FROM THE OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS

Thank you, Congressman George Radanovich, for those kind words. You’ve all heard the rumors, the speculation in the newspapers.  Well, I’ve decided to put all that to the rest.

This is a non-partisan event, but this IS the Republican Club of Capitol Hill - and the perfect place to urge George Radanovich to run for the Senate, and endorse his candidacy.

Oh, but I just remembered - it’s April Fool’s Day!!! Sorry about that, George!

Seriously, I can’t think of another Member of Congress more dedicated to his District and more knowledgeable about his constituents than George Radanovich.

It is so good to be having lunch with some Californians. Tod Burnett told me that every one in this room is from California - or wishes they were. And it’s great to see so many friends.

Besides George Radanovich, I want to recognize the President of the California State Society, Bob Cochran.  Bob who works for representative “Buck” McKeon and in his spare time, manages to do so much for California by setting the direction of our State Society.

I want to thank Linda Ulrich, and my friend Representative Ken Calvert, for making her available to organize these Golden State Roundtable luncheons.

And I want to remember my friend Tod Burnett of the EPA, who serves with Linda on the Board of the California State Society, and who was kind enough to invite me here today.

Everybody knows that there’s no State Society in Washington more active than California’s - and each of us is incredibly grateful to each of you for your efforts. Please join me in recognizing the work of these individuals for doing so much to keep this important voice for California’s interests alive and active in our nation’s capital.

It would be an honor for any person to stand here, literally in the shadow of the United States Capitol, to speak to their home State Society. But for me, it’s a very special privilege because this place is a long way from where I came from, as a little girl from Mexico City who came to this country with my mother and father.

I was 14. I couldn’t even pronounce “U.S. Capitol,” much less draw you a picture of it. And the biggest thing on my mind was that I was going to miss my “Quinceañera” Coming of Age Fiesta.

But my mother and my father taught us something special.  That in this country, you can do whatever you want to do. You can go wherever your dreams take you.  In America, they said, they don’t care who your parents and grandparents were, or where you came from, or whether you speak with an accent.  Not if you show up on time, not if you work hard, not if you’re willing to live by the rules. And we did. Just like each one of you. We overcame obstacles.  Just like each one of you did. And people reached out to help us.  Just like someone has helped you in your lives.

And today, in America, that little girl form Mexico City, who couldn’t even introduce her self in English, much less pledge allegiance to the Flag - that same little girl today holds the oldest office in the American government and is treasurer of the freest and most vibrant economy on earth.

I am so proud to be an American. I’m particularly grateful to President Bush for allowing me to serve at a time and in an Administration where we have more Latinos serving this country than any previous time in history.

And as one who owes everything I have and everything I am to California, it’s especially grateful for me to be able to do my small part on behalf of my fellow Californians.

Lord knows, our state cries out for it. We Californians now pay the tenth highest state and local taxes in the country - more than thirty-five hundred dollars for every man, every woman and every child in the Golden State. Fourteen thousand dollars for the average family of four. And yes, that’s after Proposition 13. Yet for all that money - for all those billions of dollars - our state is awash in red ink. The Governor can’t tell us how big the budget deficit is. Somewhere between $26 billion and $35 billion, he says. That’s like a little college kid calling home to say he ran up the credit card. How much? Somewhere between “Oh my God!” and “Get me the smelling salts.”

It’s the worst budget crisis in California’s history, and it’s going to hit every family in our state.  Schools. Child care. Colleges. Health Care. Pensions. Care for the elderly and the disabled.

Meanwhile, more than 345,000 California families have lost jobs, mostly in the collapse of the computer and dot-com “bubble,” according to a report two weeks ago by the Center for Continuing Study of the California Economy at Palo Alto.

Those same California families pay the highest gasoline prices in the country.  $2.10 a gallon, on average statewide, for regular unleaded, according to the American Automobile Association. In the Bay Area, it’s $2.24.

Think of that when you consider that the typical commute of the folks in the Inland Empire is three hours and counting.  That’s because if you are a young working family, you trade a three hour commute for a starter house you can afford.  It’s a trade-off that 3.2 million Californian’s have made - more people than those who live in Detroit, Philly, and Seattle combined.

And I don’t have to tell you how much we are paying for energy costs.  It reminds me of a line in the new Chris Rock movie, “Head of State.”  He asks the crowd, “How many of you are working two jobs just to be broke?”  Well, today, lots of Californians are.

It’s about time we gave them a break. And, if we’re to begin to fix the budget crisis in Sacramento, higher taxes aren’t the answer and more loans certainly aren’t the answer. The answer is that the economy of the Golden State needs stimulus.

Can you imagine what a difference a thousand-dollar-per-child tax credit will mean for this person’s family?  It’s not just shoes, new school clothes, or maybe braces.  It’s tutors or a computer.  Maybe even a family vacation - the kind of memories that make childhood really special.

There are almost 3 million California families that’ll qualify for the tax credit. And if each one of those families or single parents has just one child a piece that’s nearly 3 billion dollars for the California economy. That’s just one child per family. That’s not economic stimulus.  That’s putting California economy on turbo chargers!  And it’s putting the money right where it belongs - in the hands of hard-working people trying to raise a family.

