Campaign Website:
https://friendsofdonbeyer.com/

Campaign POC:

Phone Number: 571-207-8452

Campaign Email: 

Vetting Panel Selected: Pending

Structured Interview Completed: Pending

Biography: Congressman Don Beyer is serving his fourth term as the U.S. Representative from Virginia’s 8th District, representing Arlington, Alexandria, Falls Church, and parts of Fairfax county.

Don chairs Congress’s Joint Economic Committee, and serves on the essential House Committee on Ways and Means. He also sits on the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, where he chairs the Space Subcommittee. He is a member of the New Democrat Coalition’s Climate Change Task Force and the Congressional Progressive Caucus, and founded the Congressional Fusion Caucus.

Don’s public service began in 1986 when Governor Gerald Baliles appointed him to the Commonwealth Transportation Board, responsible for overseeing the Virginia Department of Transportation and allocating highway funding to specific projects. From 1990 to 1998, Don served as Lieutenant Governor of Virginia where his signature work included advocacy for Virginians with disabilities and ensuring protections for Virginia’s most vulnerable populations as Virginia reformed its welfare system. He was also Virginia’s Democratic nominee for Governor in 1997.

After leaving office, Don served in a variety of leadership roles. He spent 15 years as chair of Jobs for Virginia Graduates, a highly successful high school dropout prevention program. Don continues to serve on the National Board for Jobs for America’s Graduates.

He was also active for a decade on the board of the DC Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy. As chair of the Virginia Economic Recovery Commission, he helped pass permanent pro-business reforms and was co-founder of the Northern Virginia Technology Council. Don was founding chair of Alexandria Community Trust (ACT), where he served in leadership for five years. He was also president and a member of the American International Automobile Dealers Association (AIADA), where he represented 10,000 international nameplate automobile dealers.

An active leader in Democratic politics, Don served as the Virginia chair of the Clinton-Gore and Kerry-Edwards presidential campaigns and was the treasurer and Virginia chair for Howard Dean’s presidential campaign. He chaired the DNC’s Democratic Business Council in 2005 and was finance chair of Sen. Mark Warner’s “Forward Together” presidential exploratory committee in 2006. For Pres. Obama, Don served as mid-Atlantic finance chair for the campaign and later acted as Transition Team Leader for the Department of Commerce.

In 2009, Pres. Obama nominated Don to serve as ambassador to Switzerland and Liechtenstein. He used his position to advocate for stricter sanctions to compel Iran to begin nuclear disarmament discussions. As ambassador, Don was integral to US Department of Justice efforts to halt the abuses of Swiss bank secrecy by wealthy Americans.

For four decades, Don helped build his family’s business in Northern Virginia following a summer job at the dealership in 1974. He sold the business in 2019.

Don, born in the Free Territory of Trieste, is the son of U.S. Army officer Donald Sternoff Beyer Sr., and his wife, Nancy McDonald. His grandmother, Clara Mortenson Beyer, was a pioneer in labor economics and workers’ rights and instrumental in implementing minimum wage legislation via the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. Don’s grandfather, Otto S. Beyer Jr. was Chairman of the National Mediation Board.

Don is a graduate of Williams College and of Gonzaga College High School in Washington, DC. He was named a Presidential Scholar by President Lyndon Johnson. Don has four children and two grandchildren. He and his wife Megan live in Alexandria, Virginia. (Source: https://friendsofdonbeyer.com/)

Why you? No information available.

What are your priorities? 

Climate Change
Education
Federal Workforce
Foreign Policy
Gun Violence Prevention
Healthcare
Housing
Immigration
Racial Justice
Transportation
Veterans (Source: https://friendsofdonbeyer.com/issues/)

Endorsements: 

Planned Parenthood Action Fund
Progressive Turnout Project
Brady Endorced (ant-2nd Amendment Org)
Council for a Livable World
Moms Demand Action
Tim Kaine, U.S. Senator
Mark Warner, U.S. Senator
Elaine Luria, Congressmember, VA-2
Bobby Scott, Congressmember, VA-3
Donald McEachin, Congressmember, VA-4
Abigail Spanberger, Congressmember, VA-7
Jennifer Wexton, Congressmember, VA-10
Gerry Connolly, Congressmember, VA-11
Elizabeth Guzman, State Delegate
Mark Herring, Former Attorney General (Source: https://friendsofdonbeyer.com/endorsements/)

Education: Don is a graduate of Williams College and of Gonzaga College High School in Washington, DC. (Source: https://friendsofdonbeyer.com/)

Relevant Employment History: For four decades, Don helped build his family’s business in Northern Virginia following a summer job at the dealership in 1974. He sold the business in 2019. (Source: https://friendsofdonbeyer.com/)

Military Experience / Branch / Years of Service / Rank / Type of Discharge: No information available. 

