The rightosphere is abuzz over this blog post today at the Wall Street Journal:
Rep. Tom Perriello, a Virginia Democratic freshman and one of the most-endangered House members, has called for Geithner’s head, at a town-hall meeting in Ruckersville, Va. In a news release Thursday, the Jefferson Area Tea Party, not Perriello’s best mate, struck a rare note of agreement with the Democratic lawmaker – sort of.
“In calling for Secretary Geithner’s firing, we support Congressman Perriello’s sentiment, with the hope that by replacing our nation’s chief economic policy makers we can begin the path to economic recovery,” wrote Carole Thorpe, chairman of the group.
Some observers have noted that Rep. Perriello’s attacks on state Senator Robert Hurt’s record on taxes suggest that Rep. Perriello is attempting to flank Sen. Hurt from the right; joining Rep. John Boehner’s call for Secretary Geithner’s resignation—in defiance of Vice President Biden—could help him burnish his bona fides as a “fiscal conservative.” Yet, as Ed Morrissey notes, if Rep. Perriello truly believes Secretary Geithner should be fired, why doesn’t he make the same demand in Washington that he does in Ruckersville?
Unfortunately, rather than being the independent voice the 5th Congressional District needs to speak out against the reckless Obama agenda (that has brought stagnant unemployment and anemic economic growth), this is just a textbook case of a congressman saying one thing in his district and another thing in Washington.
