Valadao, D Rep

===

pm donate 10 26 to ~?

wfg says vulnerable bakersfield Central Valley

On January 13, 2021, Valadao was one of ten Republicans who voted for the second impeachment of Donald Trump for inciting the insurrection

53% 2024 vs rudy valas

western growers

grover pledge

see house Rep 2018 close

Valadao knows well what is at stake. In 2018, he lost the district when Democrats campaigned on GOP efforts to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. He narrowly won it back two years later.

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2026

Rudy Salas (D)

Randy Villegas (D)

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B3 called out by name dem woman rep;

hu agenda 7/2/25 swing left

Call the 3 vulnerable California Republicans on the list:

David Valadao CD-22 T: (202) 225-4695

Young Kim CD-40 T: (202) 225-4111

Ken Calvert CD-41 T: (202) 225-1986

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5 25 said no to big beut bill then did

Two House Republicans voted against the GOP domestic policy bill: Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa.

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email Contact | U.S. Congressman David Valadao

107 South Douty Street

Hanford, CA 93230 5144

dc Paige Ash joined Congressman Valadao’s office as the new Communications Director 2025

Chief of Staff Andrew g Renteria

andrew.renteria@mail.house.gov.

andrew-renteria-a1240357

CoS to

@RepDavidValadao

. Fmr Valadao for Congress CM. Fmr Leg. Director. Fresno State Bulldog #GoDogs Sanger, CA #Apaches. RT ≠ Endorsement

Joined August 2012

attack ad irs lien hypoc NEW Valadao for Congress ad highlights Corrupt TJ Cox’s history of self-interest, unpaid taxes - David Valadao for Congress

Trip Sponsors:

Scheduler Paula Restrepo

Legislative Director Kellie Hartl

University of California at Santa Barbara - BA, political science

CA 3 KILEY Kellie.Hartl@mail.house.gov 202-225-2523

VALA kellie.hartl@mail.house.gov 202-225-4695

DIR Legislative+Director+Contacts+-+House+Full+LD's+Contacts+(1)

Press Secretary Paige Ash

fresno bee

March 11, 2025

“David Valadao is playing a risky game,” The Fresno Bee writes this morning.

After casting a deciding vote to gut Medicaid in order to fund trillions in tax cuts for billionaires and big corporations, David Valadao is under increased scrutiny from his constituents and the local press.

After Valadao falsely claimed his vote would not touch Medicaid, a report from the nonpartisan CBO made clear what budget experts already said: Valadao’s partisan budget blueprint would jeopardize health coverage for hundreds of thousands of Central Valley families living in California’s 22nd Congressional District.

Read more from The Fresno Bee editorial below.

The Fresno Bee: If Congress slashes Medicaid, Valley Republican David Valadao could be the loser

By Tad Weber | March 11, 2025

David Valadao is playing a risky game.

The Republican congressman from Hanford who represents Kings and much of Kern and Tulare counties in the House of Representatives voted recently in favor of 2025 federal budget bill that is the start of a new tax-and-spend plan. To meet the goals of giving tax breaks that President Trump demands, while also cutting spending as far-right conservatives want, the majority Republicans in the House told a key committee to find $880 billion in cuts.

Most analysts — including the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office — believe that can only be done by making big reductions in Medicare and Medicaid, the federal government’s key health programs, as well as a children’s health initiative.

Almost two-thirds of Valadao’s 22nd District relies on Medicaid for health care. His district is one of the most Medicaid-dependent in the nation.

Given Republicans’ razor-thin majority in the House, they needed nearly every member to support advancing the budget framework. In the end, including Valadao’s backing, House Republicans moved the budget forward on a 217-214 vote. Only one GOP member dissented. No Democrat supported the bill.

Valadao knows well what is at stake. In 2018, he lost the district when Democrats campaigned on GOP efforts to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. He narrowly won it back two years later.

His seat has been considered a toss-up every time he has run for re-election, in large part because of the Democratic majority in the district’s registration.

His constituents also understand the gravity of Valadao’s votes. In a recent gathering in Bakersfield, local nurse Marbella Calderon said cuts to Medicaid would leave her parents without health care while putting her out of work, The New York Times reported.

“If you’re trying to cut Medicaid, a lot of these residents that we get in these nursing homes — a little more than half the nursing home will be empty,” she said. “And if we don’t have patients, we don’t have hours to give to employees.”

What would her message be to Valadao? “You will be destroying the health care community by taking away Medicaid.”

Valadao does not want to do that. But he will be under intense pressure to back any budget when it comes back for a final vote.

Trump really wants to maintain tax cuts that were initiated in his first term; without extensions, they will expire at the end of this year. And conservative Republican members in the House are pushing hard to reduce federal spending. Slashing the medical programs could be the answer.

But if Valadao again votes in favor of a budget that cuts Medicare and Medicaid, he will give a Democratic opponent an easy opening for attack in the 2026 midterm election.

