Hello Kossacks! My name is Phil Janowicz, and I'm a Democratic candidate running against House Foreign Relations Chair Rep. Ed Royce (R-Fullerton). I'm writing not just to introduce myself to you, but also to Congressman Royce, a longtime conservative career politician first elected in 1992. Royce has voted with Donald Trump 97% of the time, including a vote on the disastrous Trumpcare bill a couple of weeks ago.
Although Royce is chair of the House Foreign Relations Committee, he hasn't drawn the ire of the progressive community in a way that embattled Trump Republicans like Darrell Issa or Devin Nunes have, but make no mistake, locally we know, and we're ready to take him on.
Royce's greatest hits include:
-Supporting Trump's Muslim Ban
-Voting over 50 times to dismantle the ACA and voting yes on Trumpcare
-A long history of voting against the EPA's ability to keep our water and air clean and safe
-Named in an article as one of "Wall Street's secret weapons in Washington"
-Participated in an anti-Muslim rally in his district in 2011
-Repeatedly voted against the Civil Rights Act
-Co-sponsoring "English only" legislation
-Having a long history of taking far-right positions on immigration
And that's only a partial list.
Despite Hillary Clinton winning this district 51-42 in 2016, Royce carried this district by 15 points; unfortunately, Democrats have lacked a strong challenger who is able to put in the work, run a disciplined campaign, and marshal the resources necessary to defeat an entrenched incumbent.
Well that has now changed. We're not going to give Royce a pass in 2018 so he can continue to be a rubber stamp for the Trump Administration. We've announced our campaign; we've gathered momentum, and we're hitting the ground running with our eyes fixed on retiring Royce next year.
The district itself is a diverse district spanning parts of 3 counties: Orange, Los Angeles, and San Bernardino. The district is east of the city of Los Angeles and north of Anaheim. There is no ethnic majority in the district with nearly one-third of the population identifying as Hispanic and nearly one-third of the population identifying as Korean-American or Chinese-American. The district had been identified as R+7 in 2012, but it is now R+2 and trending more Democratic with each voter registration drive.
So, a little about me if you don't want to read our campaign bio. I'm a former educator in the district who worked as a chemistry professor but now run my own business with my wife that seeks to narrow the achievement gap for first-generation families. I received two degrees from MIT, where I worked in the mailroom to help cover expenses, and a PhD in Chemistry from the University of Illinois. In an age of climate denial, we need more people with science backgrounds in Congress, and with Betsy Devos at the Education Department, we need educators who are dedicated to improving public education and making a real effort to control spiraling tuition costs. And with Trump in the White House, we need progressive representatives dedicated to holding his administration accountable.
I originally decided to run for Congress because I was tired of watching my students struggle with more than just their day-to-day studies: they are stressing about the high costs and pressures of basic necessities on top of exploding tuition. I decided it was time to make a difference, and the events of November 8, 2016, set this plan into action. As my wife, Angie, and I were watching the election returns roll in, we were in shock. My self-described “feisty, nasty woman” was apoplectic, and it was at that moment that we knew we would dedicate our lives to public service not just in education as we had already been doing but also in healthcare, the environment, wages, LGBTQ issues, and many more.
I'm the first Democratic candidate in recent memory to announce and begin working this early in the cycle. I'm out in the community and growing my support everyday, but I'm reaching out to you because building a movement doesn't happen overnight. The fundamentals of CA-39 are ripe for a flip, but it's going to take enormous resources to get us over the top next November. I promise no one will work harder to turn this momentum for change into a reality. I hope you will join with me in our fight.
Please visit our website at philforhouse.com and follow us on Facebook (philforhouse), twitter (@philforhouse), and Instagram (@philforhouse).