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Hi there,

When you elected me to Congress, I didn't go to Washington to serve the political establishment — I went to work for the people of Orange County.

My journey to serving our nation started five years ago after the 2016 election. All of us witnessed a heated campaign where some voters, especially those in the middle, often felt they were being forced to make a decision based on personalities versus policy. And for many of us, our hearts sank when the candidate lacking all character and integrity was elected to become the next President of the United States.

While we struggled with the regret of not having elected the first woman president of our great country, we quickly put aside our disappointment and mobilized and engaged – with women here in Orange County and across our country leading the way – to make sure we took back the House in 2018 as a xxxxxx against the Trump administration. In November of that year, we saw your commitment and engagement lead us to victories across America, including the defeat of a 30-year incumbent – known as Russia’s Favorite Congressman – right here in the reddest part of Orange County, and sending me to Congress. For over 30 years, hundreds of thousands of Orange County residents lacked the representation they deserved in the halls of Congress, and you changed that.

Thanks to you and the swell of support of the now famous Blue Wave, I am very proud of what I was able to achieve in the 116th Congress:

*
Returned
over
$2
million
for
seniors,
veterans,
and
working
families.
*
During
the
coronavirus
crisis,
secured
over
$1
billion
to
support
small
businesses.
*
Served
as
the
Chair
of
the
Oversight
Subcommittee
on
Environment: *
Held
the
Trump
Administration
accountable
as
they
worked
to
attack
and
remove
common-sense
environmental
protections.
*
Oversaw
dozens
of
hearings
and
meetings
on
climate
change
and
provided
to
the
House
of
Representatives
a
comprehensive
plan
to
address
climate
change:
Findings
and
Recommendations
to
the
Biden
Administration
and
the
117th
Congress
to
Advance
Climate
Action
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.
*
Brought
to
the
forefront
of
environmental
issues
the
severe
and
growing
contamination
impact
of
PFAS
chemicals
on
our
access
to
clean
drinking
water
and
food.
*
Drafted
comprehensive
legislation
to
address
moving
spent
nuclear
fuel
sitting
in
approximately
100
communities
across
the
U.S.
including
here
at
San
Onofre.


*
Introduced
legislation
to
address
our
ever-growing
national
deficit.
*
Was
the
most
legislatively
productive
new
Member
of
Congress
and
passing
three
bills
into
law
by
reaching
across
the
aisle
and
finding
common
ground
in
a
deeply
divided
Congress.
*
Helped
elect
more
new
Democrats
to
office
in
my
district
than
anywhere
else
in
Orange
County.
*
Registered
tens
of
thousands
of
Democrats
across
the
county,
brought
vaccines
to
the
doorsteps
of
thousands
of
homes,
and
aided
residents
through
the
tough
immigration
process.

That’s the good news. Now the bad news. I witnessed first-hand as the political extremes of our nation continue to worsen, dividing our country, and moving us further away from the democratic ideals aspired to by our Founders. Politicians who cared more about making sure the other side didn’t get a “win” even if it was good for the country; manipulating science for political gains; and media hounds who care more about sound bites and raising money than actually doing the hard work of legislating.

So here we are. A country that seems to be spiraling down to a place where only the extremes are heard; where we have contempt for anyone who disagrees with us; where there is less and less of a place for moderates to serve. And unfortunately, that is the outcome for me.

While I do believe I would represent my district best, I am also pragmatic. I have no interest in running against a Democratic incumbent who has decided to run in this district. I have no interest in running in a different district where I’ve never had the honor to represent the vast majority of constituents – and who I believe can be best served by someone who knows them, knows their communities, knows their struggles, and knows their aspirations.

To that end, I am officially suspending my campaign for Congress.

Until I am called upon to serve my country again, I will focus on other ways to help. Towards that end, I have established the Join Together PAC to support candidates up and down the ballot who are committed to common sense values. Because I have never lost sight of the core democratic truth that our representatives are elected to serve the people — not their own egos, their party, corporate donors, or special interests. We need leaders who are willing to put country and community over party. Our nation cannot endure under the rule of leaders incapable of putting patriotism over personal political aspirations.

I want to thank the thousands of volunteers who powered our campaign and made our many accomplishments possible. Our community, country, and I, owe you an irredeemable debt of gratitude for your advocacy and activism. And to my team, during all the election cycles, and to my amazing district office and DC staff: Thank you. You represent the best of what our country can be. And to our campaign team, thank you for your commitment and leadership. We would have flipped this seat.

Most importantly, I want to thank Kaira, Dylan, Avery, Trace, and Shea. The hardships family members endure when a loved one is campaigning and in office are difficult to say the least – including threats of violence and death. I never imagined when I decided to run for office that I would need armed guards when speaking at town-halls, nor that I would own a bullet-proof vest. That unfortunately is where the division and extremism has taken our country.

It has been the great honor of my life to serve Orange County’s Coastal congressional district. And, as I move on to another new chapter in my life, I would like to leave you with a few quotes to remind all of us to fight on for the greater good:

“Ours is not the struggle of one day, one week, or one year. Ours is not the struggle of one judicial appointment or presidential term. Ours is the struggle of a lifetime, or maybe even many lifetimes, and each one of us in every generation must do our part.”

Representative John Lewis

John Lewis was larger than life. Having the opportunity to serve with him and travel with my entire family and John to his last pilgrimage to Selma will always be one of the most poignant and meaningful moments of my life. No one has fought harder to make sure every voter can vote, and every vote is counted. Since being elected, I have kept a picture of John on a shelf behind my desk to remind me that the path forward will be difficult, and all of us must remember, “if not us, whom? If not now, when?”

“ Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children’s children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.”

Ronald Reagan

I’ve never been more concerned for our democracy as we continue to see the Big Lie embraced by those who care more about power rather than doing their patriotic duty and fighting for our country. We are rapidly slipping towards authoritarianism and fascism and, if we don’t reverse course soon, I fear our great democratic experiment may be in jeopardy.

Finally, no one was as succinct with words than Mark Twain, whose words ring truer now due to the omnipresence of social media.

“Never argue with stupid people, they will drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience .”

Mark Twain

As we enter the New Year, let’s make a collective resolution in service of our democracy. I commit to you, my supporters, that I will continue to reach out and share candidates you should support and actions we can take to protect and heal our great nation.

— Harley

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Harley Rouda served California's 48th district in Congress. In 2018, Harley defeated the 30-year incumbent Dana Rohrabacher in the very first political campaign of Harley's life. During his time in Congress, he's embraced common sense and values to tackle climate change, address deteriorating infrastructure, confront homelessness, and protect Social Security and Medicare. In 2022, Harley will be facing one of the toughest fights in the entire country, so he's depending on the support of grassroots individuals. If you want to support Harley's re-election, you can donate here [[link removed]] . If you'd like to no longer receive emails from his campaign, you can unsubscribe [[link removed]] .

Paid for by Harley Rouda for Congress

Harley Rouda for Congress
120 Newport Center Drive
Office 28
Newport Beach, CA 92660
United States

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