---

ggl 7 25

[### Congressman Valadao Releases Statement on Passage of ...

Congressman David Valadao (.gov)

https://valadao.house.gov › news › documentsingle](https://valadao.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=1979)

May 22, 2025 — This bill honors my commitment to protect Medicaid for our most vulnerable populations, while implementing commonsense reforms to strengthen the program.

Missing: medicare ‎| Show results with: medicare

[### “If Congress slashes Medicaid, Valley Republican David ...

Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee

https://dccc.org › if-congress-slashes-medicaid-valley-rep...](https://dccc.org/if-congress-slashes-medicaid-valley-republican-david-valadao-could-be-the-loser-the-fresno-bee/)

Mar 11, 2025 — Almost two-thirds of Valadao's 22nd District relies on Medicaid for health care. His district is one of the most Medicaid-dependent in the ...

[### If Trump cuts Medicaid, this California Republican's House ...

Los Angeles Times

https://www.latimes.com › politics › story › california-r...](https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2025-03-12/california-rep-valadao-central-valley-medicaid)

Mar 12, 2025 — “David Valadao will regret betraying Central Valley families by voting to gut Medicaid in order to fund massive tax cuts for billionaires and ...

[### Rep. David Valadao responds to allegations of cuts to ...

23ABC News Bakersfield

https://www.turnto23.com › news › bakersfield › rep-d...](https://www.turnto23.com/news/in-your-neighborhood/bakersfield/rep-david-valadao-responds-to-allegations-of-cuts-to-medicaid)

Apr 23, 2025 — Rep. David Valadao and his congressional seat in California's 22nd district have been under fire since January over allegations that the GOP plans to cut ...

[### Peterson on Threats to Medicaid Funding

UCLA Luskin

https://luskin.ucla.edu › peterson-on-cuts-to-medicaid-f...](https://luskin.ucla.edu/peterson-on-cuts-to-medicaid-funding)

Mar 18, 2025 — The story focuses on California Republican Congressman David Valadao, representing the 22nd Congressional District, who supported his party ...

[### David Valadao supports GOP bill cutting Medicaid funding

Fresno Bee

https://www.fresnobee.com › opinion › article308340550](https://www.fresnobee.com/opinion/article308340550.html)

Jun 12, 2025 — The Republican congressman's support of the One Big Beautiful Bill could cut Medicaid by $806B and impact Californians dependent on ACA and ...

[### Valadao's 'Yes' vote could strip millions of Medicaid ...

South Kern Sol

https://southkernsol.org › 2025/05/23 › valadaos-yes-v...](https://southkernsol.org/2025/05/23/valadaos-yes-vote-could-strip-millions-of-medicaid-despite-earlier-assurances/)

May 23, 2025 — Congressman David Valadao (CA-22) pledged to protect Medicaid, then voted for a bill that slashes it. His support for the “One Big Beautiful ...

[### District 22

California Hospital Association

https://calhospital.org › Congressional-District-22](https://calhospital.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Congressional-District-22.pdf)

PDF

David Valadao (R). In District 22, some examples of how hospitals meet individual and community health needs include: • A food distribution program for ...

statewide

$371billion Economicoutput 965,000 Totaljobsresultingfrom hospitalemployment

DistrictImpact

$2.4billion

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hospitals

8,960

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Other

Medicare

37%

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Hospitals Beds Admissions Births EDVisits

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Rep.DavidValadao(R) AIn2024,votersinDistrict22voted72%infavorofimprovingfunding

---

[### Rep. David Valadao vows to protect Medicaid amid protests ...

YouTube · KBAK - KBFX - Eyewitness News - BakersfieldNow

190+ views · 1 month ago](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PCAzY54rLA)

2:57

David Valo is giving his word not to vote for legislation that may impact Medicaid benefits.

[### Cuts to Medicaid Proposed by Congressional Republicans ...

Families USA

https://www.familiesusa.org › press](https://www.familiesusa.org/press-releases/cuts-to-medicaid-proposed-by-congressional-republicans-would-have-a-devastating-impact-on-health-care-access-for-central-valley-residents/)

Mar 19, 2025 — David Valadao voted for, which would have devastating consequences for the health and economic security of California's Central Valley.

---

7 25 no talk

Talk:David Valadao - Wikipedia

David Goncalves Valadao (/ˌvæləˈdeɪoʊ/ VAL-ə-DAY-oh; born April 14, 1977)^[1] is an American politician and dairy farmer serving as the U.S. representative for California's 22nd congressional district since 2023. His district comprises part of the San Joaquin Valley. A member of the Republican Party, Valadao first won election in 2012 in California's 21st congressional district.^[2] He lost in 2018 to TJ Cox, but was reelected in 2020. Before his election to Congress, Valadao served one term in the California State Assembly, representing the 30th district from 2010 to 2012.

