Rep. Tom Perriello (D, VA House of Representatives)

Freshman Democratic Rep. Tom Perriello of Virginia’s 5th Congressional district defeated a veteran incumbent in 2008 by about 700 votes. The district went narrowly for McCain but heavily for Republican Governor-elect Bob McDonnell and his running mates two weeks ago, which, along with his votes for the stimulus, cap and trade, and the House health care bill, places Perriello at or near the top of the list of endangered Democrats in the House.

A letter to the Charlottesville Daily Progress last Saturday that I rather like reads as follows:

Thirty-nine Democrats in the House of Representatives voted against the massive Medicare-cutting, tax-increasing, income-redistributing scheme known as health care reform, but our congressman, Tom Perriello, was not among them.

Rather than representing the views of 5th District voters in Washington, Perriello’s vote reveals that his fealty is not to his constituents but to a different sovereign, Nancy Pelosi and the Democratic Party. He has chosen to be their ambassador to us rather than what we elected him to be, our representative to them.

Fortunately, in about a year we can make other arrangements. By then many of his jilted voters will have worked hard to ensure that Ambassador Perriello will have become former Ambassador Perriello.

I would say read the whole thing, but that is the whole thing.

Say What?