Past Offices Held and Tenure: Congressman Don Beyer is serving his fourth term as the U.S. Representative from Virginia’s 8th District, representing Arlington, Alexandria, Falls Church, and parts of Fairfax county.

Don’s public service began in 1986 when Governor Gerald Baliles appointed him to the Commonwealth Transportation Board, responsible for overseeing the Virginia Department of Transportation and allocating highway funding to specific projects. From 1990 to 1998, Don served as Lieutenant Governor of Virginia where his signature work included advocacy for Virginians with disabilities and ensuring protections for Virginia’s most vulnerable populations as Virginia reformed its welfare system. He was also Virginia’s Democratic nominee for Governor in 1997.

An active leader in Democratic politics, Don served as the Virginia chair of the Clinton-Gore and Kerry-Edwards presidential campaigns and was the treasurer and Virginia chair for Howard Dean’s presidential campaign. He chaired the DNC’s Democratic Business Council in 2005 and was finance chair of Sen. Mark Warner’s “Forward Together” presidential exploratory committee in 2006. For Pres. Obama, Don served as mid-Atlantic finance chair for the campaign and later acted as Transition Team Leader for the Department of Commerce. (Source: https://friendsofdonbeyer.com/)

Community Service: He spent 15 years as chair of Jobs for Virginia Graduates, a highly successful high school dropout prevention program. Don continues to serve on the National Board for Jobs for America’s Graduates.

He was also active for a decade on the board of the DC Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy. As chair of the Virginia Economic Recovery Commission, he helped pass permanent pro-business reforms and was co-founder of the Northern Virginia Technology Council. Don was founding chair of Alexandria Community Trust (ACT), where he served in leadership for five years. He was also president and a member of the American International Automobile Dealers Association (AIADA), where he represented 10,000 international nameplate automobile dealers. (Source: https://friendsofdonbeyer.com/)

Leadership Experience: No information available. 

Personal Strengths: No information available.

What is the most important thing Virginians need to know about you?  No information available.

How would your friends and family describe you? No information available. 

What are your thoughts on the Constitution as the Law of the Land? No mention of the Constitution in published information. Professes values contrary to values and beliefs of Chasing Freedom – Virginia. (Source: https://friendsofdonbeyer.com/)

What are your thoughts on religious liberty? No mention of religious liberty in published information. Professes values contrary to values and beliefs of Chasing Freedom – Virginia. (Source: https://friendsofdonbeyer.com/)

What are your thoughts on the preservation of our history? No mention of the preservation of history in published information. Professes values contrary to values and beliefs of Chasing Freedom – Virginia. (Source: https://friendsofdonbeyer.com/)

What are your thought on government transparency? No mention of government transparency in published information. Professes values contrary to values and beliefs of Chasing Freedom – Virginia. (Source: https://friendsofdonbeyer.com/)

What are your thoughts on national defense? Professes to support veterans however also professes and has voted  contrary to values and beliefs of Chasing Freedom – Virginia.

Our nation must be a leader in exemplifying the highest standards of human rights, climate security, election security, and democracy. As a former ambassador, I know the importance of building collaborative international relationships firsthand.

While I believe in maintaining a strong military, I will always see diplomatic engagement as the first, second, and third option, with force as a true last resort. We have been too quick to deploy US troops abroad, often on ill-conceived missions where a lack of strategic planning and clear goals limit their chance of success.

On human rights, we must not only exemplify the highest ideals but also maintain the US legacy of mercy and outreach to the world’s refugees and those who flee danger in their homeland. Foreign assistance should remain a central piece of our foreign policy toolkit, both for its strategic value and because we have a moral imperative to help the less fortunate.

Climate change is another key area of international cooperation, a global crisis, and requires global solutions that will not occur unless the world’s largest economy is fully committed to rising to the challenge. I was proud to represent the United States in 2021 at the United Nations COP26 Climate Change Conference in Glasgow. 

One of the biggest challenges in my first term was helping secure President Obama’s Joint Comprehensive Plan Of Action with Iran. I was a strong proponent of the Iran deal, working to build support for it in the House. Today I continue to strongly support renewing the multilateral accord to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. 

I supported President Biden’s commitment to bring all troops home from Afghanistan, which finally ended our two-decade presence in that country, which cost thousands of American lives and trillions of dollars. I continue to support ending US involvement in the war in Yemen, which has seen horrific losses of civilian lives.

Our remarkable district, bordering the nation’s capital and the Potomac River, is home to several key military installations, including the Pentagon and Arlington National Cemetery, the final resting place for tens of thousands of men and women who served our country with valor.

I feel personal ties to veterans’ issues. My dad, who lived to be 93, was a West Point graduate who served in Korea and was part of the United Nations peacekeeping force in Trieste (where I was born). My father-in-law, who lived to be 92, fought in the Battle of the Bulge and was awarded two Purple Hearts. It is extraordinary what their generation gave us, and what the military generations following have continued to do.

