Jewish Citizen: Senator Boxer won’t run again

By Donald H. Harrison

SAN DIEGO — U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-California) now midway through her fourth six-year term, said in a video interview with her grandson Zachary Rodham  posted on You Tube  that she will not seek reelection in 2016.

In announcing her retirement, Boxer nearly announced Hillary Clinton’s bid for the presidency when she said she hopes in 2016 to “help our Democratic candidate make history” – one assumes as the first woman elected to the presidency.  Zachary Rodham is not only Boxer’s grandson, he is a nephew of Hillary Rodham Clinton.  Zach’s mother, the former Nicole Boxer , married Hillary Clinton’s brother, Tony, in a White House wedding in 1994.

In the interview, young Rodham asked Boxer if her decision was because of the partisan wrangling in the Senate or because of her age, which is 74.   She responded “no,” to both questions, and elaborated as follows:

On the partisanship in the Senate: “When you stand up there and fight to make sure there is a strong middle class and you protect a woman’s right to choose and you fight for jobs and a clean environment–all those things, human rights, civil rights, that is a fight worth making so that is not a factor in my decision.”

On her age: “Some people are old at 40 and some people are young at 80.  It depends on the person. As for me I feel as young as i did when I got elected. I was in my 50s when I got elected to the Senate.”

Boxer also said she is not “retiring.”

“I am going to continue working on the issues that I love; I’ll have more time to help other people through my PAC for Change community; I have to make sure that the Senate seat stays progressive, that is critical and I want to help our Democratic candidate for president make history. But you know what?  I want to come home.  I want to come home to the state that I love so much, California.”

Boxer concluded the interview with her grandson with some rhymes she wrote for the occasion:

The Senate is the place
Where I’ve always made my case
For families, the planet and the human race.
More than 20 years in a job I love
Thanks to California and the Lord above
So although I won’t be working from my Senate space
And won’t be running in that next tough race,
As long as there are issues and challenges and strife
I will never retire because that’s the meaning of my life

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U.S. Senate

U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Maryland) said he appreciates the involvement of federal agencies in the investigation of a bomb that exploded outside a Colorado Springs office of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. “I am relieved that no one was injured in what has been determined to have been a deliberate attempt to detonate explosives at a NAACP office in Colorado Springs,” he said. “I am thankful for the expert involvement of the ATF and FBI in determining who placed the explosive and why. The federal government should do all it can to bring the perpetrators to justice and to ensure similar incidents do not occur in the future. The NAACP is a venerated national organization, headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland. I strongly condemn Tuesday’s attempted attack and the potentially hateful motives behind it.”

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U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-California) has teamed with Sen. Lindsay Graham (R-South Carolina) to strengthen federal penalties for wildlife trafficking. She said armed insurgencies in Africa–such as Al Shabaab, the Lord’s Resistance Army and the Janjaweed– make money from wildlife trafficking, with elephants being the animal must at risk. ““High demand and weak penalties have allowed poachers and criminal organizations to thrive, and the federal government needs strong enforcement tools to reduce the illegal wildlife trade,” Feinstein said.
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Opposing construction of the Keystone Pipeline from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico, U.S. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) said the project would hasten global warming. He said: “The Keystone XL pipeline is not going to be forgotten by our children and our grandchildren who 30 or 40 years from now are going to be asking us, ‘What were you guys thinking about? What were you doing? Did you not hear what the scientific community all over the world was saying, that climate change is the most serious environmental crisis facing this planet?”
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U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) has applauded President Obama’s plan to nominate former Bank of Hawai‘i Chief Executive Officer Allan R. Landon to the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. “The Federal Reserve is responsible for regulating nearly every aspect of our banking industry and it is critical that its members reflect the diversity in the industry,” Senator Schatz said. “Drawing on his experience at Bank of Hawai‘i, Mr. Landon will bring an essential community banking perspective to the Board. This perspective will be very important for states like Hawai‘i that depend on a vibrant sector of community banks to serve their banking needs.”
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U.S. Senator Charles Schumer (D-New York) is urging the Department of Transportation to expedite its rule-making concerning train cars that carry highly volatile fuel oil. He said the regulations should include reductions in train speeds, tougher tank car design standards, and enhanced communication with local emergency personnel.
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U.S. House of Representatives

U.S. Rep. Susan Davis (D-San Diego) has become an original cosponsor of legislation to end the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in its entirety and ensure marriage equality for all. “A role of the federal government is to protect the rights of the people, not restrict them,” said Davis. “As long as the Defense of Marriage Act is still on the books, many Americans will be denied federal recognition of their marriages.” Davis noted that in 2013, the Supreme Court ruled that all marriages must be treated equally under federal law. However, there are some circumstances, such as with Social Security and veterans’ benefits, where full recognition of same-sex marriage rights are prevented because provisions of DOMA still exist.

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U.S. Rep. Lee Zeldin, R-New York, the lone Jewish Republican in Congress, has been appointed by House Speaker John Boehner to the following committees: Transportation & Infrastructure; Foreign Affairs; and Veteran Affairs. He also has been named as a co-chair of the House Republican Israel Caucus, which has over 100 members.

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California Legislature
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State Senator Marty Block (D-San Diego) has been named chair of the State Senate’s Banking and Financial Institutions Committee and also will head the subcommittee on education finance of the Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee.  Additionally he will serve on the following three committees: Education; Governmental Organization; and Business, Professions and Economic Development.  Block also serves as the chair of the California Legislative Jewish Caucus.

 

Political Parties

The Republican Jewish Coalition has retained Mark McNulty to handle its public relations, citing his experience as a communications director in Tom Foley’s gubernatorial race in Connecticut, and his work on Mitt Romney’s and Rick Perry’s 2012 presidential campaigns.  Said RJC Executive Director Matt Brooks: “As a seasoned campaign communications professional Mark brings tremendous experience to the RJC and will be able to help us build on our success during the next Congress and Presidential electoral season.”

Interest Groups

Rabbi Jonah Pesner, who succeeds Rabbi David Saperstein as head of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, had once considered a run in Massachusetts as a Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate, after then Senator John Kerry was appointed as Secretary of State by President Barack Obama.  As director of the highly regarded center, Pesner will have influence—but no vote—on matters of public policy.  Saperstein recently was confirmed by the Senate as the U.S. Ambassador for International Religious Freedom.

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Items concerning Jewish women in the Congress are sponsored by Laura Galinson in memory of her father, Murray Galinson. ….  Harrison is editor of San Diego Jewish World.  Your comment may be posted in the space below or sent directly to the author at donald.harrison@sdjewishworld.com