostly quit within weeks, sharing with me their disgust at the racism and anti-fact biases they saw within.
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Oh, God. Are we still pretending that the Tea Party was about small government and concern about budget deficits? It was always, from the beginning, about racial anger; opposition to big government only to the extent that it helps Those People 1/ nytimes.com/2019/08/28/us/
Pepper sprayed twice and spit on twice by Nazis as they marched passed me. #ClassAct
The last time Dems controlled the Virginia legislature, many were Dixiecrats. This is an historic American moment when our longest running elected institution finally rests in the hands of a majority that supports equality of voice in an #InclusiveVirginia
Acknowledging it's not the most humble of brags ... honored by the shoutout from about my ACA vote and even more moved by my niece’s response! (“Bifs” is what she called my dad)
As Its a Wonderful Life plays in loop on Christmas Eve, it’s hard not to remember that the real-life Potters just got a massive tax kickback that would let them wipe out the Bailey’s and the good people of Bedford Falls.
Today showed the resistance is working. Calls, protests. Thanks to others for advocacy to #KillTheBill
Sunday shows covering VA, please devote time to:
➡️ Virginia’s racial wealth gap (11:1 and ⬆️)
➡️ 2019 as 400th anniv of enslaved people in VA
➡️ VA outlaws cities from removing Lost Cause Confed propaganda
➡️ Impact of NewJimCrow laws on unequal housing, incarceration, education
Editors consistently shocked that fights like hell for his ideals and then advances the best results he can get, as if he didn’t cast deciding votes for Obamacare & the 2009 stimulus or, you know, serve in the Senate ...
My case for why Dems should run on healthcare reform this year and call out the spike in premiums imposed on the American people by this Republican Congress. slate.com/news-and-polit
If debate happened overseas, today’s headline would be:
“With Support Crumbling, Trump Orders Tribal Militias to “Stand By” As He Refuses to Commit to Election Results”
This PBS series on Reconstruction should be #MustSeeTV - one of the most defining and perhaps least understood era of American history.
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Here's a preview of Reconstruction: America After the Civil War, a new series hosted by @HenryLouisGates. The documentary series will tell the full story of this misrepresented and misunderstood chapter of American history. #ReconstructionPBS
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Turn up the volume and RT this one! President Obama on why we need to help the 54 challengers running for House of Delegates on 11/7.
We must all "cherish our history"? Did DJT just dogwhistle support for KKK's main goal of hate rally, i.e. to protect the Lee statue ?!
Another headline for tonight: was just elected Lt Gov -- only the second African-American elected statewide since the Civil War. Congrats my friend!
At high political risk, she and progressives beat moderate efforts (though Left Twitter refuses to accept wins) by forcing a vote on a bigger better BBB that now includes Rx drug reform, paid leave, immigration reform & public promises from WH and mods.
I have thus far failed to muster a tear for the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day this preppy lawyer out of a bad 80s movies had thanks to his cancerous bigotry (and )
