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Keeping America safe is the most serious job Congress has. Tom has spent 20 years working on peace and security issues in some of the hardest places on earth, and it taught him one thing above all: development and diplomacy save us money and make us safer than starting wars of choice. In Sudan he saw "a war of choice and a famine created by men," not by a drought, not by a flood. A few powerful people start the wars. Everybody else pays—in lives, and in the price of gas, fertilizer, and groceries right here in Virginia.
Our standing in the world matters. At our best, America is a force for freedom, democracy, and peace. Our strength comes from the alliances we keep, the promises we honor, and the example we set at home. Break our word, abandon a partner, and that strength flows to Beijing and Moscow—and Virginia families pay for it in higher prices and more wars. Tom's rule is simple: Make Congress vote before America fights, and fund the people who stop wars before they start.