Dear Friend,
Thank you for visiting my online campaign headquarters. I am running for State Senate to continue the fight to improve our schools, protect public safety, and promote economic recovery.
California is facing a fiscal crisis, but I believe we must construct a budget that is least injurious to the most vulnerable. Without a doubt, we must take action to keep our state solvent. But we must also balance our books thoughtfully to ensure that we protect those who need our help the most.
California is suffering the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. It is also facing a crisis of confidence. The combination of the financial crisis, the housing collapse and skyrocketing unemployment has left millions of Californians struggling. People in our communities are struggling to stay in their homes. They are struggling to find work. And they’re forced to rely on government assistance more than ever.
In our state legislature, I've worked hard to be a voice for sound, compassionate values during the budget process. Constituents from our communities elected me to protect working families and their children, as well as the elderly and our most vulnerable. I take this charge - and my trust with the people of California - as a solemn promise to keep.
As a legislator, I have already:
Protected families by stopping health care and insurance companies from revoking coverage based on paperwork errors or other bureaucratic mistakes.
Redirected $400 million in park funds for underserved and park poor communities throughout California. Studies show that communities enjoy lower rates of crime, unemployment, poverty, and school dropouts when they provide ample park space for their residents.
Authored a bill to keep handgun ammunition out of the hands of gang members and criminals. The measure was championed by former LAPD Chief William Bratton and Sheriff Lee Baca to make our streets more secure.
As Democrats, we look at people, and see human beings with potential. Too often, many of our Republican colleagues in Sacramento look at people as mere statistics or numbers on a balance sheet, predestined to follow a gridline. I believe that statistics and numbers don’t get sick, laid off from work, confront discrimination, grow old or have a disability. Human beings are different.
We must understand that in these challenging times, the extent of our progress will not be measured by how many millionaires we make richer, but by how many millions of Californians we help rise from the depths of poverty and dependency to find jobs and a future for their families.
In these challenging times, our progress will not be measured by how many criminals we incarcerate, but by how well can we educate our children and keep them away from gangs, guns and drugs.
As Democrats, we must promote policies that reflect this vision for the future - a future in which we measure our progress not merely in the quantity of our goods but in the quality of our lives.
It’s time for a new direction in California. We can no longer afford to stumble from one crisis to the next. We must no longer being held hostage by a tiny minority. We must give the majority of the Legislature the power to enact a budget, as is the case with virtually every other state in the nation.
Working families are suffering an unprecedented assault on their quality of life and their prospects for the future. The disparity between the rich and poor is becoming greater, and the poor are being asked to shoulder all of the burdens of our budget crisis.
We can do better than this - and we must do better than this. A brighter future is before us.
To achieve that future, we must stand together and fight for it.
I hope you'll join me in this fight and support my campaign for the California State Senate. Thank you.
With gratitude,