Valadao was one of ten Republicans who voted to impeach Donald Trump during Trump's second impeachment^[3][4][5] and one of two of those Republicans to be renominated and reelected, along with Dan Newhouse (WA-4).

Valadao defeated Democratic nominee California assemblyman Rudy Salas for the 22nd congressional district in a rematch in 2024.^[6]

Early life and education

Valadao was born and raised in Hanford, California.^[1] His parents are Portuguese immigrants; his father grew up on the Azores Islands. In a 2013 interview, Valadao said his parents were initially registered Democrats but later switched to the Republican Party.^[7]

Valadao graduated from Hanford High School in 1995.^[8] From 1996 to 1998^[9] he attended the College of the Sequoias in Visalia as a part-time student but did not graduate.^[10]

Agriculture career and bankruptcy

Valadao's father established a dairy farm in Kings County, California, in 1969. Valadao and his brother became partners in Valadao Dairy in 1992.^[10] He has been a member of the California Milk Advisory Board, Western States Dairy Trade Association, and Regional Leadership Council chairman for Land O' Lakes.^[11]

In March 2018, Valadao, a general partner of Triple V Dairy, was named in two lawsuits against the dairy for defaulting on almost $9 million in loans and failing to pay a supplier.^[12] In June 2018, a bank seized the dairy and sold it off to pay its debts. Valadao said, "Like so many family dairy farms across the country, burdensome government regulations made it impossible for the operation to remain open."^[13] After a lawsuit in 2019, Valadao agreed to pay $325,000 to former employees who claimed they had been denied breaks, minimum wage, and overtime pay.^[14][15] The settlement was not paid due to Valadao and Triple V Dairy filing for bankruptcy.^[15]

California State Assembly

Valadao (right) with Devin Nunes in June 2004

Valadao announced his candidacy for California's 30th State Assembly district after the 2010 retirement of Republican assemblyman Danny Gilmore. He defeated Stephanie Campbell in the Republican primary, 78%–22%.^[16] In the general election, he defeated Shafter mayor Fran Florez, 61%–39%.^[17][18]

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

2012

In August 2011, Valadao announced that he would seek the Republican nomination for California's 21st congressional district.^[19] The district had previously been the 20th District, represented by four-term Democrat Jim Costa, but redistricting had shifted most of the district's share of Fresno to the new 16th District, and Costa sought reelection there.

In the June 5 open primary, he ranked first with 57% of the vote, ahead of Democrat John Hernandez – the head of the local Hispanic Chamber of Commerce – and Fresno City Councilman Blong Xiong.^[20] In the November 6 general election he defeated Hernandez, 58%–42%.^[21] A Wall Street Journal op-ed cited his victory in a district that had long been held by Democrats as a potential template for the GOP, while other analysts cited his opponent's "weakness as a candidate and a campaigner" as playing a major role.^[22]

2014

Valadao during the 113th Congress

Valadao ran for reelection in November 2014. His challengers were Democrat Amanda Renteria, a former political aide to Dianne Feinstein and Debbie Stabenow,^[23] and John Hernandez, the Democratic nominee Valadao defeated in 2012.^[24] In the June 3 primary Valadao finished first once again with 63% of the vote, and received majorities of 60% or higher in every county except for Kern. In the November 4 general election, he was reelected with 58% of the vote.^[25]

2016

Valadao ran for reelection to a third term in 2016. His first challenger was Democrat Daniel Parra, the mayor pro tem of Fowler, California.^[26] Another Democratic challenger was Connie Perez, an accountant in Pasadena, California, who grew up in Tulare, but due to issues regarding her residency outside of the district, as well as an alleged recent change in party affiliation, Perez dropped out less than a month after announcing her candidacy.^[27][28] In January 2016 Emilio Huerta, son of United Farm Workers co-founder Dolores Huerta, announced his candidacy in the race as a Democrat.^[29] In the June 7 primary Valadao finished first with 54% of the vote and Huerta finished second with 24.2%.^[30][31] In the general election Valadao was reelected with 56.7% of the vote to Huerta's 43.3%.^[32]

2018

Main article: 2018 California's 21st congressional district election

In 2018, Valadao was initially set to face Huerta again in a rematch, with Huerta announcing his bid in May 2017.^[33] However, in March 2018, Huerta suspended his campaign for lack of funds.^[34][35] After Huerta's withdrawal, engineer TJ Cox of Fresno announced that he would challenge Valadao.^[36] Cox had previously announced a challenge to Republican congressman Jeff Denham in the 10th district before switching to Valadao's seat.^[37]

Valadao declared victory on November 6 after the Associated Press initially called the race in his favor, but mail-in ballots gave Cox a very narrow lead. Cox officially won the race on November 28,^[38] and Valadao conceded on December 6.^[39] The final count showed that Cox won by 862 votes. It was one of the last U.S. House races to be decided in the 2018 cycle.^[40]

2020

Valadao ran for and won his former seat in 2020,^[41] defeating Cox in a rematch by 1,754 votes, 51% to 49%.^[42] This occurred even though Joe Biden carried the district by ten points.^[43]

