Mark Takano: “I thank the gentlelady, the dean of our delegation in California. I come to the floor with tremendous pride and a heavy…”

“I thank the gentlelady, the dean of our delegation in California. I come to the floor with tremendous pride and a heavy heart as we say good-bye to two of the greatest liberal legislators California has ever known--Henry Waxman and George Miller. I had the honor of receiving Henry Waxman's endorsement for my very first congressional bid in 1992, but I had been an admirer of his long before that. I believe Henry's career will be judged favorably by history. Going back to his cofounding of the Los Angeles County Young Democrats with Congressman Howard Berman back in 1973, his passion for social justice has long been storied. I have to say, as a Member from the Inland Empire where we suffer from some of the worst air quality in the Nation, I am grateful for Henry's commitment to clean air. He has been a stalwart of progressive values, conducting powerful investigations on water pollution, AIDS, and tobacco, to name a few. Who else could have cajoled executives of tobacco companies to claim that nicotine was not addictive under oath? Only Henry. Let me turn to the other liberal titan, George Miller. George's work on education and labor issues are unparalleled, from leading the effort that raised the minimum wage in 2007 to his commitment to protecting Pell grants and expanding college accessibility for all students. His support of my bid to the Education and the Workforce Committee made one of this teacher's lifelong aspirations a reality.…”