RENEWING A SEARCH FOR COMMON GROUND

The biggest problem with our politics is that congressional leaders don’t seek common ground to find solutions at a challenging time.  In Richmond, I was the mayor of a very diverse community and we worked together.  In Virginia, I governed with legislative houses of both parties and, while we didn’t agree on everything, we made major progress in important areas like public transit, health care, investment in higher education facilities, cutting taxes, and open space preservation.  We did that by listening to each other and agreeing when we could.

In the Senate, John Warner was a leader of a “Gang of 14” that worked across the partisan divide on key issues.  Today, Mark Warner is a key leader of a “Gang of 6” working to address the challenges of our deficit.  It is disappointing that there seems to be a reduced willingness of members to join these bipartisan efforts, but I will always be found working with Democrats and Republicans for common solutions to our common problems.  In making this pledge, I am inspired by the great efforts I see all over the Commonwealth.  We are a fast-diversifying state, but our citizens understand that we’re all Virginians, regardless of background or region, and that’s one of the reasons why our state has thrived so much in recent years.