We owe our troops and, after their service, our veterans, the best possible care. And when there are problems with that care, we should move in good faith – and without unnecessary partisan rancor – to remedy the situation. 

We also must strive to be a nation that engages in foreign conflicts only as a last result after diplomatic options are exhausted, with deeply thoughtful consideration of all factors. (Source: https://friendsofdonbeyer.com/)

What are your thoughts on the free enterprise system? Professes values contrary to values and beliefs of Chasing Freedom – Virginia. (Source: https://friendsofdonbeyer.com/)

What are your thoughts on the protection of the unborn? No mention of stance on Pro-Life, pro-abortion, women’s rights to choose in published information. Supports votes contrary to values and beliefs of Chasing Freedom – Virginia. (Source: https://friendsofdonbeyer.com/)

What are your thoughts on the role the family plays in America? Professes values contrary to values and beliefs of Chasing Freedom – Virginia. (Source: https://friendsofdonbeyer.com/)

What are your thoughts on equal rights, equal justice and equal opportunity, as opposed to equal outcomes? Professes values contrary to values and beliefs of Chasing Freedom – Virginia.

The unjustified deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and countless others have brought racial justice to the front of our national political dialogue and sparked nationwide activism. I have twice voted for the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, which included my legislation, authored with D.C. Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, requiring all federal officers to use body and dashboard cameras. This bill was inspired by the killing of Northern Virginian Bijan Ghaisar by US Park Police.

I have also introduced legislation to require cities and counties to disclose the cost of police misconduct, which would mount pressure on police departments to reform their practices. I am a strong proponent of criminal justice reform, including banning the federal death penalty, legalizing cannabis, achieving meaningful sentencing reform, and banning private prisons. I have been a leader on bipartisan efforts to sharply limit the often-abused practice of civil asset forfeiture.

As Virginia reckons with its history of slavery, Jim Crow, and institutional racism, I have been a strong supporter of removing public symbols of white supremacy. In 2021, I announced legislation to end Arlington House’s designation as a memorial to Robert E. Lee, which had previously been enacted by Congress in 1955. I believe that being honest about our past is vital if we are to correct injustices in our present. 

I also believe that racial justice cannot just be addressed in racial justice legislation; it must be addressed in all legislation, whether environmental justice, health care, education, or police reform. I am a vocal supporter of equity in health care, and proud of my strong voting record in favor of environmental justice. As Joint Economic Committee Chair, I have held hearings on Racial Disparities in Employment, Wealth, Income and Health, and on the gender pay gap’s disproportionate impacts on black women. I introduced the Keeping All Students Safe Act to ban seclusion and create federal standards limiting restraint of students across the country, a major civil rights issue. (Source: https://friendsofdonbeyer.com/)

What are your thoughts on the 2nd Amendment? Professes values contrary to values and beliefs of Chasing Freedom – Virginia.

We are beyond a crisis point with guns in America. Mass shootings in Las Vegas, Florida, Virginia Beach, and so many other American communities cause horrific tragedies that we have sadly come to expect. Yet, most gun violence does not get that level of attention. Every day, more than 124 people in the U.S. die by gunshot, totaling over 38,000 a year, many of them by suicide. 

Halting gun violence has been a major focus of my work in Congress. I am a lead cosponsor of the bipartisan Extreme Risk Protection Order Act, legislation that would encourage states to temporarily remove access to firearms from people in crisis with a petition from law enforcement or family members.

I proudly voted for the Bipartisan Background Checks Act, which would expand background checks to cover nearly every gun sale. I also voted for legislation to close the Charleston loophole, which allowed prohibited persons to acquire firearms if their background check is not completed within three days, and the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act, which closed the “boyfriend loophole” on gun sales to abusive partners or stalkers. Firm in my belief that weapons of war have no place in American communities, I am a long-time co-sponsor of the Assault Weapons Ban, and of measures to ban high capacity ammunition magazines and bump-stocks. (Source: https://friendsofdonbeyer.com/)

Virginia Constitutional Conservatives Candidate Survey 2022 – CANDIDATE REFUSED TO ANSWER
(https://virginiaconservatives.net/candidate-survey-2022#results_anchor)

Additional sources of information on this candidate: 

United States House of Representatives (https://beyer.house.gov/)

Committee Assignments and Recent Votes (https://clerk.house.gov/members/B001292)

Congressional records Page (https://www.congress.gov/member/donald-beyer/B001292)

Official Biography. (https://bioguide.congress.gov/search/bio/B001292)

Voting record (https://beyer.house.gov/voterecord/ 

Virginia Constitutional Conservatives Candidate Survey 2022 – CANDIDATE REFUSED TO ANSWER
(https://virginiaconservatives.net/candidate-survey-2022#results_anchor)