(Let’s welcome the Lieutenant Governor to Calitics. – promoted by David Dayen)
I am proud today to announce that if current Rep. Ellen Tauscher is confirmed by the U.S. Senate to serve in the Obama administration, I expect to run for the 10th Congressional District, a district that includes parts of Contra Costa, Solano, Alameda, and Sacramento counties. I am excited by this unexpected potential opportunity in my own backyard, and with your support, I will return to Washington to help shape a better future for California, our country and a very special Congressional District.
As a Lieutenant Governor, former Deputy Interior Secretary under President Bill Clinton, twice elected California Insurance Commissioner, University of California regent and California State University trustee, state legislator, and chair of the State Lands Commission and Commission for Economic Development, I have led the fights against an insurance industry run amok, seemingly yearly student fee increases, California’s broken budget process, and off-shore oil and liquefied natural gas drilling.
I am ready to lend a progressive and pragmatic voice to find solutions on debates ranging from renewable energy to green collar jobs to universal “Medicare for All” health care to water policy to equality for all to market oversight to mass transit to the importance of fully funding education. As I learned during my time in the Peace Corps, developing solutions first requires being able to ask the right questions.
More over the flip…
Please join us on our Facebook supporter page and follow us on Twitter. President Barack Obama, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and Democrats in Congress are prepared to move this country forward, and with your help, we can send them a capable and progressive representative ready on Day One.
P.S. I will be at the California Democratic Convention this weekend in Sacramento and will host a meet-and-greet with bloggers. Details are pending, but I hope to see you there.
This move makes good career sense for Garamendi — if he wins, it’s potentially a long-term position, and one he should excel in. Perhaps it also enhances him as a possible Senate candidate, down the road somewhere.
But I’m sorry to lose the most progressive candidate in the governor’s race — the only Dem to speak out against these lousy propositions. He was also, arguably, the most electable (if nominated). In choosing from the remaining candidates, progressives will have to be very clear about what they expect in terms of repealing the 2/3 rules, and not going backwards on critical services and equitable distribution of tax burdens.
I’m also sorry that if he wins, Dems would be handing over another statewide office to the GOP (assuming a Republican is nominated and confirmed). Yes, it’s not the most significant office in the world (though Garamendi made the most of it that anybody could). Still, it’s one the GOP has not earned and does not deserve.
I am so sad that we are losing John as Gov. candidate. He is an outstanding person and has always represented the people with courage and integrity. Of course, he will be an effective champion in D.C. but I hate losing him to deal with our California issues on the State level. No matter what, I will always support him.
I’m a firm believer that Mr Garamendi would make the best governor of all the candidates, but (and it’s a very big but) Brown and Newsom between them had managed to lock up most of the major money and endorsements. So continuing in the Governor’s race would be a fairly quixotic pursuit. He’s smart enough to take a realistic look and see that he can be a very viable candidate even in this rather crowded field. And, if elected, he’ll clearly be one of those “better democrats” we all want to see. And even if the LG position moves from D to R, that’s pretty much a “so what” event, given the power of that office. I might add that a bunch of people who worked very hard to elect Buchanan to the Leg. have not been at all happy about her trying to jump to congress so soon.