Martinsville Bulletin, Inc.
P. O. Box 3711
204 Broad Street
Martinsville, Virginia 24115
276-638-8801
Toll Free: 800-234-6575
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| For 5th District House seat |
Laurence Verga came to Martinsville on Thursday to discuss his candidacy for the Republican Party’s nomination to run for the 5th District House seat next November. He spoke to supporters at the Sirloin House on Commonwealth Boulevard on why he wants to challenge incumbent Rep. Tom Perriello, D-Albemarle County. (Bulletin photo) |
Friday, November 20, 2009
Laurence Verga wants to run for the 5th District House seat in November to get “Washington back on track.”
“I’m very concerned about the direction President Obama and the Democratic Party are taking this country,” Verga said Thursday before he addressed supporters at the Sirloin House in Martinsville.
After watching Congress, Verga, 46, said he decided not “to outsource the job” anymore and announced his candidacy in August.
Verga, of Albemarle County, is the sixth candidate seeking the Republican nomination to challenge 5th District U.S. Rep. Tom Perriello, a Democrat who also is from Albemarle County.
Announced candidates are state Sen. Robert Hurt of Chatham; Ron Ferrin, Campbell County; Feda Kidd Morton, Fluvanna County; and Kenneth Boyd and Michael McPadden, both of Albemarle County.
A day after an $849 billion health care reform bill was unveiled in the Senate, Verga said that although he believes reform is needed, the government must take a smaller role, not a larger one.
A government-run plan will “build a bigger government” and is fiscally irresponsible, he said.
“We need pragmatic options for health care,” Verga said. The way to accomplish that goal is to “get government out of health care.”
Verga said governmental “intrusion” is responsible for current legislation that does not allow out-of-state insurance companies to compete in Virginia.
There are 1,300 insurance companies in the United States, he said. The status quo must change from employer-provided health care to an open market, he added.
“Then, there would be much more competition” among insurance companies, Verga said.
The government must offer individuals and families the same tax breaks currently available to employers/businesses that provide insurance, he added.
Tort reform also is needed “to limit frivolous lawsuits” to help keep down the cost of medical care, Verga said.
He does not support abortion and would vote against any health care reform legislation that uses taxpayer dollars to pay for it, Verga said. He also would block attempts to legalize partial birth abortion.
His 10-point pledge to residents in the 5th District is aimed at accountability, he said.
Verga vowed to serve a maximum of three terms in the House, push for term limits and eliminate special interests by not accepting political contributions “tied to no-bid contracts or political appointments otherwise known as ‘pay for play,’” he said.
Verga vowed to “never add an earmark to a bill” and to relinquish excessive Congressional perks.
For example, “I will forgo the generous congressional health care benefit and continue to pay for my own private health care plan” if elected, Verga said.
He said he believes one way to strengthen the economy is through lower taxes, and said he would “never vote to raise the tax rates” or create or impose new taxes.
He also will support Second Amendment rights to keep and bear arms and 10th Amendment rights that limit the jurisdiction of the federal government, and he plans to be accountable to the point of posting congressional expenses online as soon as possible so voters can see how their tax dollars are spent, Verga said.
He received a bachelor of arts degree from the University of California, Berkeley, and a master of arts degree in psychology from Antioch University in Yellow Springs, Ohio. He also has pursued doctoral studies in organization and leadership at the University of San Francisco.
He is the founder of Verga Trust/Verga Consulting, a company that owns and operates industrial, retail and office space. He also is one of three founding principals of Mastiff Capital Partners, a real estate consulting firm based in Agoura Hills, Calif.
Verga and his wife, Elizabeth, have four children ranging in age from 1 to 6 years. |
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