2022

In June 2022, Valadao placed second in the open primary for California's redistricted 22nd congressional district, advancing to the November general election.^[44][45][46] Despite Valadao's vote to impeach President Trump, Trump did not involve himself in Valadao's primary and House minority leader Kevin McCarthy endorsed Valadao.^[45][47] According to the Los Angeles Times, the GOP declined to support a challenger because Valadao holds a seat in a Democratic-leaning district that "can't be won by any other Republican".^[48] Far-right Republican Chris Mathys ran in the primary. A Democratic campaign ad criticized Valadao for his impeachment vote, as part of a larger strategy of helping Mathys to make for higher chances of a Democratic candidate winning the seat.^[49]

:{Valadao faced state assemblyman Rudy Salas, a Democrat, in the November general election.^[45] Valadao defeated Salas in the general election, 52% to 48%.

^[50][51] Valadao's victory made him one of just two House Republicans who supported impeaching Donald Trump to remain in Congress after the 2022 election, alongside Dan Newhouse of Washington.^[52]}:

2024

In the March 5, 2024 open primary, Valadao received approximately 33% of the vote to secure a place in the general election in November 2024.^[53] Rudy Salas received the next highest percentage of votes, with approximately 31%, and will again be Valadao's challenger. On November 12, 2024, the Associated Press declared Valadao the winner, winning approximately 53.5% of the vote.^[54]

Committee assignments

For the 118th Congress:^[55]

Caucus memberships

Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues, co-chair^[56]
American Sikh Congressional Caucus, co-chair^[57]
Climate Solutions Caucus^[58]
Republican Governance Group^[59]
Republican Main Street Partnership^[60]
Problem Solvers Caucus^[61]
Congressional Western Caucus^[62]

Political positions

Donald Trump

After Donald Trump became the presumptive Republican presidential nominee in May 2016, Valadao said he would support his candidacy. He rescinded his support in June 2016, declining to endorse Trump and saying he could not support a candidate who "denigrates people based on their ethnicity, religion, or disabilities."^[63]

In February 2017, Valadao voted against a resolution that would have directed the House to request ten years of Trump's tax returns, which would then have been reviewed by the House Ways and Means Committee in a closed session.^[64]

On January 13, 2021, Valadao was one of ten Republicans who voted for the second impeachment of Donald Trump for inciting the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.^[3][4] Valadao later said that despite misgivings about the process that the Democrats used to send the impeachment article to the floor, he felt he had to "go with my gut and vote my conscience" and vote to impeach. He called Trump a "driving force" behind the riots and concluded that his rhetoric at the rally preceding the riots was "un-American, abhorrent, and absolutely an impeachable offense."^[65][66]

On May 19, 2021, Valadao was one of 35 Republicans who joined all Democrats in voting to approve legislation to establish the January 6 commission meant to investigate the storming of the U.S. Capitol.^[67]

Environment

In response to President Barack Obama's repeated assertion that the 2011 California drought was caused by global warming, Valadao said that "climate change has nothing to do with the drought" and that Obama administration regulations had worsened the drought.^[68]

Agriculture

Valadao was one of four representatives to lead a 2023 letter to Congress opposing the Ending Agricultural Trade Suppression (EATS) Act, a predecessor of the Food Security and Farm Protection Act. The EATS Act aimed to roll back animal welfare standards established by California's Proposition 12, including restrictions on battery cages, gestation crates, and veal crates. In 2024, Valadao received an award from the Organization for Competitive Markets and Competitive Markets Action for his work on this letter, which was signed by 16 House republicans, due to its contribution toward protecting independent family farmers and ranchers.^[69][70]

Foreign policy

In 2017, Valadao was blacklisted by Azerbaijan for taking part in a visit to Armenia and a disputed, breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh, which is populated and governed by ethnic Armenians.^[71]

Health care

Valadao favored repealing the Affordable Care Act. On May 4, 2017, he voted to repeal it and to pass the American Health Care Act (AHCA).^[72][73][74] He was one of three co-sponsors of a last-minute amendment that added $8 billion to fund high-risk pools for patients with pre-existing conditions.^[75] The revised version of AHCA allowed states to get waivers to allow insurers to charge individuals with preexisting conditions more if the individual has had a gap in insurance coverage.^[76]

:{In 2017, Valadao introduced H.R. 299, the Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act, "to grant presumptive Agent Orange exposure status to U.S. service members who served in the territorial seas of Vietnam during the Vietnam War. This would enable eligible veterans to receive expedited consideration for Veterans Affairs (VA) benefits if they suffer from any of the diseases the U.S. Government has linked to Agent Orange." In August 2017, Valadao and Representative Joe Courtney sent a letter urging the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to ensure that Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans have access to medical care from the VA.^[77]

