By Roman INGUANZO

Rep. Adam Schiff is known across the country for his work in the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and locally as a 10-term Congressman representing the foothills and surrounding area. Now Schiff seeks to utilize his political prowess in a new arena – the U.S. Senate – and has launched a campaign to replace outgoing Senator Dianne Feinstein, who has represented California for more than 30 years. The CV Weekly met with Congressman Schiff on Friday to discuss his Senate run, senatorial ambitions, policy goals and outlook on current events. 

The CV Weekly also covered the kickoff rally for Schiff’s campaign for the U.S. Senate, which was held the following day with an audience of more than 600 people in attendance. At the rally, Schiff called on all Americans to stand together and fight for a brighter future.

“Only together can we strengthen our economy and save our democracy,” he said. “Only together can we fight for a just and fair society – one that our kids can be proud of. Only together can we protect our planet and create millions of green jobs. These are the fights that really matter – for an economy that works for everyone, for a democracy we can pass on to our children and for a planet where we can live in peace.”

It appears that Congressman Schiff means business. He maintained a confident disposition that displayed his intellect and political aptitude while also speaking with passion and sincerity.

Below are excerpts from the interview. Remarks made during Schiff’s kickoff rally will follow the interview excerpts:

CVW: If elected what will you bring from your congressional history into the senate? 

The knowledge and the relationships to get things done on behalf of people in California. I worked extremely well with my colleagues to deliver funding to California for transportation, infrastructure, healthcare and unemployment compensation during the pandemic. I think it’s why Speaker Pelosi has endorsed me, as well as over 20 of my current and former House colleagues.

House members generally don’t like to choose among their colleagues, but I think their endorsements are recognition that I have a track record of getting things done that are important to Californians. California is the biggest state with one of the largest economies in the world; as a result, a senator from California has the opportunity to play an outsized role in the policy of the whole country. I think that having played a similar role in the House, it would make me an even more effective advocate for the values of Californians and the interests of our state.

CVW: California has the nation’s largest agriculture industry. Of California’s 4.4 million acre-feet of Colorado River water, almost 90% goes to agriculture; but seven states, several tribal nations and Mexico are now competing for the Colorado River’s water. What will you do to preserve and protect California farmers’ water rights?

I’m going to the Central Valley next week for 10 days and am looking forward to meeting with farmers, environmentalists and others about how we reconcile competing interests. I think that the Central Valley has some of the most acute challenges – water being foremost among them – but also higher rates of unemployment and higher rates of poverty. I look forward to learning more about how I can represent the interests of people in that consequential part of the state. I do think as an overarching matter that many of the answers involve aggressively attacking the problem of climate change. We will negotiate these competing water interests to the best of our ability among the various states dependent on water from the Colorado River. But, at the end of the day, as long as the temperature keeps rising there’s never going to be enough water.

In light of this, I’m proud of what we did with the Inflation Reduction Act – the most substantial investment we’ve made in tackling climate change in our history … but that has to be just the down payment. We need to wean ourselves off of fossil fuels, do a much better job of conservation and rapidly develop alternative and green sources of energy. Doing so is vital as an economic matter, but also as a national security matter to deprive petrol dictatorships like Russia, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela of their war-making wealth. 

I’m running for the senate on three fundamental issues: unfairness in our economy, the challenges to our democracy and the threat to our planet. Those issues – democracy, the economy and the planet – are my priorities.

CVW: How will you support scientific advancement, R&D and alternative energy as a senator?

This is absolutely a big, big part of my focus. I’ve been so proud to represent the brilliant people at Caltech and JPL. Scientists here in our backyard have played a key role in our economy and in our understanding of our place in the universe. I’m so proud that we were able to pass the CHIPS and Science Act because that will provide vital funding to make America the leader in R&D once again. We need to do a lot more where that came from.

CVW: What California issues will be your top priorities? 

Priority number one is to make sure that California’s economy works for everyone so that everyone who’s working full time can have a roof over their heads, can provide for their family, can have a safe neighborhood to raise their kids and have good schools for their kid. During the pandemic, we increased the child tax credit. We lifted 40% of the kids out of poverty in this country; millions of those kids are in California. When that expired, millions fell back into poverty. I want to see us raise that tax credit again and, more than that, I want to see a comprehensive policy to uplift working families and make life easier for middle class families. This is priority number one for me: meeting the everyday needs of Californians. 

