[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 48 (Monday, March 15, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1519-S1521]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
Maiden Speech
Mr. PADILLA. Madam President, on behalf of the people of California,
it is my honor to address this body today. I stand before you, humbled
and inspired by this moment in our Nation's history, as the Senator
from the most populous and most diverse State in the Nation and as the
first Latino Senator from the State of California. Let me begin by
saying what a great country this is.
My name is Alex Padilla.
(English translation of statement made in Spanish is as follows:)
I am the son of Santos and Lupe Padilla.
I am also the proud husband of Angela Padilla and the proud rad dad
of Roman, Alex, and Diego.
I love you guys.
Colleagues, my family's journey is central to my public service. My
parents immigrated to California from Mexico in the 1960s in search of
a better life. They arrived from different regions of Mexico, with
little formal education but with a tremendous work ethic and big
dreams. They met in Los Angeles. They fell in love. They decided to get
married and apply for green cards--in that order.
I thank the U.S. Government every day for saying yes to those
applications, because, if they had been denied, no doubt my life story
would be a lot different.
For 40 years, my father worked as a short order cook--hard work,
honest work--and as he will proudly tell you, his kitchen never failed
an inspection. For the same 40 years, my mom worked tirelessly cleaning
houses. It seemed like she never had a day off, but, together, they
raised three of us--my sister, my brother, and me--in a modest, three-
bedroom home in the proud, working-class community of Pacoima, CA, in
the northeast San Fernando Valley.
Now, our neighborhood had more than its share of challenges--from
poverty to crime to unhealthy air. It might not have been the safest
neighborhood, but my mom felt blessed that we had the sanctuary of a
backyard and a strong sense of community. It was there that my parents
taught us about the values of service to others and of getting a good
education.
Today, my sister, my brother, and I are all public servants. My
sister has been a teacher, a principal, and, today, she works in
administration for the Los Angeles Unified School District. My brother
serves as chief of staff to Los Angeles City Council President Nury
Martinez. If you pay close attention there, yes, I am the middle child.
It may explain a lot.
Think about that. In one generation, our family has gone from being
immigrant cooks and house cleaners to serving in the U.S. Senate. That
is the California dream. That is the American dream. That is the dream
I was raised to believe in and the dream that Angela and I are working
hard to keep alive for our children and for future generations.
I think about my parents often, and I think about all of the hard-
working people in our State and in our Nation who are hurting right
now. I rise today on their behalf.
I rise on behalf of the cooks, the dishwashers, and the domestic
workers who have seen their jobs and their lives upended by the COVID-
19 pandemic.
I rise on behalf of the farmworkers and delivery drivers and nurses
who have been on the frontlines of this pandemic and who have never
stopped showing up.
I rise on behalf of the 4 million small businesses in California and
the business owners, many who are hanging on by a thread and stretching
like they
[[Page S1520]]
have never stretched before to meet payroll.
I rise on behalf of the nearly 2.5 million California families who
are behind on their rent or behind on their mortgages, with bills
piling up, wondering how they will ever climb out of the hole.
I rise on behalf of the 11.2 million California adults who struggled
to meet basic household expenses last year, including many who relied
on food pantries just to get by.
I rise on behalf of the 56,000 California families and the more than
530,000 families across America who have lost a loved one, many who
died alone in a hospital room or a nursing home, deprived of the last
chance to hold hands or say goodbye.
The people of my State are hurting; the people of our country are
hurting, and we have a long way to go before we get back. The greatest
crisis of our lifetimes demands bold action. ``Building back better''
demands that we build back better for everybody and that we leave
nobody and no community behind. To do so requires that we open our eyes
to the deep, systemic inequities that have been exposed and exacerbated
by this crisis.
In my State, the reality is that there are two Californias just as
there are really two Americas--one for families who struggle to pay the
rent and make ends meet, who struggle to keep hope alive, and one for
those who can afford to work from home or from a second home, who can
more easily weather this storm.
We see two Californias where Latino, Black, and Asian households are
three times as likely to be behind on the rent. It is the story of the
single mom who lost her job due to the pandemic and who has depleted
her entire savings to keep a roof over her family's head.
We see two Californias where employment has actually increased for
people earning more than $60,000 a year while some parents are left to
make the impossible choice of either paying for food or paying their
utility bills so their kids can still log into online class.
We see two Californias, where the stock market reaches new highs for
some, while in the San Fernando Valley, too many families depend on
city or church food distribution sites to feed their children.
We see two Californias, where there is a stark disparity in who is
getting vaccinated and who is not.
Just take, for example, the city of Beverly Hills, where more than 25
percent of residents have received their first shot. That is a good
thing. What is not so good is that in South LA, less than 15 miles
away, the rate is just 5 percent.
