Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today with my colleague Mr. Cardoza to congratulate the Nisei Farmers League on the occasion of its 40th anniversary celebration. The Nisei Farmers League has made a significant impact on the San Joaquin Valley and throughout California by representing the interest of growers, packers, processers and their employees. Over its 40 years of service, the Nisei Farmers League has helped to create a strong support network that helps western agricultural interests meet the many challenges faced in today's international marketplace.

The Nisei Farmers League was founded in 1971 by a small group of Japanese-American growers who met to discuss the increasing challenges facing California agriculture. Within months of the original meeting more growers joined the group and the decision was made to take the name of ``Nisei,'' the term for second-generation Americans of Japanese ancestry. Under the direction of founder Mr. Harry Kubo, who served as leader of the league for 25 years, the organization worked to confront the challenges faced by small growers during farm union activities in the 1970s. Acting as a mutual protection society, the Nisei Farmers League has proven to be extremely effective in advocating on behalf of its members.

Evolving over the years, the league is now a sophisticated voice for more than a thousand members representing the broad diversity of California and the western United States' farmers and ranchers, and advocates on an array of issues at the local, State and Federal levels.

Today, led by Mr. Manuel Cunha, the Nisei Farmers League serves more than 1,100 growers, packers, and processors who grow and pack a diverse range of crops throughout California and the western United States. From the bountiful fields of California to the halls of the United States Congress, the Nisei Farmers League is respected and should be honored for its tireless efforts on behalf of western agriculture.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me and Mr. Cardoza in recognizing the hard work and dedication that the Nisei Farmers League has put forth throughout its many years of service to growers throughout California. I congratulate the Nisei Farmers League on its many years of dedicated and successful work in California, and wish the group many successful years to come.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to express my concern regarding the partisan direction our budget debate has taken this week. Although there is near unanimous agreement that we must reduce our deficit, there has been no productive discussion in this chamber as to how we can work together to accomplish that goal. We all have our own ideas about our nation's fiscal priorities, but what is missing in today's discussion is a bipartisan, centrist approach to addressing our nation's fiscal health, such as the recommendations in the report by the Simpson-Bowles National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform.

It is unfortunate that the House will not consider the Cooper amendment, mirroring the Simpson-Bowles suggestions, as an alternative to the extreme partisan proposals that have been put forth. Responsibly reducing our nation's deficit will require shared sacrifice and bipartisan consensus, and will not be accomplished if the two parties are unable to work together.

In March, I joined with my colleagues in the Blue Dog Coalition to offer a comprehensive and aggressive set of benchmarks for fiscal reform that include the largest deficit cuts in history by 2014, entitlement and tax reform, and a reduction in the overall size of government. This proposal put everything on the table, cutting the deficit by $4 trillion dollars over the next 10 years, returning to 2008 spending levels by 2013, and addressing entitlement programs.

No one party has all the answers, and no one party can do this alone. It's time to put our economy back on the path to fiscal sustainability, and this House should consider the Simpson-Bowles recommendations that aim to accomplish that goal.

Mr. Speaker, I too rise to thank Father Coughlin, Father Dan, for his spiritual sustenance and guidance that he has given all the Members of the House during his service to our country.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to be here today to commemorate the 96th anniversary of the start of the Armenian genocide, which was the first genocide in the 20th century and, sadly, the template for a cycle of genocide that continues to this day around the world.

Next week, in Fresno and around the country, there will be thousands of Armenian Americans, many who are sons and daughters and grandchildren of the survivors of the Armenian genocide. As a young man, I grew up listening to my friends the Kezirians, the Kolligians, the Bakers, the Abrahams, the Karabians and the Kashians, and many others who told the story of their parents and grandparents.

We are quickly approaching the 100th anniversary of the start of the Armenian genocide. I am hopeful we don't have to wait until then to bring justice to the Armenian nation and our friends and neighbors who sadly recognize that event.

There is never a right time to recognize genocide. More than 90 years have passed since the start of these events, and we cannot wait for a convenient moment to recognize this truly catastrophic historical event. I will continue to stand for us to properly recognize this tragic event.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor and pay tribute to two heroic officers from the Naval Air Station in Lemoore, California, that I represent, who tragically lost their lives on April 6, 2011, Lieutenant Matthew Ira Lowe and Lieutenant Nathan Hollingsworth Williams. These pilots were among our best, doing extraordinary things.