Our nation at this moment is engaged in a war half a world away. It’s not a war of our choosing, against an enemy so ruthless he uses suicide as a weapon. We’ll prevail in that struggle, and God willing, we’ll do it with minimal loss of life.  But we’ll do ourselves no good if in the meantime we fail to fight the battle to revive the economy of states like California.

The 300-thousand brave fighting men and woman in Iraq deserve jobs to come home to- and so do their brothers and sisters, their cousins, aunts and uncles, mothers and fathers, boyfriends and girlfriends here at home.  But creating jobs, stimulating the economy from above, is only half the job.  We also have to teach people how to make the best financial decisions for themselves and their families.

Let me tell you what I mean - and in the process, explain to you one of the great problems that keeps poor people poor. 

In the United States today, the average family carries $8,100 dollars in credit card debt.  If they pay the minimum very month, at an interest rate of 18%, it’ll take them 53 YEARS to pay that debt off.

What’s the answer?  It’s certainly not government regulation or restrictions on lending. That won’t work. Never has never will.  The answer is to teach folks what they should have learned in high school - the impact of compound interest.  I call it “financial education.”

I look to my fellow Latinos - hard-working, responsible. Some send, on average, $200 to $300 dollars on a regular basis home to their relatives in Mexico and Latin America. Gifts, incidentally, that help reduce illegal immigration into the United States.

But until very recently, they were paying up to 20 percent to do so.  Why? Because there are 10 million Americans who have no relationship with a bank or credit union, and a large percent are Latinos.  The answer is to get Latinos to form relationships with banks and credit unions.

Banks and credit unions can wire money to Mexico at only a nominal charge. A check costs almost nothing. If we can get un-banked Latinos to build relationships with financial institutions, we can stop them from being abused and exploited by people like some car dealers, who charge them upwards of 30 percent for a used car loan.  More importantly, if we can get folks to establish relationships with banks and credit unions, we can establish credit histories.

That way, we can get them to qualify for loans for automobiles at low interest.  Eventually, we can qualify them for mortgages. Get them out of rental units into homes they own.  Maybe even get them business loans.

Latinos, by the way, represent just 25 to 40 percent of what we call “the un-banked.” Altogether, there are 10 million Americans who don’t have any relationship with a financial institution. They’re easy prey to unscrupulous lenders, they pay huge surcharges to cash a paycheck, and to write a cashier’s check.

We’re making progress with the un-banked. And in the meantime, we were able to bring down the charge send money overseas. Instead of a 20 percent surcharge, I’m pleased to tell you that, today; it costs a flat $10 dollar fee to send money overseas, plus the average fee.

It’s a process of fits and starts. A major progress here, small advances there. Just like in your jobs, and the projects you’re involved in. I learned a lot about fits and starts when, 17 years ago, I had my oldest son Eric.

He was born with Downs Syndrome.  And everything in our lives - my husband and mine - turned upside down the day he was diagnosed. I was about to be named Assistant Vice President at a bank - a place where I’d started as an Assistant Receptionist - and, believe me, she never let me forget who the receptionist was!

I quit my job to take care of him. My dream of an M.B.A?  Gone in an instant.  We had to sell our house, just to pay the bills.  I remember saying to my husband, “My God, why us?”  He looked back at me and said, “Why NOT us?”

And over the next 17 years, I’ve learned why. Because that little baby - my beautiful son - has shown me what love is.  In Eric, there’s no greed. No grudges. There’s no anger. No avarice.

No resentment, no jealousy. And when I look into the eyes of my wonderful son, I don’t see the Downs. I see only the love.

When I served in Sacramento, fighting for the rights of the disabled, I kept Eric’s picture on my desk. I had it there when I was Mayor of Huntington Park. And when you come visit me over at the Treasury Department - and I hope that each of you will - you’ll see that I still keep a picture of him there.

And, no, I don’t give out samples! But when I think of these little obstacles that I face in the course of the day or the great challenges that face our nation and our state in times like this...I look at Eric.

I think of a 2-year old that they thought would be paralyzed, and of the two neck surgeries he went through. I think of 3 years of brutal, agonizing physical therapy.  And I know, from seeing how God watched over my beautiful boy these past 17 years, that he’ll be there for us, too.

What helps me, what gives me the fortitude and the patience to take one step at a time, is remembering Eric’s progress.  I think of the men and woman I speak to every day who are out of work. We owe it to them to revitalize the economy of California, and of the United States.

The parents of children trying to save for college and for their futures in these difficult times. The ones who’ll benefit so greatly from the thousand-dollar-per child tax credit I told you about.

I visit the hospitals and the clinics and I think of those who still need medical coverage… of the senior citizens who still can’t get the medicines they need on Medicare.

 And I think of Eric. Of a little boy they said would never hold his head up - walking and playing basketball now with his brother and sister.

And I know that if God has done for Eric - that we can certainly put those men and woman back to work, put more money in their pockets, and help them make better financial decisions.

That’s because in America, where a 14-year old little Mexican girl can grow up to sign the nation’s currency, where her paralyzed baby can run, there is no challenge, no obstacle we cannot overcome and no enemy we cannot defeat.

God bless you, ladies and gentlemen, and God bless the United States.