And we see two Californias in the impact the pandemic has had on
immigrant communities--communities on the very frontlines of this
crisis.
I recently announced my first bill, the Citizenship for Essential
Workers Act, which would provide a well-earned pathway to citizenship
for undocumented immigrants who have risked their health as essential
workers. These are the workers whom we have all depended on during this
pandemic.
Now, millions of us have offered tremendous gestures and thanks for
their heroism and their hard work. Let's be honest with ourselves. Many
of these workers woke up before dawn today and took a bus to work so
that others could ``Zoom to work'' from the comfort of their own homes.
These essential workers take care of our loved ones. They keep the
supply chain moving. They grow and harvest our food, stock the shelves
at grocery stores, and will even deliver it to your door. They risk
their lives so that others can stay safer at home.
We cannot, in good conscience, praise them as essential workers in
one breath while denying them the essential human dignity they deserve
with the next.
Yes, dignity, respect, and a pathway to citizenship for essential
workers is personal to me, but it is also in the best interest of our
Nation.
These immigrants are paying more than their fair share. They are
deemed essential by the Federal Government for good reason, and they
have earned the rights and responsibilities of citizenship. We cannot
allow the American Dream to be a casualty of this pandemic. Relief and
recovery must be for everyone.
Now, the American Rescue Plan that this body passed and President
Biden just signed into law is a $1.9 trillion downpayment on this
promise. It will speed vaccination production and distribution, expand
testing and contact tracing, outfit our schools so kids and teachers
can safely return to the classroom, provide emergency mortgage and
rental assistance to families in need, and it will extend a lifeline to
keep millions of American small businesses from going under.
Now, I will tell you what it means for my home State. In addition to
what this bill will deliver to fight the virus, it also means immediate
food assistance for 4.3 million families, an increase in the standard
of living for 8 million California children, $15 billion for California
schools, $590 million to help combat homelessness on the streets of
California, and billions in direct checks for struggling families.
The American Rescue Plan provides a lifeline for American families,
workers, and businesses to survive what we all hope will be the last
months of this crisis.
It is one of the most transformational and progressive pieces of
legislation in our history, which will cut child poverty in half,
including for half a million children in California.
But our work is far from over. I believe now is the time to lead an
American comeback that leaves no working family behind--a comeback that
heals the longstanding divides in our society and unites our country, a
comeback that confronts the systemic injustices in our country so that
we can build back equitably.
It took almost 10 years to recover from the great recession. We lived
through the consequences of the moderate response to the financial
crisis--slow growth, poor pay, and millions without jobs. We cannot let
that happen again. We can and must build back better.
That means investing trillions in our infrastructure in a way that
uplifts communities and provides millions of good-paying union jobs and
in a way that addresses our climate crisis to help ensure that every
person has access to clean air and clean water.
It also means passing commonsense immigration reform that brings
humanity to our immigration system and recognizing that providing a
pathway to citizenship for people living and contributing to our
country is part--a strategic part--of our economic recovery as well.
That means protecting and strengthening our democracy by passing
voting rights and civil rights legislation. We should be making it
easier, not harder, for eligible people to register to vote, to stay
registered to vote, and to vote in every State in the country.
But as President Obama said in his farewell address, ``the work of
democracy has always been hard. It's always been contentious. Sometimes
it's been bloody. For every two steps forward, it often feels like we
take one step back.''
It is no surprise that reactionary State leaders around the country,
fearful of losing elections, fearful of losing power, are mobilizing to
suppress the vote as we speak.
Enough is enough. This Senate must act aggressively to protect the
right to vote, to strengthen the right to vote--no more steps back,
only steps forward. We must act boldly because that is what this moment
demands of us. We can't let anything keep us from bold action and
progress, including outdated rules and traditions.
We must end the filibuster. For decades, the filibuster has been
leveraged to obstruct progress. It helped maintain Jim Crow
segregation, and it continues to entrench inequality in America today.
We cannot allow the filibuster to prevent us from doing what is
necessary to lift up millions of working families in every corner of
the country.
I believe we will beat this pandemic and get through this crisis. We
will do it the same way we always have, the same way my parents did,
the same way that American families and millions of immigrants
throughout our history have done--by going to work and getting the job
done.
To my colleagues, I am so honored to serve with you and look forward
to working alongside you for years to come.
To my constituents, I am honored to represent you, and I will work
hard every day to make you proud.
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And to Angela, Roman, Alex, and Diego, I love you. Thank you for your
love and your support of my public service.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Tennessee.
Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that
Senators Lujan, Carper, and myself be allowed to complete our remarks
before the rollcall vote.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.