Lieutenant Lowe, of Plantation, Florida, received his commission in 2002, and later was assigned to Strike Fighter Squadron 94 based at Lemoore Naval Air Station. Throughout his service, Lieutenant Lowe earned the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, and was training to become a pilot for the Blue Angels exhibition team.

Lieutenant Williams, of Oswego, New York, received his commission in 2004, and following his training served in Afghanistan aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt. Returning home, Lieutenant Williams became a flight instructor at Lemoore Naval Air Station, training other officers on the aircraft the Super Hornet.

Madam Speaker, the deaths of these two individuals, Lieutenant Williams and Lieutenant Lowe, are a tragic reminder that the men and women who serve our Nation every day in harm's way throughout the world put their lives at risk.

Please join me for a moment of silence as we honor the service of these two individuals for our country.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the Honorable George N. Zenovich on the occasion of the celebration of his 89th year.

George N. Zenovich was born of Serbian ancestry on April 29, 1922 in Fresno, California. Raised in his beloved San Joaquin Valley, in 1955 he wed Vera Sarenca in Belgrade, Yugoslavia. To their great joy, they became the parents of two children, Ninon and Marina. George proudly served a tour of duty for our Nation as a member of the U. S. Army Air Force during World War II. Mr. Zenovich embodies what has become known as the ``Greatest Generation'' and indeed all that is honorable about our esteemed veterans. As journalist Tom Brokaw wrote in his 1998 book, ``The Greatest Generation,'' he defended our country neither for fame nor recognition, but because it was the right thing to do. That sense of honor would stay with George Zenovich throughout his entire career.

A calling for public service would continue to run deep within George Zenovich. When his military service to our country concluded, Mr. Zenovich continued his education in the area of law, becoming a noted attorney; a calling which would later serve as the foundation for democratic representation of the people of the State of California.

In 1963, George Zenovich was elected to serve in the California State Assembly. As a testament to his leadership, he earned the distinction of serving in the post of Assembly Majority Leader, a position second only to the Assembly Speaker. This service marked the first time that two San Joaquin Valley legislators from the same political party had held high positions simultaneously in the state legislature. In 1968, his passion for representing those under the democratic umbrella led him to be selected as a delegate for the 1968 Democratic National Convention. Shortly thereafter, George Zenovich was elected to the position of State Senator for California, providing representation for all those in his cherished Central Valley.

During his tenure in the State Senate, George was instrumental in passing several landmark pieces of legislation. It was during his time in the California Senate that the notable California Arts Council was created by the Dixon-Zenovich-Maddy California Arts Act of 1975. This legislation was enacted to encourage artistic awareness, participation, and expression; to assist independent local groups develop art programs; to promote the employment of artists in both the public and private

sector; to provide for the exhibition of artwork in public buildings; and, to enlist the assistance of all state agencies in the task of ensuring the fullest expression of artistic potential.

George was also a tireless champion for California's agricultural workers, co-sponsoring the Alatorre-Zenovich-Dunlap-Berman California Agricultural Labor Relations Act which became the first law in the nation recognizing the right of farm workers to bargain collectively. He was also responsible for the Zenovich-Moscone-Chacon Housing and Home Finance Act which authorized bonds for low and moderate income housing and established the California Housing Finance Agency.

However, George Zenovich's greatest passion was championing the cause of physically, mentally, and neurologically handicapped children. He sponsored funding of programs for autistic children, established the Diagnostic School for Neurologically Handicapped children in Fresno in 1973, and chaired the Select Committee on Children and Youth. As a legislator his passion for California was truly remarkable.

In order to further fulfill his quest for justice, in 1979 Mr. Zenovich accepted the coveted position as an associate justice for the 5th District Court of Appeals where he balanced the scales of justice for those in Fresno, Tulare, Kings, Madera, Mariposa, Merced, Kern, Tuolumne and Stanislaus counties. It was during this time that the appellate court expanded from three justices to eight, and this court has now grown to include ten associate justices.

