00:00Assemblymember Tangapa.
00:03Okay.
00:05I hope you bear with me because I spent a lot of time trying to catch up,
00:09trying to read, trying to inform myself as much as possible
00:13because we've had so little time,
00:15so little time that even the presenters stated that they didn't even read the bill.
00:20And I would hope that the authors or the other co-authors on this bill,
00:27I hope they don't hold the same sentiment that the people of California
00:32don't even deserve a read on a bill.
00:35I have a few technical questions, actually.
00:40And first and foremost, I do want to say thank you to the opposition testimony.
00:45I can say this.
00:45What we've seen today is I know I'm a conservative.
00:48I know I'm a Republican.
00:50And I know that we have differences.
00:52But the maps that both of you worked on, especially in the beginning, too,
00:57did give representation.
00:58Now, I can say that I did not vote on the fair commission,
01:04mainly because I was 12 years old at the time.
01:07But I respected it.
01:08I truly respected it.
01:10And a lot of the work and the deliberation,
01:12because I was one of those kids that was overly, overly into, you know,
01:17our elected leaders.
01:18And a big portion of that is because I grew up right down the street from the Capitol,
01:22you know, in one of the poorest communities in the entire state of California,
01:27and actually one of the roughest gang-affiliated communities.
01:30And it was those gang members that actually protected me,
01:33paid for me to get into this position.
01:35And now I can proudly say,
01:36as the first Polynesian individual ever elected to the state of California,
01:41you know, it was done by an independent redistricting commission
01:43that actually believed in the efficacy of what this state can be.
01:47And there's a lot that we've heard today of testimony, you know,
01:51and we've seen a true bipartisan coalition here,
01:55just trying to protect, because California should lead the way.
01:58When other states decide to do something else, we shouldn't react to them.
02:02We should prove by example that we can do this better,
02:05that we create the foundations for the rest of the nation,
02:08because it's supposed to go as California goes the nation.
02:12That's, we've lost that.
02:13And that's what we've seen and heard today.
02:17I mean, we can't even read our own bill,
02:19but we'll decide to present it and vote on it too.
02:21That's insanity.
02:22And that's heartbreaking to the rest of Californians.
02:25Because again, I was one of those kids who just obsessed
02:28that the policymakers in this building actually cared about the people of California.
02:32But how can you say you actually care about the people of California
02:36if you didn't even read it?
02:38You know, and that breaks my heart,
02:40because I spend so much time on this.
02:42Because I'll work myself to death,
02:45trying, trying, trying to make sure.
02:48I didn't ask a question, but I just wanted to make sure.
02:51No, but you're misrepresenting what I said, Mr. Tongapa.
02:52And you're doing it over and over and over again.
02:55And I will correct the record when it's my time.
02:57Okay, Assemblymember Tongapa, let's let the Assemblymember Berman speak.
03:01But I was...
03:02No, no, go ahead.
03:04Just know that Tongapa is absolutely misrepresenting what I said over and over again.
03:08Which he needs to do to try to justify his position on this bill,
03:11and I understand that.
03:11But you stated that you supported it prior to seeing it.
03:14Is that not what you said, verbatim?
03:16What I said is that there were discussions about the concept of the bill,
03:19and I absolutely support those concepts.
03:20The bill is five pages long.
03:22I'm sorry it took you so long to read it.
03:23I'm sorry that from yesterday morning was too long for you to be able to read a five-page bill.
03:28That's all right.
03:29But we discuss, as legislators, right?
03:31We discuss concepts.
03:32We discuss ideas.
03:33We decide whether or not we're going to support things.
03:34Because this bill is attached to so many others.
03:36I understand why that's a new concept for you.
03:38That's okay.
03:38But I'm glad that you took 36 hours to read a five-page bill.
03:41It does.
03:42It does take me time.
03:43And I welcome the debate.
03:44It does take me time because I will take 36 hours to read a five-page bill
03:47for 40 million people in this state.
03:49Because they deserve it.
03:51Because they deserve it.
03:52It's five pages, Mr. Tongapa.
03:53That's okay.
03:54Okay, we're not debating the length of the time it takes to read five pages.
03:58Let's stick to the substance of the bill, please.
03:59Exactly.
04:00Thank you, Madam Chair.
04:01So, truly, I appreciate it all.
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