*** Ricardo Lara has been endorsed for Insurance Commissioner by the CDP ***
MEDIA RELEASE
For Immediate Release
April 11, 2018
Contact: Dave Jacobson, (818) 943-2348
Maclen Zilber, (510) 508-9142
Jacobson & Zilber Strategies
GOVERNOR JERRY BROWN ENDORSES RICARDO LARA FOR INSURANCE COMMISSIONER
California Governor Brown Backs Senator Ricardo Lara’s Statewide Bid
LONG BEACH, CA– Reflecting his increasing momentum, today State Senator Ricardo Lara landed a major endorsement in his campaign for California State Insurance Commissioner from California’s widely respected Governor Jerry Brown. The Governor joins the California Democratic Party and nearly all of the state’s organizations who represent working families in backing Senator Lara’s bid.
In announcing his endorsement of Senator Lara’s statewide effort, Governor Jerry Brown released the following statement:
“Ricardo Lara has been a leader in the State Senate. He has fought to expand access to health care and to protect consumers and the environment. I’m glad to endorse him for Insurance Commissioner.”
Recently, Senator Lara released a new gripping digital video highlighting his vision of a California with healthcare for everyone.
Recently, State Senator Ricardo Lara’s campaign for California State Insurance Commissioner released a new digital video ad, titled “United Dreamers.” To view Senator Lara’s ad, “United Dreamers” click here.
Previously Senator Ricardo Lara’s released a digital ad, titled “Embolden.” Click to watch.
Since the inception of his campaign for California State Insurance Commissioner, State Senator Ricardo Lara has amassed wide-ranging support from leaders and organizations, including the following partial list:
Elected & Community Leaders
California Governor Jerry Brown
United States Senator Kamala Harris
U.S. Congresswoman and State Assembly Speaker Emeritus Karen Bass
U.S. Congressman Salud Carbajal
U.S. Congressman Ted Lieu
U.S. Congressman Alan Lowenthal
U.S. Congressman Jimmy Gomez
U.S. Congressman Lou Correa
U.S. Congresswoman Julia Brownley
U.S. Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard
U.S. Congresswoman Norma Torres
U.S. Congressman Mark Takano
U.S. Congresswoman Nanette Barragan
U.S. Congressman Mark DeSaulnier
U.S. Congresswoman Doris Matsui
U.S. Congresswoman (Ret.) and current L.A. County Supervisor Janice Hahn
U.S. Secretary of Labor (Ret.) and current L.A. County Supervisor Hilda Solis
State Senate President pro Tempore Kevin de León
State Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon
California State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson
California Secretary of State Alex Padilla
California State Attorney General Bill Lockyer (Ret.)
California Board of Equalization Member Fiona Ma
State Assembly Speaker Emeritus and State Senator Toni Atkins
State Assembly Speaker Emeritus and State Senator Robert Hertzberg
State Assembly Speaker Emeritus Fabian Nunez
State Assembly Speaker Emeritus John A. Pérez
State Senator Dr. Ed Hernandez
State Senator Holly Mitchell
State Senator Ben Hueso
State Senator Scott Wiener
State Senator Steven Bradford
State Senator Hannah-Beth Jackson
State Senator Nancy Skinner
State Senator Ben Allen
State Senator Bill Monning
State Senator Henry Stern
State Senator Josh Newman
State Senator Cathleen Galgiani
State Senator Bill Dodd
State Senator Richard Roth
State Senator Jerry Hill
State Senator Bob Wieckowski
State Senator Mike McGuire
State Senator Anthony Portantino
State Senator Mark Leno (Ret.)
State Assembly Member Miguel Santiago
State Assembly Member Blanca Rubio
State Assembly Member Lorena Gonzalez-Fletcher
State Assembly Member Todd Gloria
State Assembly Member Eduardo Garcia
State Assembly Member Jacqui Irwin
State Assembly Member Evan Low
State Assembly Member Tony Thurmond
State Assembly Member Shirley Weber
State Assembly Member Kevin McCarty
State Assembly Member Reggie Jones-Sawyer
State Assembly Member Freddie Rodriguez
State Assembly Member David Chiu
State Assembly Member Ash Kalra
State Assembly Member Monique Limon
State Assembly Member Jim Frazier
State Assembly Member Kansen Chu
State Assembly Member Ed Chau
State Assembly Member Chris Holden
State Assembly Member Joaquin Arambula
State Assembly Member Jim Cooper
State Assembly Member Jose Medina
State Assembly Member Eloise Reyes
State Assembly Member Susan Talamantes Eggman
State Assembly Member Phil Ting
State Assembly Member Kevin Mullin
State Assembly Member Rudy Salas
State Assembly Member Autumn Burke
State Assembly Member Bill Quirk
State Assembly Member Susan Bonilla (Ret.)