As a testament to George N. Zenovich, in 2008 Fresno's new 5th District Court of Appeals building was named the George Zenovich Court of Appeals. Always a humble man dedicated to his ancestry, George Zenovich shared this honor with Armenians who settled in the Central Valley area more than a century ago.

The leadership and commitment Mr. Zenovich has demonstrated has never wavered nor has his honor in service. I respectfully ask my colleagues to join me in bestowing best wishes to The Honorable George Zenovich as we acknowledge all that he has done during his lifetime for those throughout the great State of California.

Madam Speaker, California's Governor will soon declare an end to the drought that devastated the San Joaquin Valley. Our cities are flooding and our rivers are raging and the snowpack in the Sierras is deeper than it has been in any 15-year period. It is clear that the drought is over. Somehow, though, Washington has not gotten the news.

With unemployment still in double digits in seven counties in the valley and unemployment continuing to be very problematic, the folks in Washington think that communities can recover from the Great Recession with just over half the water our farmers need. They don't understand the valley. They don't understand us.

Do you hear me, Commerce Department? Do you hear me, Secretary Locke? Water is the lifeblood of the San Joaquin Valley. It puts food on our table. It sustains our economy, and it creates good jobs. That is why I am introducing legislation that will allow the needed flexibility for California's water policy.

As we work to find short-term and long-term solutions to California's broken water system, passing commonsense legislation will bring over half a million acre-feet of water to valley farmers and farm communities. It is time to put aside our political differences. It is time to reach a compromise, and it is time to end this regulatory drought.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of a man whose passion, devotion, and leadership exemplify the meaning of public service. Robert ``Bob'' Price passed away on Wednesday, February 9, 2011 after a valiant battle with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. He was 79. Bob was a well respected leader, mentor, and community advocate. He lived his life with a tenacious commitment to his family and to his community and is certainly most deserving of this honor.

Bob Price was born in 1932 in Abilene, Kansas. He came to Bakersfield, California in 1937, graduated from Bakersfield High School in 1949 and went on to proudly serve our great country in the United States Army. After his military service, Bob returned home to Bakersfield, California, where he began his 32-year career with the Bakersfield Police Department. Beginning as a motorcycle officer, he tenaciously worked his way through the ranks until he achieved the rank of Bakersfield Chief of Police, a position he would remain in for 15 years. Admired by his fellow officers, Bob Price always remembered what it was like to be an officer on the beat, and he himself often described his own management style as ``management by walking around''. Though he officially retired from public safety service, his yearning for public service remained and in 1992, Bob Price successfully ran for Mayor of Bakersfield where he completed two terms in that office.

In his spare time, Bob enjoyed the simple things in life such as playing handball, playing golf, or spending time with his family. In 2009, after noticing wall-to-wall crowding in the lobby of the Bakersfield Police Department, Bob used his enthusiastic attitude and started a program that recruited retired police officers, clerks, and technicians to help the system work more efficiently and effectively for the Bakersfield community. That program is still thriving today.

Bob Price was a man of great principle and integrity; serving as interim director of the Bakersfield Association of Retarded Citizens (BARC). He lived his life to encourage and elevate others, but he also held others accountable. His commitment to friends, family, and community will be remembered by all that knew him. It is with great pride that I honor him for all that he did on behalf of the City of Bakersfield and for California.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring Bob Price, a man who lived a righteous life. His leadership and spirit leave a lasting imprint on all those who knew him.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the distinguished educational leadership of Marcus Johnson, Superintendent of Sanger Unified School District in California's Central Valley, who has been honored as the 2011 Superintendent of the Year by the American Association of School Administrators.

A California native, Marc Johnson lives in the small community of Reedley, where at age four he moved with his parents and where his home sits ten miles away from his office. He is a graduate of Reedley Community College, California State University, Fresno and Fresno Pacific University, where he received his Masters degree and completed his credential programs.

Marc Johnson embarked on his career with Sanger Unified School District, first serving as an assistant superintendent of human resources and later as an associate superintendent in the district. In 2003, Marc assumed a new role of Superintendent, overseeing a highly diverse student population of 10,800 students. He entered amidst turmoil for the rural school community and one year later was faced with the challenges accompanied with an entire school district being designated for program improvement by the State of California. With boundless energy and enthusiasm, Marc proved from early on that his leadership was promising. By 2006, he led the district out of the state improvement status and on a path to reorganization that would later earn him accolades from colleagues and admirers of his professional endeavors across the country.

