Chapter 4 – Garcia to the voters of CA-25: “Hey, you just elected me and this is crazy. Here’s my number, but don’t call me maybe… I’m on right wing TV.”
As Washington Republicans’ newest Member of Congress, Mike Garcia has shown that he’s just not up for the job and the leadership this district deserves. Instead of exercising the fundamental duties of working for the people you were elected to serve, like setting up your district office and hiring staff to provide services to voters of CA-25, Mike Garcia has instead waded deep into the Washington swamp, doing a right-wing media tour as he campaigns to try to keep his job, frequently appearing on a controversial right-wing platform that promotes climate skepticism and giving multiple interviews with “Trump’s most controversial national aide,” Sebastian Gorka.
But as Garcia continues to show his true self – a proud Trump Republican – the voters are now getting to see what Garcia’s priorities are and who he really works for – unfortunately, it’s clearly not for them. Just like Steve Knight was called out for disconnecting his office phones to avoid his constituents, Congressman Garcia was called out by the Antelope Valley Press for his lack of leadership in these especially trying times, writing:
In times of great crisis, Americans have always looked to our leaders for comfort and guidance. […] It appears newly elected 25th district Congressman Mike Garcia is missing in action. A recent phone call to his Palmdale office was forwarded to an office in Santa Clarita. The person answering the phone said that the office in Palmdale is not staffed yet and all calls are being sent to Santa Clarita. However, a protest planned for Friday, was set to be held in front of his office.
What does it communicate when you are protesting in front of an office of a US congressperson and it is vacant? Frankly, there is no excuse for it. Why is a Palmdale address listed on Garcia’s website when the office is vacant? It’s hard to get help when you don’t know where to go. Given that his term is up in November, you would think he’d take this time to step up and show us who he is.
Statement from DCCC Spokesperson Andy Orellana:
“Besides skipping his day job to carry water for President Trump on far-right wing media, it’s this blatant lack of leadership that will cause Congressman Mike Garcia to lose come November.”
Read more on Garcia’s lack of leadership in his district, here or below.
Antelope Valley Press – Jun 7, 2020 – Editorial: Good leadership is everything
In times of great crisis, Americans have always looked to our leaders for comfort and guidance.
This is a year that seems to be bringing out the best and worst of our leadership. On a National Level, leadership is being questioned in a way we have not seen before. Alaskan Sen. Lisa Murkowski has publicly stated that she is not sure if she can support the president any longer. State governors are, in many cases, being praised for their leadership and others have been called out for insensitive behavior.
The act of leading people is a sometimes nebulous thing. However, it seems we all know when a leader is effective and when a leader has lost the ability to connect with a constituency. Our leadership in the Antelope Valley is no different.
[…]
It appears newly elected 25th district Congressman Mike Garcia is missing in action. A recent phone call to his Palmdale office was forwarded to an office in Santa Clarita. The person answering the phone said that the office in Palmdale is not staffed yet and all calls are being sent to Santa Clarita. However, a protest planned for Friday, was set to be held in front of his office.
What does it communicate when you are protesting in front of an office of a US congressperson and it is vacant? Frankly, there is no excuse for it. Why is a Palmdale address listed on Garcia’s website when the office is vacant? It’s hard to get help when you don’t know where to go. Given that his term is up in November, you would think he’d take this time to step up and show us who he is.
Leaders come in all types and people don’t always respond in the same ways to leadership. However, it is very clear that the phrase we keep hearing, “We’re all in this together,” is a feel-good phrase that requires leadership.
Good leadership will allow us to actually get through these times and emerge stronger. We encourage everyone to hold their leaders accountable for their actions.
We’ll praise them when they show us the way forward together, and we will hold them accountable if their actions don’t live up to our needs.
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