That same year, Valadao and Representative Jeff Denham introduced the Assessing Critical Care Efforts to Strengthen Services Act. It would correct California's Medicaid reimbursement method to encourage physicians to operate in the Central Valley and ensure patient access to doctors and specialists.^[78] Also in 2017, Valadao and five other members of Congress introduced the Training the Next Generation of Primary Care Doctors Act of 2017, which would reauthorize the Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education Program. It would expand existing programs at health centers and establish new teaching health centers.^[79]}:

In 2025, Valadao withheld his support for a House resolution to cut at least $1.5 trillion from the federal budget, citing concerns about Medicaid reductions. He was one of eight House Republicans to publicly push Speaker Mike Johnson not to slash the benefit.^[80][81] Valadao ultimately voted for the budget resolution after winning reassurances from House leadership that cost savings "would focus on Medicaid fraud, while not touching benefits for those eligible for the program."^[82]

In a May 2025 article entitled "The key Republican warning about a megabill Medicaid fallout", Politico profiled Valadao's behind the scenes efforts "to rein in his party's ambitions to cut Medicaid spending." Valadao's congressional district has more Medicaid beneficiaries than any other Republican-held district. Valadao spearheaded a letter signed by a dozen vulnerable Republican members urging House leadership not to make major cuts to Medicaid. Valadao said "We're going through this partisan exercise to do what is supposed to be a tax bill, and it's becoming a health care bill, which is what we're trying to avoid, on an issue that desperately needs reform to make it better."^[83]

LGBTQ+ rights

In 2016, Valadao voted for a measure that banned discrimination against LGBT employees by federal contractors.^[84] In 2015, Valadao did not join many other prominent California Republicans in signing a U.S. Supreme Court brief in favor of same-sex marriage.^[85]

On July 19, 2022, Valadao and 46 other Republican U.S. representatives voted for the Respect for Marriage Act, which would codify the right to same-sex marriage in federal law.^[86]

Immigration

Valadao supports comprehensive immigration reform.^[87][88] He has also cosponsored the American Families United Act.^[89]

In August 2014, he broke ranks with the Republican Party and voted against a bill that would have dismantled the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.^[90]

On February 23, 2017, Valadao called for a bipartisan solution to the U.S. immigration system. Later in 2017, he and nine other lawmakers wrote to Speaker of the House Paul Ryan asking for legislation to address DACA's future.^[91]

In June 2018, Valadao released a statement about the Department of Justice's "zero tolerance" policy, which involved separating children and parents at the Mexican border. "The substantial increase of minors at our southern border is both a humanitarian and national security crisis," he wrote. "While we must work towards a solution that reduces the occurrence of illegal border crossings, it is unacceptable to separate young children from their parents. This is exactly why passage of a compromise solution, such as that being discussed in Congress right now, is absolutely necessary."^[92]

Tax reform

In December 2017, Valadao voted in favor of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.^[93]

Free trade

Valadao has criticized the Trump administration's imposition of tariffs against Chinese steel and aluminum imports, which prompted China to impose retaliatory tariffs on a range of U.S. agriculture products. In May 2018, he sent a letter to United States trade representative Robert Lighthizer expressing concern over the tariffs' impact on the Central Valley's economy, writing, "Not only do the proposed tariffs fail to adequately remedy China's unfair practices, such tariffs seriously jeopardize our farmers' access to export markets, which accounts for roughly twenty percent of their production."^[94]

Welfare and poverty

In 2013, Valadao was one of 15 House Republicans to vote against a Republican-backed bill to make deep cuts in food stamp spending.^[95]

Electoral history

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2020 off bs

:{===

Agriculture}:

As a dairy farmer, David understands the challenges that our farmers and ranchers face as a part of California’s competitive agriculture industry. It is critical to ensure California remains an agricultural leader that provides good careers for the Central Valley and food for the world.

California’s diverse agricultural economy is a $35 billion-dollar industry that produces over 400 commodities and accounts for over a half of our nation’s fruits and vegetables. We need to ensure our farmers and ranchers have the tools they need to produce our food supply and that they continue to remain competitive internationally.

Veterans

We owe a great debt of gratitude to those who fight to preserve our freedom. Whether it be ensuring they have the tools to stay safe in battle, access to high quality healthcare, or education and employment opportunities here at home, our men and women in uniform deserve our gratitude and our support.

Most importantly, our veterans deserve to have their physical and mental health cared for when they return home from serving. The VA has been falling short in their duty to veterans and needs to be restored to the pinnacle of care for our heroes.

David is grateful for the sacrifice of so many and will represent them and their families in Washington. As a country, it is our duty to respect the memory of those lost and honor those who have fought for our freedom.

Water

In the Central Valley, life as we know it is dependent upon securing a reliable and clean supply of water. Farmers, families, and entire communities must receive the water they need to strengthen the economy and raise our families.

David knows that a safe and stable water supply is critical to the Central Valley and the State’s $54 billion agriculture industry. In Congress, he will fight to address our local needs during the drought.

