The reviews are in: Debate sponsor Politico says Katie Porter was "the night’s most relentless debater" and "did herself the most favors with her showing" in this week's US Senate debate in California. More from Politico:

"From start to finish, Porter pinned blame on corporations for seemingly all that ills Washington, drawing little pushback from the two other Democrats on stage. But equally in her crosshairs was what she described as an ineffective, clubby culture in Washington over the years."

 Republican Steve Garvey did not fare nearly as well, as the headlines make clear:

San Francisco Chronicle: Describing Garvey’s debate performance as deer in the headlights is a disservice to deer in headlights

LA Times: Steve Garvey stands out in California Senate debate. Not in a good way.

Can you donate right now to Katie Porter’s campaign so she can build on this momentum? She must finish in the top 2 in the March 5 primary to move forward to the general election in November and polls show a tight race.

Katie Porter was undebatably the big winner in the California Senate debate this week -- a view that’s reflected in press coverage across the country:

Los Angeles Times: "Porter homed in on the longtime political careers of Lee and Schiff, asserting that they accomplished little during their time in office — particularly when it came to passing healthcare reform and addressing the lack of affordable housing in California…Porter lashed out at Schiff for listing abortion rights as an accomplishment on his campaign website in a post-Roe vs. Wade era, when millions of Americans have lost access to abortion services. 'As a mother of a young daughter, I do not feel like abortion rights have been accomplished,' Porter said."

San Francisco Chronicle: "Porter unsheathed a zinger after Garvey’s non-answer that sounded like it was well-rehearsed. 'Once a dodger, always a dodger,' Porter said…She tried to distinguish herself from Lee and Schiff—who have each spent more than two decades in Congress and time before that in the Legislature—as career politicians who haven’t gotten things done…Porter singled out Schiff for all of the 'dirty money' she said he has raised in the past from oil companies and other corporate players. 'He may have prosecuted big oil companies before he came to Congress, but when he got to Congress, he cashed checks from companies like BP,' Porter said."

LA Times columnist Mark Barabak: "A vociferous Rep. Katie Porter pressed her case as a scourge of corporate interests who wants to shake up Washington and is not one of those promise-much, achieve-little career politicians. (Like Schiff and Lee, she averred, each with more than 20 years in Congress. Porter was elected in 2018.)"

Fox 11: "Rep. Katie Porter said affordable housing is her top priority and said the problem comes from Washington... from career politicians who write housing policy. 'What we need is housing policy that works for us, housing policy that is centered on our needs. We need more housing for our seniors, for people with disabilities, and for young people. And we are not going to get there if we let Wall Street write our housing policy,' Porter said."

SF Chronicle columnist Jack Ohman: "Katie Porter had one of the few official Lines of the Night when she kneecapped Garvey with 'once a Dodger, always a Dodger,' after one of Garvey’s sad, discursive, off-point observations…Porter turned in a creditable, if at times testy, performance…Porter was probably technically the most effective of the four in distilling her arguments."

Cal Matters: "In addition to railing against Wall Street and the Washington establishment, Porter slammed Rep. Adam Schiff for taking money from special interest groups. As the lone opponent of earmarks among the three Democrats, Porter argued that the practice invited corruption and is a 'fancy word for Washington politicians substituting their personal interests… for what our needs are.'"

New York Times: "Seeking to carve out a liberal middle lane, Ms. Porter, a minivan-driving Orange County mother of three and former law professor, leaned on her image as a kitchen table wonk — an everywoman who sees clearly how government, for better and worse, affects Californians. She took issue with Ms. Lee, vowing to end the practice of returning money to constituents through earmarks. She jabbed at Mr. Schiff, who is leading in fund-raising and polls, declaring: 'I am the only elected official on this stage who has never taken corporate PAC money.'"

NBC News: "Porter tried to carve out an economic-populist identity, calling herself a consumer advocate who 'took on greedy corporations.' She vowed to 'stand up to corporate power' and work to 'address income inequality and wealth inequality' if elected. Porter said 'special interests have too much power' and 'we as Californians — we don’t have enough,' adding that she wants to ban earmarks — the congressional practice of inserting spending measures to benefit particular recipients into bills — and stock trading for members of Congress."

Katie recently emailed PCCC members, saying, "The PCCC has been one of my strongest partners since my very first campaign for Congress." Now, she needs our support more than ever.

The very reason Katie Porter can make a strong case none of the other candidates can make about standing up to corporate power and fighting corruption – being the only candidate in the race who has never taken corporate PAC money and who is rejecting federal lobbyist money – means that her campaign depends on grassroots donations.

Donate to Katie’s campaign today to make sure Katie has the resources to push forward!

Thanks for being a bold progressive.

– The PCCC Elections Team

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