The Most Important Vote I Have Ever Cast

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Sunday November 08, 2009 · 12:58 PM PST

2009/11/08 · 12:58

I have had one of those weeks that you remember for the rest of your life. On Tuesday, I won a congressional election. On Thursday, I was sworn in by Speaker Nancy Pelosi and got to cast the first vote of my congressional career: a resolution honoring female veterans and military personnel. Yesterday, I had the opportunity to cast the most important vote of my 34 years in public service.

The health care reform bill that cleared the House yesterday, if approved by the Senate, will transform this country’s health care delivery system. Denial of treatment for pre-existing conditions will be a thing of the past. None of us will have to worry that if we fail to report the chicken pox, we’ll be denied treatment from our insurers for cancer. Out-of-pocket expenses will be capped and subsidies and tax breaks will be made available to consumers and small businesses.

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Updated: Thanks so much for the Rec List! Also, today on Twitter, I am posting 10 ways yesterday's health care reform vote will help Americans.

JohnGaramendiCA

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Thursday November 05, 2009 · 12:32 PM PST

2009/11/05 · 12:32

On Tuesday, communities across America voted in hundreds of local and state elections. In Northern California’s 10th Congressional District, voters saw fit to send me to Congress. To all my supporters who voted, volunteered, donated, and spread the good word about our campaign, you have my sincere gratitude.

Today I was sworn in by Speaker Nancy Pelosi to represent the people of the 10th Congressional District (video here, about 1:35:00 in). It is an honor to serve my constituents and my country at such an important moment in U.S. history.

When we started our campaign for Congress this spring, we knew we would run a forward-thinking campaign with unwavering support for comprehensive health care reform that includes the public option. With a team of hundreds of volunteers and the support of more than 66,000 voters, we won our special election with a double digit lead. I look forward to voting for a House health care bill worthy of support as early as this Saturday – a bill that includes a robust public option, ends the denial of coverage for so-called pre-existing conditions, creates cost-savings, and protects Medicare for our seniors.

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JohnGaramendiCA

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Thursday October 29, 2009 · 9:41 PM PDT

2009/10/29 · 21:41

I have a request to our friends in the netroots: remind anyone you know who lives in the 10th Congressional District, a Northern California district that includes portions of Contra Costa, Solano, Alameda, and Sacramento counties, to vote on Tuesday, November 3rd.

In the last 5 days of this campaign, our aggressive phone banking and door knocking campaign will ramp up, but we need more volunteers this weekend and on Election Day. Please check out our Get Out the Vote page to see how you can help. Also, please consider devoting a few hours to remote phone banking.

Our conservative Republican opponent’s Tea Party base is hungry for an upset.

The stakes are over the flip...

JohnGaramendiCA

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Saturday October 17, 2009 · 5:56 PM PDT

2009/10/17 · 17:56

I’ve had many incredible experiences during my 34 years in public service, but never have I been blessed to receive the support of two presidents in just over a week – until now. On Thursday, at a Bay Area event, I received President Barack Obama’s support for the November 3rd 10th Congressional District special election. This followed our great endorsement rally with President Bill Clinton last week.

At President Obama's San Francisco event last night, the President introduced Garamendi, saying: "Lieutenant Governor John Garamendi, who is running for the California 10 [in the] upcoming election – everybody has got to go out there and work for John."

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JohnGaramendiCA

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Saturday October 10, 2009 · 1:29 PM PDT

2009/10/10 · 13:29

Last Tuesday, I had one of those days we treasure for life. I had the honor of receiving a public endorsement from President Bill Clinton at a rally with hundreds of enthusiastic Bay Area supporters at the Basque Cultural Center in South San Francisco.

The crowd was enthusiastic attentive, and the issues discussed far ranging – from solving the healthcare crisis to stabilizing our economy to slowing the ravages of climate change to creating high quality, middle-class jobs.

It’s impossible to upstage the former President, and I won’t try. Below are excerpts of his wonderful speech. CBS 5 has partial video.

Former President Bill Clinton over the flip...

JohnGaramendiCA

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Friday September 25, 2009 · 7:58 AM PDT

2009/09/25 · 07:58

Did you catch the Ed Show yesterday on MSNBC?

I was asked to come on to talk about my past experience with the health insurance sharks who are long on making a profit and short on consumer protection. I said what needs to be said about health care reform: it is irresponsible to force people to pay for insurance if we cannot control the cost of their premiums. As I explained to the Los Angeles Times in a story printed today, this is akin to forcing millions of Americans into an insurance market with sharks circling. They have sharp teeth, and they smell blood. It brings a new perspective on who the "consumers" are in health insurance.

Without effective protections – most importantly a robust public option allowing competition – we will continue to allow administrative and advertising overhead to skyrocket. Otherwise, the insurance companies will be able to charge a captive audience whatever they want for insurance.

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JohnGaramendiCA

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Wednesday September 02, 2009 · 6:04 PM PDT

2009/09/02 · 18:04

What a night! As you may have seen, last night I was the highest vote-getter in the 10th Congressional District special primary election and will now face Republican David Harmer in the November 3rd general election.

I want to thank our incredible team of hard working volunteers. They spent countless hours knocking on doors, making phone calls, and making their presence known at community events throughout the district. Our success would not have been possible without them, and they have my deepest gratitude. Because of their efforts, we won all four counties in the district.

