Northern Virginia Congressmen Gerry Connolly and Jim Moran are urging President Obama to choose Virginia’s Secretary of Technology as the new Chief Technology Officer (CTO) for the nation.  In a letter to the President, Connolly and Moran recommended the selection of Aneesh Chopra, the current Secretary of Technology for the Commonwealth of Virginia, for the newly created post.

“Northern Virginia has extraordinary human capital.  With a critical mass of technology companies, including many federal contractors, this region will play a central role in developing the innovative technologies that will drive productivity increases and help reinvigorate economic growth,” Connolly and Moran said in their letter.

Citing Chopra’s public and private sector experience in the technology field and offering their “most enthusiastic recommendation for his appointment, the congressmen said, “his experience with a focus on health care information technology is ideal for a position that will have responsibilities dealing both with stimulus spending on health care and environmental programs as well as forthcoming efforts to extend health care coverage.”

Connolly and Moran praised President Obama for his “visionary plan to appoint a CTO,” noting that the post is critical “as we make unprecedented investments in innovative technology with the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.”  They said, “The CTO will be essential to the success of the stimulus and to ensuring accountability.”

Shortly after taking office, Obama signed an Executive Order creating the CTO position.