Under the leadership and guidance of Marc Johnson, Sanger Unified School District has been transformed into a professional learning community focused on student learning, high quality instruction and teacher collaboration. The Sanger district now boasts some of the highest overall achievement gains in the state of California, including: 13 schools have been designated as State Distinguished School; 12 schools have been designated as Title I Academic Achieving Schools; two schools have been named National Blue Ribbon Schools and all 13 elementary schools have been honored for their outstanding character development programs.

Dick Sheppard, editor of the Sanger Herald, called Marc Johnson, ``the guy who pulled the district out of darkness into light.'' This could not be a more true statement and characterization of the person who commits to visiting the 1,000 classrooms in the district twice annually, using the first occasion each year to affix a pin of appreciation he has selected on each teacher in front of his or her students.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to rise with me today to congratulate Mr. Marcus Johnson on the occasion of his special recognition as the 2011 Superintendent of the Year and, on behalf of the students, parents and teachers of Sanger Unified School District, thank him for his leadership and unwavering dedication to raising education standards in our community.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Donald ``Don'' A. Jackson, who recently stepped down as Chairman of the Kenneth L. Maddy Institute at California State University, Fresno. As Maddy Institute Chair, Mr. Jackson was committed to ensuring the strength of the Maddy Institute since its inception in 2000.

Don attended the University of Arizona where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in 1959. He then went on to Stanford University and received his Juris Doctorate degree in 1962. While attending Stanford University, he earned class honors in Corporate Finance and was selected to be a member of the Stanford Law Review. In 1962, he was admitted to the bar in the State of California. Don is a member of the Bond Lawyers Association and is a listed as a Bond Attorney in the Bond Buyer's Directory.

Outside of Don's professional career as an attorney, he has been an active member in the community of Fresno for over 40 years. He has served on several state boards and agencies including the Public Employee Relations Board, the Senate Cost Control Commission, and the Bureau of Repair Services. Don has also been an active member with the St. Agnes Medical Center Foundation Board, the Central California Women's Conference, the Fresno Redevelopment Agency Board, and Rotary Club of Fresno.

Don was a confidant and ``very, very close friend,'' according to the late California State Senator Kenneth L. Maddy. Senator Maddy credited his own success during his 1978 political campaign to Don Jackson, describing Don as a ``key strategist.'' After Senator Maddy passed away, Don was instrumental in establishing the Maddy Institute at Fresno State. Under Don's leadership, the Maddy Institute created scholarships for over 150 Federal and State legislative interns, in addition to raising over $1 million for grants, events, and programs. During Don's tenure, the institute has also successfully established an outreach program through radio, television, the Internet, and its public affairs seminar series. The Costa Scholars Internship in Washington, DC is a program Don helped me bring to fruition. Since 2005, we have created an opportunity for students from Fresno State to spend an entire semester interning in San Joaquin Valley congressional offices.

Having worked closely with Don Jackson and the Maddy Institute during my years in the California State Senate and now as a Member of Congress, I know firsthand of Don's outstanding abilities. The dedicated effort he has

put forth in preserving the legacy of late former Senator Kenneth L. Maddy is truly remarkable.

Mr. Speaker, I ask you to join me in thanking Don Jackson for his tremendous contributions and outstanding service to the Maddy Institute and Fresno State.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the outstanding service and dedication of Lillian Gattie, who has worked for the Gunner family in California's Central Valley for 75 years.

Born June 1, 1917 to Italian immigrants, Lillian was raised on a 20 acre farm outside of Clovis where she stills resides to this day. It was on the farm that Lillian learned the values of hard work and loyalty that would serve her well in her future career. After graduating from Clovis High School in 1935, Lillian completed business school in Fresno.

Lillian began her 75 years of service to the Gunner family on March 1, 1936 in an office position with the Mission Bell Wine Company, where Vas Gunner was Vice President of Sales. Lillian continued to work for Vas Gunner when he later formed the Argun Wine Company, a successful wine distributer. Lillian

was essential in handling everything from orders to accounting. As Vas Gunner continued to expand his business, Lillian's responsibilities grew as well.