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti
Los Angeles City Controller Ron Galperin
Sacramento Mayor and former State Senate President pro Tempore Darrell Steinberg
Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia
El Cerrito Mayor Gabriel Quinto
San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo
San Jose Vice Mayor Magdalena Carrasco
San Jose City Council Member Sylvia Arenas
San Jose City Council Member Sergio Jimenez
Newhall School Board Member Christy Smith
California Democratic Party Chair Eric C. Bauman
California Democratic Party Chair John Burton (Ret.)
California Democratic Party First Vice Chair Alex Rooker
California Democratic Party Vice Chair Daraka Larimore-Hall
California Democratic Party Controller Dan Weitzman
California Democratic Party Secretary Jenny Bach
California Young Democrats’ President Eddie Kirby
Los Angeles County Democratic Party Chair Mark Gonzalez
San Diego County Democratic Party Chair Jessica Hayes
San Diego County Democratic Party Chair (Ret.) and current Democratic National Committee Member, Jesse Durfee
Democratic Party of Sacramento County Chair Terry Schanz
California Democratic Party Region 4 Director Amy Champ
California Democratic Party Region 8 Director Humberto Gomez Jr.
California Democratic Party Region 10 Director David Atkins
California Democratic Party Region 12 Director Larry Gross
California Democratic Party Region 13 Director Carol Robb
California Democratic Party Region 14 Director Miguel Martinez
California Democratic Party Region 16 Director Sergio Carrillo
California Democratic Party Region 18 Director Deborah Cunningham-Skurnik
California Democratic Party Region 19 Director Norberto Gonzalez
Labor Leader and United Farm Workers Co-Founder, Dolores Huerta
Organizations Representing Working People
California Teachers Association
Service Employees International Union (SEIU) California State Council
State Council of Building and Construction Trades Council of California
California State Association of Electrical Workers
Los Angeles/Orange Counties Building and Construction Trades Council
United Farm Workers of America
California Federation of Teachers
California School Employees Association (CSEA)
UNITE HERE, AFL-CIO
United Nurses Associations of California/Union of Health Care Professionals (UNAC/UHCP)
California Nurses Association/National Nurses United
California State Council of Laborers
AFSCME California PEOPLE
California Conference of Machinists
California State Council of Pipe Trades
United Nurses Associations of California/Union of Health Care Professionals
California Association of Professional Scientists’ (CAPS)
California Association of Psychiatric Technicians
Southern California Pipe Trades District Council #16
National Union of Healthcare Workers
California Conference Board of the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU)
Communications Workers of America (CWA) District 9
Peace Officers Research Association of California (PORAC)
Association for Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs (ALADS)
Berkeley Professional Firefighters, Local 1227
Federal Firefighters, San Diego, Local #F-3
Santa Fe Springs Firefighters, Local #3507
United Steelworkers Legislative Education Committee for Los Angeles and Orange Counties
International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT) District Council 36
International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT) District Council 16
United Industrial Workers of the Seafarers International Union, SIUNA, AFL-CIO
International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Local 13
International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Local 63
International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Local 94
International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 11
International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 40
Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 1277
American Federation of Musicians Local 47
United Union of Roofers, Waterproofers and Allied Workers Local 36
California Faculty Association
L.A. Community College Faculty Guild, American Federation of Teachers Local 1521
Association of California State Supervisors
UDW/AFSCME Local 3930
Organizations
California Democratic Party
California Latino Legislative Caucus
California Legislative LGBT Caucus
California Young Democrats
LGBTQ Victory Fund
Equality California (EQCA)
HONOR PAC
Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California
California Environmental Justice Alliance (CEJA) Action
*** TJ Cox has been endorsed for CD21 by the CDP ***
Right now, the Trump Administration has a reckless plan to politicize the 2020 Census by adding a question about citizenship status. In communities with large immigrant populations like ours in the Central Valley, this will almost certainly lead to a drastic undercounting as thousands of residents — including those who are documented — would fear completing the census and risk their families being reported to ICE.