I also want to take a moment to acknowledge my competitors in this election:

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JohnGaramendiCA

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Saturday August 29, 2009 · 1:10 PM PDT

2009/08/29 · 13:10

Last night Survey USA and KPIX CBS 5 released a new poll showing that our campaign for Congress remains largely unchanged. With 25 percent of the vote, I still lead the pack, with Senator Mark DeSaulnier at 16 percent, Assemblymember Joan Buchanan at 12 percent, Anthony Woods at 9 percent, and undecided voters at 5 percent. This largely mirrors every publicly released poll since I entered the election.

Among Democrats, my lead is even starker: 37 percent favor me, 23 percent favor DeSaulnier, 18 percent favor Buchanan, 13 percent favor Woods, and only 2 percent are undecided. Most importantly, our great team of volunteers is effectively converting the support identified in the Survey USA and other polls into actual votes cast. Among those who have already voted, our considerable lead holds: 27 percent voted for me, 18 percent for DeSaulnier, 13 percent for Buchanan, and 10 percent for Woods.

Our lead holds among all demographic groups, including Obama voters, men, women, all age groups, all races, all levels of educational achievement, and all income levels.

Health care over the flip...

JohnGaramendiCA

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Wednesday August 26, 2009 · 1:45 PM PDT

2009/08/26 · 13:45

Last night, our country lost one of the most important public servants in U.S. history, Senator Ted Kennedy. My thoughts and prayers go out to his wife Vickie, his children, First Lady Maria Shriver, the Governor and the entire Kennedy family. The nation and the world have lost a leader with unparalleled passion for social justice and equality, and his legacy will live on in the many lives and hearts he touched. They will carry the flame of justice and service forward.

Senator Kennedy fought for health care access for every American. In the 1990s, he was one of the lead architects of S-CHIP, which has provided millions of low-income children with the health care they deserve, and he tirelessly promoted universal coverage throughout his career. As Kennedy said during his riveting address at the Democratic National Convention in Denver last year:

"This is the cause of my life – new hope, that we will break the old gridlock and guarantee that every American – north, south, east, west, young, old – will have decent quality health care as a fundamental right and not as a privilege."

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JohnGaramendiCA

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Sunday August 16, 2009 · 12:12 PM PDT

2009/08/16 · 12:12

Thousands of people are lined up in front of a sports arena waiting to receive the health care they desperately need from a nonprofit that specializes in treating patients from the developing world. Some of their grateful patients stand outside hours past sunset waiting to be treated. Basic dental work for working mothers, glasses for young children, infections left to linger, procedures delayed because the cost of treatment is too great.

No, I’m not recalling an incident from the years I volunteered for the Peace Corps in rural Ethiopia treating small pox. I’m talking about the Remote Area Medical Volunteer Corp’s weeklong clinic in Inglewood, a community near Los Angeles. For the first time in their 25 year history, they are offering their worthy service in a major metropolitan U.S. city. Where did we go wrong?

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JohnGaramendiCA

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Tuesday August 11, 2009 · 9:32 PM PDT

2009/08/11 · 21:32

Did you hear the good news?

On Sunday, my campaign released a new poll of 400 likely 10th Congressional District special primary election voters that found our campaign holds a double digit lead over other Democratic challengers. When initially asked, 31 percent of likely voters chose me, while Senator Mark DeSaulnier, Assemblymember Joan Buchanan, and Anthony Woods received 21, 17, and 9 percent of the vote respectively. When voters were given a rundown of the strengths and weaknesses of each candidate, our lead grew to 36 percent, compared to 22, 20, and 9 percent respectively. The poll was conducted by respected California pollster Ben Tulchin. If you are interested in more information, please see our press release and Ben Tulchin’s memo. We are understandably excited by the results.

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JohnGaramendiCA

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Wednesday August 05, 2009 · 11:21 AM PDT

2009/08/05 · 11:21

NOTE: These are my prepared remarks for today’s keynote address as the Scripps Seaside Forum, sponsored by the Sustainability Alliance of Southern California, Heartland Foundation-United Green and Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

It’s great to be at the Scripps Institute of Oceanography, one of our country’s most important research facilities. The work of this institute has led the way in understanding climate change, the effect of the warming oceans and how we can adapt to the inevitable changes in our environment.

I’m here today to talk to you about the next industrial revolution. The world’s economies are fueled by carbon based fuels that have polluted our atmosphere and set up a warming climate. Now when I talk about the next revolution, I don’t mean the coal-and-oil fueled economy of yesteryear. The irrefutable science of climate change requires that we take a different path, and with sound investments in renewable energy, green technology, and education, we can create a new green industrial revolution that will put countless thousands of our residents back to work.

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The Most Important Vote I Have Ever Cast

CA-10: Sworn in and Looking forward to Voting on Health Care Reform

CA-10: Taking Nothing for Granted

CA-10: President Obama: "Everybody has got to go out there and work for John"

CA-10: President Clinton Tells Bay Area Crowd: "Send Garamendi to Congress"

The Health Insurance Sharks are Circling

CA-10: Yesterday's Victory and Tomorrow's Challenges

CA-10: Polls Still Show us on Top, Public Option Remains a Top Agenda Item

Senator Ted Kennedy's Health Care Legacy

CA-10: We Can't Let the Insurance Companies Win this Time

CA-10: On Polls and Policy

A Green Industrial Revolution for a Golden State