Senator Warner today began a three day trip through Southwest Virginia with a stop at the Lee County Chamber of Commerce in Jonesville.

He spoke to about 85 people and answered questions relating to several of the issues he's done a lot of work on, including energy, education, and the fiscal cliff.

"A responsible, balanced and bipartisan approach is necessary to put our country in a stronger position to compete and win in the worldwide economy," Senator Warner said. "And every day that we put off these hard choices, we add more than four-billion-dollars to our national debt."

Later, we traveled to Mountain Empire Community College in Big Stone Gap to speak with a group of more than 90 students, faculty, and local residents about the challenges facing the county and the ways that individual Virginians could push their elected representatives to seek real solutions.

"We’ve got to put politics aside to get these important things done," Senator Warner said. "We have to work together to reinvigorate our economy. And we need Democrats and Republicans in Washington – and Richmond -- to be willing to work together to help grow our economy."

Senator Warner also congratulated MECC's AIMS scholars, who will begin class tomorrow. The AIMS program allows students from Lee, Scott, Wise and Dickenson Counties as well as the city of Norton to attend MECC for two-years full time free of tuition and eventually, successful students have the opportunity to transfer to UVA-Wise to continue their education.

Finally, Senator Warner dropped by the Virginia Mountaineer Weekly in Grundy to get an update on issues affecting Buchanan County from news editor Scotty Wampler and publisher Lodge Compton.

Tomorrow we'll visit Buchanan Mine #1 before heading to Bluefield, Pulaski and Wytheville.