Even though I officially term out the end of November, today is really my last day as a voting member of the California Legislature. (except for that pesky budget – which I am going to ignore in this farewell post – we’ll get it done eventually).
I’ve had the great honor and privilege of serving my constituents for 14 years and I have to say — it was a great run.
My father’s career as a member of congress and later a federal judge is what got me interested in public service. He showed me if you stayed true to your beliefs and handled your responsibilities with integrity, then you could make a positive difference. I hope I lived up to his standard.
Fourteen years ago I thought I’d give it a shot and ran for the Assembly. I knew from the beginning I was going to win – it was only after I was elected did I learn that nobody else in Sacramento shared my optimism. You’re not supposed to be able to beat the Democrat Majority Leader and Willie Brown’s handpicked heir apparent as the next Speaker. Nobody told me that. Nobody told the voters that, and we won that year be 13 points.
I’ve had the opportunity to meet and get to know some amazing leaders and really am grateful for everything I’ve been able to do. I just can’t put into words the satisfaction and pride I feel when we finally achieve something that really helps people in our great state.
I say "finally" because in this very left leaning legislature, persistence is what it takes a lot of times to get a good Republican idea through and passed into law. Bad Democrat idea – easy. Great Republican idea – hard.
I’ve tried to stay true to my principles and be a consistent conservative voter. Most of the time, I am.
I’m not done in Republican politics or probably public service, but I wanted to use this blog today to say thank you to the people that elected me, the fine legislators I served with and especially to my incredibly loyal and faithful staff – present and past.
I write this today from the Senate floor as we finish up the last few remaining bills for the year. We’re almost done and I’m really looking forward to being done.
It’s been a great run…..I can hardly wait for the next adventure to begin!
Thanks for letting me be a part of it.