My latest op-ed, title above, appeared in The Virginian-Pilot last Thursday. The day before, it seems the photo you see here showed up all over the place in the news. The photo was taken by Pilot photographer Hyunsoo Leo Kim, and was distributed by the AP. It is from 2009, when I interviewed then gubernatorial candidate Creigh Deeds. His son, Gus, is also in the photo.
It was a different campaign for Deeds in 2005, which is when I first got to know him. As I mentioned in my article, as a first time candidate, I learned a lot by watching him and other, more seasoned, candidates. The night I interviewed him in 2009, Deeds was a changed man. I tried to draw out the Deeds that I had met four years earlier – and I think I was successful.
Deeds has continued to serve the people of Virginia, and we will no doubt see the fruits of his labor soon, as a recount in the AG’s race is likely.
I don’t throw around the term “leader” very often. (And I absolutely hate it when candidates call themselves leaders.) It takes more than just being elected to be a leader. Creigh Deeds is more than an elected representative.
My column appears in The Virginian-Pilot every week, usually on Thursdays. You can see the columns as they are published here, or navigate to them from the PilotOnline.com homepage by clicking on Opinion and then choosing my name at the bottom of the dropdown list. You can also see the columns by liking my Facebook page. Although my column appears weekly, I am not and have never been an employee of The Virginian-Pilot.
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VIVIAN J. PAIGE | All Politics is Local 