At a time when Trump has ramped up aggressive rhetoric against immigrants in our community, launched dangerous deportation raids through ICE, and threatened local businesses — it’s crucial that we fight back against this latest attack.
Not only does a citizenship question serve to intimidate immigrant communities — lowering response rates could affect everything from political representation in Congress to the amount of federal resources that are allocated to our communities. That could mean fewer federal dollars for health care, schools, and our farming industry.
Regardless of your political persuasion — our community would be one of the worst impacted by this decision, so we’ve got to demand that the question is removed.
*** No candidate for Attorney General has been endorsed by the CDP ***
For decades, I’ve fought alongside our brothers and sisters in the labor movement to protect the rights of California workers, whether by supporting collective action, protecting the fundamental fairness of agency fees in Janus v. AFSCME, or protecting the rights of hard working families to fair pay.
That’s why I’m proud that, earlier today, the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Western States Council announced that they’ve endorsed my campaign.
In their endorsement, UFCW local 8-Golden State President Jacques Loveall said, “From fighting to protect our health care to standing up for immigrant communities, Attorney General Xavier Becerra has shown California’s workers that he knows what’s right and even more importantly — he’s willing to fight for it.”
*** No candidate for Governor has been endorsed by the CDP ***
100 days — that’s how many extra days the average American woman had to work to make the same earnings as a man last year. On average, American women make 79 cents for every dollar earned by men.
Here in California, the discrepancy is even worse for women of color. Asian American women earn 75 cents for every dollar a man does, African American women earn 59, and Latina women only earn 42 cents compared to their male counterparts.
While I’m proud of the advances our state has made in recent years to address pay equity, the causes of the wage gap run deep beyond the surface and our work is not nearly over.
As state controller and state treasurer, I’ve worked to promote diversity and expand access to opportunities for women. I’ve used my position on the boards of our country’s largest public pension plans to demand more diversity on corporate boards, because we need more women, more people of color, and more members of the LGBTQIA community with a seat at the table. And because many workplaces are still unsafe for women, I’ve announced new policies to fight sexual harassment and discrimination that will help ensure that no woman has to choose between her career and her safety.
Unfortunately, too many politicians, pundits, and public figures have refused to take the wage gap seriously — or even admit it exists. Some even talk about the problem, but perpetuate the same behaviors in their own workplaces, impeding our progress.
As California’s next governor, I won’t stop fighting until women receive equal pay for equal work, but I need to show that you’re standing with me now to build the momentum we need to make pay equity a priority in Sacramento.
*** No candidate for Governor has been endorsed by the CDP ***
Today is Equal Pay Day, 100 days into this new year — that means, on average, women need to work until April 10th to earn what men earned last year. And African American woman will not reach this day until September, and Latinas won’t until November. This is not acceptable.
Ireiterate my commitment to gender parity in leadership and staffing, and equal pay in the next administration and I challenge my fellow top candidates (who all happen to be male) to join me in this commitment. You can read or share my statement here.
With a racist misogynist in the White House presiding over our federal government, it’s now more important than ever that our state government reaffirms the value of women in society–starting with the next governor’s administration–including leadership, staffing, appointments to commissions, and closing the gender pay gap by guaranteeing equal pay for equal work.
As State Superintendent I was accused of having a department run by women. I did a study that determined 57 percent of my leadership team was female. You wouldn’t call a department with 57 percent men a “department run by men”.
The desperate need for pay equity in state government was showcased by a 2016 report from the California Department of Human Resources. Women in the state workforce earn 79.5 cents to the dollar earned by their male colleagues. That is more than a 20% difference, which is a greater pay gap than private sectorworkers or federal employees.
Sadly, there’s also a pay gap when it comes to political fundraising for women. Donate today to help us get the word out in these last eight weeks of the campaign.
This has been a long time coming, but today the team at Sierra Nevada Revolution is excited to announce our endorsement for Jessica Morse for Congress. Between now and election day on June 5th, we will leverage the power of our platform to amplify the efforts of Jessica’s campaign run, and help her cross the finish line as our chosen candidate to take on Tom McClintock in the November General Election.
