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Rep. Eugene Vindman volunteers at the Fredericksburg Regional Food Bank on Friday. (Photo by Jonathan Hunley)

Food for thought: Vindman talks bipartisanship while volunteering at area charity

by | Jan 18, 2025 | ALLFFP, Government, Politics & Elections, Region

Before Rep. Eugene Vindman was sworn in earlier this month, 80 constituent service cases already were waiting for his staff. That’s 80 scenarios where someone needed help or was asking for the Democrat’s ear.

Two weeks into Vindman’s two-year term, half of those cases have been closed.

That was a significant win for the office, the congressman said Friday, before he has even filed his first bill.

“So talk about an office that is highly motivated, district-focused, constituent-focused,” said Vindman, whose 7th District includes the Fredericksburg area. “I got the best staff on Capitol Hill. Most motivated staff on Capitol Hill. And, yeah, we’re excited to work on behalf of the people in the district.”

Vindman talked about constituent service and other matters while on a tour of the Fredericksburg Regional Food Bank.

He learned that the organization feeds about 50,000 people a year and that it provided 7.2 million meals last year to those in need. He also spent time volunteering, bagging produce including pears, apples and cabbage alongside a team from Spotsylvania County’s Social Services Department.

As “the greatest country on Earth,” America needs to make sure it’s providing for its citizens’ basic needs, Vindman said.

“Look, I mean, food banks and providing food is just a basic need,” he said. “On the pyramid of needs, there are very few that are at the very bottom. That’s food, water and shelter.”

And one way the lawmaker said he can impact the need for food will be as a member of the House Agriculture Committee. He’s one of two Virginia congressmen serving on that panel.

“A couple of ideas are already rattling around in my head about potential tax credits for capital investments and infrastructure,” Vindman said.

The legislator also has been assigned to the House Armed Services Committee, which he said suits him because of the military installations in the 7th District — Quantico Marine Corps Base, the Dahlgren naval base and the Army’s Fort Walker — and its large population of military personnel and retirees.

“I wanted to make sure that I got on committees that were district-focused,” Vindman said. “But they’re also committees that I think I can immediately contribute to and consistent with my background and experience.”

Committees will be where the congressman will be able to help fashion laws and help allocate budgets. But he acknowledges that his road in Washington may be bumpy as a freshman lawmaker in the minority party.

However, he said passing any meaningful legislation without Democratic votes will be very difficult, especially when the House of Representatives tackles contentious issues.

“Right now, we’re focused on some culture war issues,” Vindman said. “We haven’t had a single bill that’s focused on reducing costs for Virginians, addressing the issues that we have with housing affordability or inflation. I hope that we get something like that from the majority. They claim that they’re going to work on that. I haven’t seen anything yet.”

The House soon will get to issues of taxes and budgets, though, he said, and he’s not sure how united Republicans will be on those.

“So I’m a common-sense, moderate person looking for common-sense solutions,” Vindman said.

He also said he’s met members of the incoming freshman class, both Democrats and Republicans, who think they were elected to do something, to come up with bipartisan solutions that will serve their communities. Now that he’s had an opportunity to form relationships, he looks forward to working with them.

Vindman said both those who voted for him and those who didn’t expect him to be effective and efficient.

“And that’s exactly what I intend to do,” he said.

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