Jobs & Economy

While the stock market is at an all-time high and the unemployment rate nationally continues to drop, too many people in the 21st Congressional District are out of work and aren’t feeling the positive effects of our growing economy. The unemployment rate in the San Joaquin Valley is nearly double the national average.

David knows that our economy needs to work for rural and working families, not just big cities. Small businesses are the backbone of our nation’s economy and needless regulations and a greater tax burden make it harder for them to hire. David will work to pass common sense legislation that will put Americans, especially those in the Central Valley, back to work.

Healthcare

David believes quality, affordable healthcare should be available to all Americans. It is important to enact reforms that lower the cost of healthcare while maintaining access to healthcare for America’s most vulnerable populations – like the elderly, poor and those with pre-existing conditions.

David believes the best healthcare is a market-based approach to healthcare reform that provides individuals with competitive choices and addresses the needs of those unable to afford healthcare insurance. It is David’s priority to ensure your healthcare remains in the hands of you and your doctor, not the federal government.

Seniors

Our nation’s financial situation requires that we carefully examine the future of programs our seniors depend upon like Medicare and Social Security.

Without improvements, both Social Security and Medicare will be unable to fully meet the promises made to the next generation of retirees and will burden future generations with reduction in services and crushing tax increases. Both programs risk complete collapse before our children and grandchildren ever receive a single benefit. This is simply unacceptable to David, who believes we must act in order to strengthen and preserve these vital programs.

Immigration

As the son of immigrants, immigration reform is an issue close to David’s heart. David knows that our current system is broken and in need of comprehensive repair.

David supports a reasonable and responsible pathway to citizenship for those wishing to enter our country and those already here. This will allow many undocumented immigrants to come out of the shadows, get involved in their children’s education, find employment, and raise their families.

An important aspect of immigration reform is addressing concerns of the agriculture industry and farm workers. Developing a guest worker program that will enable access to a reliable workforce is crucial to the stability of our local agricultural economy. Most importantly, David believes that we should recognize the importance of family in American society and acknowledge the danger of separating families. Rather than targeting those simply trying to raise their families, we should equip law enforcement with the tools to focus on undocumented immigrants who have committed serious crimes.

Reforming our nation’s immigration system is a massive undertaking. David will work on immigration reform until a solution is reached.

Education

As the father of three, David understands that every child learns differently and needs to have access to a quality, affordable education that works for them.

A “one-size-fits-all” approach of Washington bureaucrats only hinders the education of our nation’s children. Parents and educators should have the resources and flexibility to provide an education that meets the needs of their community and each individual student. Education should be more comprehensive at all levels and David supports expanding vocational and trade school options for our students.

David believes that education is the pathway to success and that everyone should have access to the tools they need to accomplish their goals.

Spending

David believes that Washington should live by the same rules as every American family, which means they must balance the budget and spend no more than what they take in.

Today’s government spends, borrows, and taxes its people too much. Our national debt has surpassed $23 trillion, over $65,000 for every man, woman, and child in America. David strongly opposes wasteful projects, such as the construction of a high-speed rail system throughout California which will cost tax payers billions of dollars with little added benefit.

Responsible spending reductions to tackle our national debt will strengthen the U.S. economy and create economic opportunity for families in the Central Valley. These spending cuts, coupled with the implementation of a fairer tax code and strong incentives to work and invest, will lower the tax burden for all Americans, while providing increased support for necessary federal programs.

It is time to get serious about our nation’s spending problem and David is committed to working with his colleagues to do what is best for the American people.

Reforming Washington

David believes the role of government agencies is to serve the interest of every American, not what is best for bureaucrats in Washington.

Government can only be accountable when it’s Members of Congress are transparent and accessible to the voters. David makes a point to be in the community he calls home, meeting with people as often as possible, not in Washington D.C. with lobbyists and insiders.

Today, David and his family live on their dairy farm in Hanford where they are raising their three children. David believes that Members of Congress need know the people they serve in order represent them well.

Energy

Our nation, especially California, is blessed with an abundance of traditional and renewable energy resources. However, red tape and frivolous litigation is blocking the development of America’s energy resources, killing jobs and slamming families with sky-high energy costs.

David supports expanding our domestic energy potential to reduce our dependence on foreign energy and save money here at home. California can play an instrumental role in energy production. In additional to renewable energy sources like solar and hydro power, our State has the potential to produce oil and natural gas. Developing California’s energy resources will create jobs in our communities while lowering our national demand for energy by supporting innovation to improve our economy’s energy efficiency.[19]

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—David Valadao's campaign

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California Republicans faced a full-blown disaster in the midterm elections. In the south of the state, Reps. Steve Knight and Dana Rohrabacher of California's 25th and 48th Congressional Districts were unseated, Rep. Mimi Walters of the 45th District is trailing with more votes left to count, Democrats picked up outgoing Rep. Darrell Issa's open 49th District, and will probably also net Rep. Ed Royce's open 39th District as well.}:

But another huge red flag for the GOP was in the north of the state, where they lost another seat: Rep. Jeff Denham, who represents California's 10th District in the northern San Joaquin Valley, lost to venture capitalist Josh Harder.