In the late sixties, Vas' son Richard partnered with George Andros to form Gunner and Andros Investments. Again, Lillian's duties expanded to meet the ever growing demands of the company. With Lillian's help and dedication to hard work, the company has grown into one of Fresno's leaders in commercial real estate construction and management.

In 2006, Lillian was quoted in the Fresno Bee, ``Why would I want to quit? . . . I still really enjoy working, it keeps me going.'' As a testament to her work ethic, Lillian reports to work at 9 a.m. on the dot, just as she has for the past 75 years.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing the hard work and dedication that Lillian Gattie has shown throughout her many years of service to the Gunner Family and George Andros. I congratulate her on her years of dedicated and successful work in our Valley.

Mr. Speaker, our national debt, as we all know, is approaching $14 trillion, with a capital ``T.'' It's clear that we can no longer afford to continue the partisan bickering and short-term thinking that too long has consumed our Nation's capital. While kicking this can down the road may have been in vogue at one time, it can no longer be afforded by our Nation.

The staggering debt was not created in a day, and we can't dig ourselves out of this hole overnight, but we must stop digging. In order to tackle our

debt, we must cut spending, agree to a stable source of revenue, and hold these commitments over the long term on a bipartisan basis. Partisan rhetoric will not get the job done. The Congress now has to deal with the reality of this budget mess.

The longer-term continuing resolution the House passed 2 weeks ago, though, won't grow our economy and it won't create jobs in the San Joaquin Valley. And, in fact, two reports by respected economists have indicated that it will provide careless cuts and mean hundreds of thousands of jobs lost throughout the Nation.

We can cut spending and we can grow our economy, but it will require shared sacrifice across the Nation by Democrats and Republicans coming together. Our Nation's fiscal health depends on it.

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the thousands of Armenian Americans in my congressional district, I rise to remember the evening of February 27, 1988, when a three-day rampage began against Christian Armenian civilians living in Sumgait, Soviet Azerbaijan. Armenian civilians were at the mercy of

Azerbaijani rioters, who murdered, raped, and maimed Armenians, throwing women and children from windows and burning victims alive. Soviet authorities, who had prohibited journalists from entering the area and had instituted a press blackout, estimated over 30 individuals had been killed and over 200 injured, but others estimated hundreds were murdered.

In the days before the massacre, Armenians in Nagorno Karabakh had been peacefully demonstrating against decades of Soviet Azerbaijani repression and discrimination. Many believed the resulting massacres were officially sanctioned to send a message to Armenians to stop challenging Soviet Azerbaijani authorities.

Within months of the Sumgait massacres, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed Amendment 2690 to the FY 1989 Foreign Operations Appropriations bill (H.R. 4782) in July 1988, concerning the Karabakh conflict and calling on the Soviet government to ``respect the legitimate aspirations of the Armenian people.'' The amendment also noted that ``dozens of Armenians have been killed and hundreds injured during the recent unrests.''

The anniversary of this horrifying instance of violence serves as a reminder that the United States must stand with those around the globe engaged in peaceful demonstrations against repression and human rights abuses.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Forty Acres in Delano, California, as it is designated as a National Historic Landmark on February 21, 2011, in a ceremony that will honor the history of this important site and the thousands of farmworkers who created the farmworker movement in the 1960s.

The national significance of Forty Acres is extraordinary in every facet. Through its association with the farmworker movement, as well as with labor, civil rights, environmental and social reform interests, this land and the buildings that sit upon it helped define an important part of twentieth century American history. Acquired in the spring of 1966 by the National Farm Workers Association, Cesar Chavez had a dream for this forty-acre property. This bleak parcel of land would be transformed into a regional service center for farmworkers and an administrative headquarters for the growing union, United Farm Workers of America, which joined National Farm Workers Association, led by Cesar Chavez, and Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee, led by Larry Itliong.

