Friends - a quick note before the week gets hectic.

Thank you SO much for stepping up last week with so many donations to the National Network of Abortion Funds. I’m blown away by this group’s generosity, and I’m humbled by your willingness to give whatever you can, whenever you can.

Aside from celebrating my 34th birthday (with help from all of you!), I spent last week thinking about a few current priorities:

- My new SAFER Health Act, which would prohibit doctors from disclosing health information relating to pregnancy loss or termination without patient consent.
- The severe housing crisis we’re seeing in San Diego and around the country, particularly the scarcity of housing that’s affordable for our veteran community.
- Solutions for child care - too many parents are faced with either taking on extra work to afford it, or leaving the workforce to do it themselves.

As you read this, I’m guessing some of you may be thinking: That’s all important to think about, but what is she going to DO about any of it in a GOP-led House? It’s a fair question, and I’ll be honest with you - it will be tougher to get things done in the minority.

But a lot of the work I did last term was accomplished by reaching across the aisle, and that’s exactly what I’m going to do again this year. There are Republican members who care about data privacy. There are Republican members who care about military housing and the way we treat our servicemembers. There are real opportunities to get things done and make progress - maybe not overnight, and maybe not without some hard work and tough compromises, but I’m committed to finding a path.

I heard someone pose this rhetorical question recently: “If you had a flat tire, would you get out and slash your three remaining tires, or would you replace the flat and get back on the road?”

Sure, we’re facing a pretty brutal flat tire right now in the House - and it’s one that we can’t replace until 2024. But there are also 212 Democratic members who were elected to get things done for our districts and our country, and we’re not going to sit around slashing our other three tires - we’re going to get to work.

Thanks for reading!
-Sara

Congresswoman Sara Jacobs
California’s 51st District