In one sense, this race was like many of the other Democratic pickups in California. Harder aggressively tied Denham to his vote to repeal the Affordable Care Act. Denham, aware his district voted for Hillary Clinton, played up his opposition to President Donald Trump's immigration agenda and tried to run as a moderate, even though he voted with Trump 98 percent of the time.

But in another sense, this race — and this district — is a bellwether for broader cultural and demographic trends that are isolating Trump supporters and turning the suburbs from a GOP bastion into a Democratic one.

California's 10th District is home to many rural farming communities that produce much of America's agriculture. The Central Valley is full of such communities, which tend to be very conservative and distrustful of the urban coasts — other districts in this region include the 22nd and 23rd held by GOP Reps. Devin Nunes and Kevin McCarthy, who decisively won their elections, and the 21st held by David Valadao, who is favored to win but whose heavily-Latino district is extremely close.

One of the big differences with the 10th District is that it sits directly to the east of the Bay Area. The region's hyper-competitive job growth, combined with decades of anti-poor, anti-minority "not in my backyard" zoning laws, has resulted in a housing affordability crisis in San Francisco and Silicon Valley, with the median home price in the Bay Area soaring to over $900,000. As a consequence, upper-middle-class professionals in the region are pushing outward in search of affordable living, and people are increasingly choosing to move all the way out to the San Joaquin Valley and endure a long commute.

As a consequence of this, districts like Denham's are undergoing demographic change — and as all the new suburbanites are coming from some of the most liberal parts of California, a political change too.

And what is happening in California is not unique. Suburbs used to be heavily Republican, and the shift of political gravity from cities to the surrounding communities toward the end of the 20th century was once seen as a herald for Republican dominance. But one by one, suburbs have turned blue as college-educated voters have turned their backs on Trump. The realignment is also rearing its head in longtime GOP-controlled Sun Belt states like Georgia, where gun control activist Lucy McBath defeated Karen Handel a year after the GOP claimed the special election, and Texas, where Senate candidate Beto O'Rourke surprised everyone by winning the deep-red suburbs of Tarrant County.

If this trend continues, Democratic territory will gradually spread out from cities into smaller towns suburbs, with GOP support focused into the broad, sparsely-populated areas in between. Denham's loss should serve as a warning to Republicans that their brand is in retreat in growing parts of the country — and their old coalition rests on shaky foundations.

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caine

There was a time when Ryan Zinke’s claim to be a Teddy Roosevelt Republican would have elicited laughter heard from Don Pedro Dam to Mount Rushmore. Teddy Roosevelt was one of the first and strongest ever defenders of public lands and wildlife; Donald Trump’s Secretary of the Interior might go down in history as the worst-ever enemy of those same public lands and wildlife.

Consider this: Ryan Zinke has already presided over the removal of some two million acres of public land from protection, mostly in the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase National Monuments. Yvon Chouinard, founder of Patagonia,called it, “the largest elimination of public land in American history.”

And while the nation’s been distracted by Donald Trump’s daily rolling dumpster fire, Ryan Zinke and friends have managed to gut one of the most venerated of all of America’s great conservation measures—the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.

One-hundred years old this year, the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) is honored by nations including Canada, Mexico, and Japan. It protects migratory birds from robins and cranes to Peregrine Falcons. Ironically, the Audubon Society named 2018 the, “Year of the Bird,” to honor the hundred-year anniversary of one of our most enduring commitments to the values of Teddy Roosevelt.

None of this got mentioned during Ryan Zinke’s whirlwind tour through California Congressional District 10 last week. Zinke was visiting as the guest of Congressman Jeff Denham, who is putting on his biennial campaign extravaganza, featuring promises to remedy all the problems he’s neglected ever since he won office in 2010.

Zinke’s ludicrous claim about adhering to Teddy Roosevelt’s land ethic came in a district that features the protected wintering grounds of well over a hundred thousand migratory waterfowl, including the formerly endangered Aleutian Canada Goose, as well as ducks, cranes, and swans. The San Joaquin River National Wildlife Refuge is the result of a partnership between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Audubon Society, prominent local families, and a host of other organizations and individuals.

Only a few miles west of Modesto, the refuge isn’t just a living monument to local pride in our special natural history, it represents the love of nature Teddy Roosevelt personified in his commitment to public lands—exactly opposite Ryan Zinke’s “plunder for profits” campaign.

And even though Jeff Denham has been telling his constituents he’s against the tunnels, he joined Nunes and Valadao in voting for legislation that not only prevents lawsuits against the tunnels, it would prevent lawsuits against water projects in general.Ostensibly here to help Jeff Denham stop the state’s “water grab,” Ryan Zinke’s commitment is actually to the likes of Devin Nunes and David Valadao, Denham’s Republican colleagues in the southern San Joaquin Valley. That’s where Big Ag dominates politics and water issues and where Nunes and Valadao are pushing hard for twin tunnels in the Delta.