Between 1966 and 1974, farmworkers, aided by an assortment of supporters and volunteers, built four structures on the property: a gasoline station and automotive repair shop, a multi-purpose hall, a health clinic, and a residential building. The structures served not only the needs of the union, but also provided social services for the Chicano and Filipino community--services that were not readily available at that time. Chavez's vision was that Forty Acres would be the first of many service centers where farmworkers would be welcomed and have access to the goods and services that as low-income, migrant workers, they were not always able to receive and obtain. These individuals and their families could purchase gas and food, receive help with automobile repair, banking services, health care, legal assistance, and child care.

Forty Acres was not only the administrative office and the site of the first regional service center of the UFW, but soon after, it also gained a higher level of significance because of two events that received national media attention. In February 1968, in the middle of the Delano Grape Strike, Cesar Chavez announced that he would begin a hunger fast in order to refocus union members on nonviolence efforts. Chavez set up a cot at the service station at Forty Acres and fasted for twenty-five days. He drew national attention with this action, and on March 11, 1968, Robert F. Kennedy flew to Delano to visit Chavez at the service station.

The other significant event took place at Forty Acres on July 29, 1970. The growers met with the union leaders in the multi-purpose hall, and after three days of negotiations, signed union contracts, thereby ending the almost five-year table grape strike and providing basic rights to fair wages and benefits, safer working environments, and job security to more than 70,000 farmworkers. Hundreds of union members, supporters, and journalists were present for the culmination of the hard work and dedication of the farmworker movement.

Forty Acres, with its mission-revival style buildings and beautiful grounds, is a piece of American history. The Roy L. Reuther Memorial Building, where the union contracts were signed; the Rodrigo Terronez Memorial Clinic, where farmworkers and their families received necessary medical services; the Pablo Agbayani Retirement Village, where aging Filipino farmworkers were provided with affordable housing; and the Service Station, where Cesar Chavez began his legendary fast that led to national recognition of the farmworker movement.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud and honored to bring to your attention this important dedication. The inclusion of Forty Acres as a National Historic Landmark guarantees that this site will continue to serve as a symbol of the farmworker movement and a lesson of courage, faith and perseverance in our country's history for future generations.

Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 66, had I been present, I would have voted ``aye.''

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the Cabrillo Civic Clubs of California on this memorable occasion of their 76th Annual Convention. I am especially honored to welcome all of the members of the Cabrillo Civic Clubs, traditionally known as ``Cabrillians'' to Lemoore, California, located in the heart of the 20th Congressional District.

Organized in January 1934 and chartered on December 19 of that same year, the Cabrillo Civic Clubs of California was created by Californians of Portuguese descent to promote the legacy of Portuguese mariner Joao Rodrigues Cabrilho who is credited with the discovery of California. Early efforts to create awareness of the Portuguese compatriot resulted in two milestones, both in 1935, with the establishment of a statewide Cabrillo Day observed annually on September 28 and the creation of a Cabrillo National Monument in Point Loma, California. Cabrillians have succeeded in having State Highway 1 christened the ``Cabrillo Highway'' in 1957 and in fostering the issuance of a U.S. postal stamp in Joao Rodrigues Cabrilho's honor in 1992.

Today, Cabrillo Civic Clubs of California members remain dedicated to the principals of their pioneer forefathers in the Golden State. With 12 chapters and an active membership boasting over 2,800 individuals, Cabrillians continue to engage in opportunities that promote and enhance civic progress. Special events, such as the San Diego Cabrillo Festival, Portuguese Immigrant Week and local Festas Portuguesas, allow Cabrillians to share and create awareness of Portuguese customs and traditions in communities across California. As Americans born of Portugese immigrants, Cabrillo Civic Club members are proud to live the American dream and have a deep commitment to making meaningful contributions to their communities. Cabrillians dedicate their time and resources to innumerable charitable activities, including: organizing blood drives, fund raising for polio and cancer research, assisting candidates for U.S. citizenship, and providing college scholarships for students of Portuguese descent. Cabrillians are able to give back to our communities in so many important ways throughout our great Golden State.

As a son of Portuguese immigrants, I am very proud of the efforts made by the Cabrillo Civic Clubs of California that keep the legacy of my Portuguese ancestors alive and a part of the rich ethnic and cultural fabric of America. I ask my colleagues to rise with me today to express our sincere appreciation to the Cabrillo Civic Clubs of California for their extraordinary contributions to California and wish them continued success in all their endeavors.