There are far too many reasons to list here in what is already a very long-winded endorsement, but below are a few of the most significant factors that fed into the decision.
1) Jessica Has The Experience
After reviewing Jessica’s impressive resume it has become exceedingly clear that she has ‘the right stuff’ to serve as Congresswoman for our district. With an extraordinary educational pedigree and over a decade of service in all three pillars of U.S. national security strategy – defense, development, and diplomacy, Jessica stands out with a level of experience unmatched by her rivals.
Her achievements with USAID, the Department of State, and Pacific Command are many and worthy of the praise she has garnered from former peers and managers. Her many endorsements include high-ranking national security leaders and members of Congress.
Jessica’s experience and tireless work ethic have also won her endorsements from numerous organizations and clubs throughout the district. She has also recently won the endorsement of the California Democratic Party. This is significant in that the endorsement brings with it a high level of support and resources to bolster her campaign against Tom McClintock.
Lastly, there is one other small detail that shouldn’t have any bearing on anyone’s decision lest they be accused of ageism, but some have voiced concerns about Jessica’s apparent age. Given this, it is worth mentioning that she is the oldest of the Democratic candidates.
2) She’s A Local
The fact that Tom McClintock moved nearly 400 miles north from southern California to fill a vacated seat left by disgraced former Congressman John T. Doolittle has rightfully earned him the title of ‘carbetbagger.’ What’s worse is that Tom has never lived in the district. His current home in Elk Grove is located more than 30 miles south of Roseville within a gated community on a man-made lake.
Needless to say, this is a sore subject for those of us who live here and one of the compulsory requirements nearly everyone agrees with is that our next representative should be from, and live within the district. Jessica lives in Pollock Pines (in-district), but her opponents will often point out that she grew up Carmichael which is just outside our district boundary. This is a false-flag.
Jessica was born and raised in northern California. Her family first came to the state in covered wagons and has lived here for fivegenerations. The family owns a sizable chunk of land near Auburn (in-district) – land they have owned since the time of the California Gold Rush.
Carmichael is only about a 10-minute drive outside our current district boundary, but consider for a moment how drastically our district has changed over the last 30 years. The fact is, many of us did not live in our district until the 2010 redistricting took effect. Furthermore, after the 2020 redistricting many of us will find ourselves in a completely different congressional district.
For those who live in our mountain communities, it might be tempting to label Jessica as a ‘flatlander.’ Here, we should point out that growing up, Jessica’s family took countless trips into the mountains to hunt, fish, and camp. She’s an avid hiker and has been on numerous treks exploring our Sierra Nevada, including a 500-mile solo through-hike along the Pacific Crest Trail. Jessica walked the entire length of our district on foot!
In a district as vast as CA-04 it might be impossible to find a candidate who has first-hand knowledge of our many customs and traditions; someone who can speak from experience on the issues affecting our various local communities, but in this regard no other candidate in recent memory has come so well-equipped as Jessica.
3) On The Issues
The Democratic candidates running in the primary have similar positions to one another in many regards. Some are a little more progressive than others on some issues. Some are more aligned to the Democratic Party planks. One thing we can say with a degree of certainty is that based on what we’ve read from their issues pages online, and based on what we’ve heard from them at the numerous candidate forums, Jessica stands out in both the consistency of her answers, and in the depth of knowledge she presents on the issues, particularly those that are more specific to our district. (See Jessica’s issues page here.)
There are a couple points worth calling out. First, she has been an outspoken advocate for Universal Health Care and has an achievable path in mind for how we can get there, including a novel idea that begins with Universal Primary Care.
Also, since the Parkland school shooting nearly two months ago, all the candidates have spoken out vociferously for common sense gun reform. However, as of today Jessica is the only candidate with the issue detailed on her website.
The absence of common sense gun reform on the other candidates’ websites might be due to a belief that the issue is a third-rail not to be touched in our predominantly conservative district. In the past, including the issue on one’s campaign website might have provided McClintock (and Doolittle before him) with a soft target to pummel their Democratic opponents with.
Times have changed though, and now polls are showing upward of 97% of Americans backing universal background checks, 81% for raising the age to purchase firearms to 21, and 68% supporting a ban on assault-style weapons.
This is a critically important issue and it is encouraging to see Jessica lean in and own her positions on gun control in the most public and accountable way possible.
