A well-deserved salute This year's Veterans Day Parade in Long Beach had a record-breaking 150 entries! I was fortunate to ride with three outstanding women veterans: 2011 54th Assembly District Veteran of the Year recipient Laura Araujo, Army Veteran and 2011 Miss Long Beach Patty McKimmy, and US Coast Guard…

Aren't we all tired of the Blame Game? You know, where politicians say the sky is falling and it's the other party's fault. I'm sick of it. I represent Democrats and Republicans and Decline-to-State voters, young and older, registered or not. This isn't about parties or partisanship, it's about California.…

Testing the test trucks Speaking of local business and local jobs, the people at Vision Industries of El Segundo recently delivered some zero-emission test trucks to the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. Before the trucks went to work, I had a chance to examine these hydrogen-fueled wonders. The…

Thank you again for your support during the difficult budget process. We got it done, our check book balances, but there's not much to celebrate. There is, however, a lot of other work to do. For example, I've recently been given charge of the Joint Emergency Management Committee, which is…

I hope you had a chance to take part in the Budget Town Hall that I co-sponsored with Assemblymembers Warren Furutani and Isadore Hall. Or the Veteran's Forum, last month. Or the free income tax preparation event that I hosted with Board of Equalization member Jerome Horton. If I didn't…

The Dream We Share I've been in a lot of parades over the years, but this Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade was one of the most joyous and meaningful I've had the pleasure to join. Participating with me this year were two Wilson High School Choir Members, Alex Fox…

Connecting our schools with national leaders Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, visited Freemont Elementary School. She strolled through the school’s organic garden and listened as school officials and students showed her how they turned produce from the garden into healthy eating choices in…

One bill to bring 18,000 jobs If you want to see an example of bipartisan cooperation, look no farther than AB 2098. I’m one of the joint authors, and I can’t wait for the governor to sign it into law. AB 2098 represents the best of what we do in…

Supporting the businesses that support the economy If you like seafood, it’s quite possible you’ve enjoyed some of Janet Esposito’s handiwork. Janet knows as much as anyone about getting food out of the ocean and onto your plate. She owns and operates the State Fish Company in San Pedro, catching,…

Our Pride in Their Service It’s not always easy for our veterans to readjust to civilian life.  US Vets is an organization that helps Vets who are having trouble. I had the privilege of honoring Blas Villalobos from US Vets as the 54th Assembly District “Veteran of the Year” recently…