Rep. Abigail Spanberger’s claim to fame is, ironically, a secret. The third-term Democrat representing an exurban swatch of central and northern Virginia has never hid her background as a CIA covert operative, though she still can’t really talk about it.
But in campaign circles, Spanberger’s perhaps better known for ending the GOP’s 36-year hold on Virginia’s 7th District and then twice staving off strong Republican challengers. That backdrop — more Tim Ryan than Jack Ryan — is why her peers in battleground districts picked her to be their representative on House Democrats’ leadership team.
Spanberger sat down with CQ Roll Call to talk about her new role and her old one, plus what postal inspectors and CIA spies have in common.