Where the other candidates had nine months of fundraising to report last year, Jessica only had six. Despite this fact, she out-raised everyone and ended the year with 77% more cash-on-hand than her closest Democratic rival. Most importantly, she ended the year with more cash-on-hand than Tom McClintock!
Many supporters of her rivals have worked hard to call-out the fact that Jessica raised much of this money from outside the district. This is true, but we should remember that with Lake Tahoe, Yosemite, Kings Canyon, and all or part of 5 National Forests in California’s fourth, there are millions of people around the state and across the country who desperately want to see McClintock removed from office. If anything, Jessica’s ability to raise from outside the district showcases her ability to thrust our election into the national spotlight.
At the end of the day, Jessica’s incredible success with fundraising demonstrates her ability to connect, and inspire support. Her energetic zeal and “impossible is nothing” approach to the campaign have made her the stand-out candidate not just in our eyes, but to thousands of donors who view her as the best chance we have to finally put an end to the divisive and destructive effects of Republican rule within our Sierra Nevada.
5) The Best Kind of Democrat
Since we first created Sierra Nevada Revolution over a year ago, one of our biggest hopes has been to put an end to the divisive rhetoric of the GOP, and to escape the fierce state of political tribalism we now find ourselves in. Jessica is the best candidate to help make this happen.
Unlike most of us who may have always identified as Democrats, Jessica grew up in a Republican family and was once registered as a Republican. A number of years ago after her mother passed away she went through a period of growth, reflecting on her faith and coming to the logical conclusion that the Democratic Party was best aligned to her belief system.
Changing one’s political affiliation is a rare and remarkable transformation worthy of respect, and the fact that she went through this process demonstrates her deep commitment to the issues we care so much about.
It is worth remembering that just as we on the left are incredibly frustrated by McClintock’s lack of representation for the 40 percent of us who identify as progressive, we should take care to not elect a candidate who will alienate the other 60 percent who identify as conservative. Doing so would result with fierce opposition in future elections and we could find ourselves with a one-term candidate.
Because Jessica grew up in a Republican family she understands better than any of the other candidates, the fears and concerns of our conservative neighbors and has consistently spoken in a way that acknowledges those concerns while standing firm on her positions.
Given her upbringing in a Republican household and her ability to persuade conservatives, some have attempted to paint Jessica as a DINO or a Blue-dog Democrat. She is neither of these.
Jessica has routinely made her progressive positions on the issues we care most about crystal clear. There is no question that she will put her constituents over party politics and corporate interests. We can count on her to fight for our communities and our shared progressive beliefs.
Going Forward
In this election cycle we’ve been blessed with three amazing candidates, each of whom possess outstanding qualifications and remarkable experience. One of the huge benefits of having three active campaigns so early in the election cycle is that they and their supporters have been fanning out across our district, attending events, knocking on doors, making phone calls, and mailing postcards. At this point you’d have to be pretty far off the grid to not know that McClintock is in serious trouble.
Like most primaries, we’ve also had a healthy dose of fierce competition between the campaigns. With so much at stake, emotions are high and supporters are pouring everything they’ve got into their preferred candidate. As can be expected, this has led to many clashes online with some folks doing their best to undermine the chances of the other candidates.
Now that we’ve firmly planted our flag in Camp Jessica, we fully expect to receive some backlash as a result. If you have any misgivings about our decision, please let us know by writing to us at hi@snrevolution.com and we’ll be happy to have a conversation with you via email.
That being said, between now and June 5th, we will be using our various online channels to aggressively promote Jessica’s campaign exclusively. From this point forward, we will not allow attacks on Jessica or her campaign, comments that promote or denigrate other candidates, or comments that call out any member of the team here at Sierra Nevada Revolution.
Most importantly, whatever the outcome of the June Primary, we pledge to wholly commit our platform to helping whichever Democrat wins the Primary. Our hope is that once this day comes, we will all come back together and move forward with the same sense of unity we shared after the infamous McClintock Town Hall in Roseville last February.
We’ve all endured more than our fair share of internal strife over the past year… Fractures have formed, feelings have been hurt, and friendships have been lost. However, we remember how incredibly powerful we were when unified, and we choose to hold onto hope that come June 6th, we will find our way back together and work to “Dump Tom McTrump” once and for all.
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