Think Jeff Denham and Ryan Zinke are interested in protecting the interests of Valley citizens? Just follow the money. Jeff Denham receives money from coal and oil barons like the Koch Brothers, who want to continue exploiting public lands for dirty energy and dirtier money. Ryan Zinke’s happy to help.

Closer to home, Stewart Resnick and Boswell Farms want our water to keep flowing south;Jeff Denham’s happy to help. After all, he made the top ten of Resnick’s donation list, just a few thousand dollars behind his buddy David Valadao.

Jeff Denham and Ryan Zinke are about as much like Teddy Roosevelt as Donald Trump is like Abraham Lincoln. Americans who value their history should shower him with boos and catcalls any time Ryan Zinke so deceitfully invokes the name, “Roosevelt.”

https://thevalleycitizen.com/denham-and-zinke-crimes-against-nature/

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LOIS HENRY, Californian columnist lhenry@bakersfield.com

House Speaker John Boehner dug his shiny loafers into a swath of powder dry Kern County dirt on Wednesday and promised to move quickly on legislation aimed at easing the pain of California's historic drought.

Boehner and his partners on the legislation -- House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy, R-Bakersfield, Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Visalia, and Rep. David Valadao, R-Hanford -- all agreed that, yes, the drought is the biggest obstacle to farmers getting adequate water in the near term.

But they denounced as "idiocy" and "nonsense" California's management of its water system.

"In my part of the world we would shake our heads at how things work here, " Boehner said. "It's nonsense that a bureaucracy would favor fish over people."

He referred to the delta smelt and other fish protected under the Endangered Species Act. In an attempt to bolster those populations, water exports from the San Joaquin-Sacramento delta have been curtailed.

The proposed bill would attempt to bring "reason" to how the system is managed, if only during the drought emergency, the politicians said.

The bill has yet to be written, but its three main prongs would seek to increase pumping out of the delta -- if water is available -- to agreed-upon 1994 levels, suspend the San Joaquin River restoration settlement and create a Senate-House task force to come up with long term solutions.

The consequences of the drought were brought into sharp focus when local farmer Larry Starrh talked about his family being forced to let 1,000 acres of productive almond trees die this year for lack of water.

"Water is life," he said, his voice thick with emotion. "But sadly in this world, water has become about power, water is used as a weapon."

As real and painful as the water situation is, there was more than a hint of politics lurking around the edges of Wednesday's press conference. The first two prongs of the proposed bill have already been rejected by the Senate last year. Increased pumping and suspension of the San Joaquin River restoration agreement were both parts of H.R. 1837, introduced by Nunes, passed by the House and left to whither and die on the steps of the Senate.

Though all the politicians at Wednesday's conference insisted this bill was different because it would implement those measures on an emergency-only basis, Senate reaction is likely to be the same.

Indeed, a press release from Sen. Dianne Feinstein's office Wednesday warned that "I am concerned that (the new proposed bill) may follow the pattern of previous House bills which seek to either preempt state law or waive state water quality and Endangered Species Act requirements which could spur serious litigation and likely delay any action."

The likelihood of strong opposition cast Wednesday's event in a suspect light. Was it a sincere attempt to help California in a time of need or an unofficial reelection kickoff for Valadao, who is being heavily targeted by Democrats?

While Boehner's presence brought a great deal more media attention to California's water plight, any meaningful change in federal law or a federal-state partnership would have to get Senate buy-in, meaning Feinstein, who's long been a heavyweight in California water politics, not Boehner.

However, if freshman Valadao needed a boost to help loosen wallets before the mid-term elections this fall, Boehner would be a great leg up. Since Valadao, himself a dairy farmer, has made water a key issue, Wednesday's event would look to be a smooth political fit.

Meanwhile, California's reaction to the proposed bill pitched by Boehner, et al, was wary.

John Laird, secretary of the state's Natural Resources Agency, provided testimony in 2011 vehemently opposing Nunes' bill, H.R. 1837. The state was particularly upset by the portions of H.R. 1837 that would have set pumping levels at those agreed to in 1994 and suspension of the San Joaquin River restoration settlement, which he said would essentially toss out California water law and upend long held water rights.

The exact same measures are being discussed for this new bill, albeit on an emergency basis only.

In an email on Wednesday, Laird said that if this new bill proves sufficiently similar to the old H.R. 1837, the state would again stand in opposition.

"We are rarely forced to confront water allocations this low, salinity in the delta, and difficulty moving water during a crisis. Now is not the time to be divided -- now is the time to bring people together to find solutions," Laird said.

http://www.bakersfieldcalifornian.com/local/x22866465/Boehner-comes-to-Kern-to-pitch-water-bill