First, I want our state to have a climate that is welcoming of small businesses and nurturing of small businesses (where so much of the job growth comes from). Anyone who’s trying to start a business should not have to overcome all kinds of obstacles to do so. 

Second, Californians are also deeply devoted to our rights and freedoms … They don’t want to see reproductive rights curtailed, they don’t want to see their right to vote restricted, they want to live in a democracy; this is very important to our state and our residents. I think many of us have never been prouder to be Californians during this dark and reactionary turn the country took over the four Trump years. 

The third priority is the planet. California led the way in the telecommunications revolution and it can lead the way in the energy revolution. I want those technologies to come out of California and I want to make sure we protect our coasts and our coastline from oil drilling. For years I’ve been working on trying to double the size of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area and I want to be the champion for open space up-and-down the state. I want to make sure that every community has access to parks and open space … that’s a real [quality of life] priority for me and for my fellow Californians.

CVW: People nowadays are asked to give away such personal information. Did you ever think you would have to fight for basic privacy protections regarding an individual’s own data? 

I would have never imagined the emergence of these circumstances. Earlier in the week, my staff sent me a video of Donald Trump attacking the transgender community … picking on the most vulnerable members of our society in order to compete with Ron DeSantis or others … It’s just shameful. DeSantis, Trump and others are willing to invade people’s privacy. They’re trying to make healthcare decisions for people, interfere with families and risk rising suicide rates among young people … it’s just despicable. I look forward to being an even more effective voice in the senate by speaking out and defending these vulnerable communities in California and elsewhere.

CVW: How do you plan to combat misinformation during your campaign?

I think by engaging with and lifting up important sources of good information, like local journalists and responsible national journalists, by continuing to push out good information as the antidote to a lot of bad information. When I was taken off the intelligence committee by Kevin McCarthy in an act of fealty to Donald Trump, Hakeem Jeffries asked me to take his place on the judiciary committee. Well, the judiciary committee under Jim Jordan is going to be a font of misinformation. It’s going to be a deep state conspiracy theory and I’ve seen my role in the committee as exposing all the falsehoods that are going to come out of Jim Jordan and his colleagues.

You know, one of the reasons why we are vulnerable as a democracy right now is because social media provide [pathways for fear, lies, anger and conspiracy theory to go viral]. I’m going to do my part to combat misinformation by pushing out good information, continuing to combat falsehood with the truth and working with good journalists who are exposing falsehoods.

CVW: You served on the House Intelligence Committee for years. Are you hoping to become a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee as well?

I would love to serve on the intelligence committee. There are some profoundly dangerous challenges facing the country – and it’s more than surveillance balloons from China, although those are concerning. Russia’s making a brutal war on its neighbor … there is a risk of the use of nuclear tactical weapons in that war. China is eyeing a potential invasion of Taiwan and Iran has continued to enrich uranium to near weapons grade. The intelligence committee sits at the center of these threats, receives information and helps policymakers make good decisions on the basis of good information. I would love to continue that work in the Senate. 

CVW: Do you think there is a greater chance for bipartisanship in the Senate than in the House right now? 

I think at this moment in time, yes, there’s more opportunity to get things done for the American people in the Senate. For the next couple of years, the House is just going to be a crazy town with the George Santoses and the Matt Gaetzes and the Marjorie Taylor Greenes calling the shots with McCarthy beholden to every one of them for his continued speakership.

Basically what the Republicans intend to do for the next two years is take our economy to the cliff with the debt ceiling, probably shut down our government and, apart from that do endless investigations of Hunter Biden’s laptop. The Senate has its own share of destructive personalities – the Josh Holleys, the Ted Cruzes and others – but there is also some important work that goes on in a bipartisan basis. So I think there’s a bigger opportunity to find common ground to get things done.

CVW: How will you set yourself apart in a Democratic primary field filled with similar candidates sharing similar ideology?

I will be running on my record of getting things done for California for my constituents. I’ll be running on the leadership I’ve demonstrated in protecting our democracy and fighting for an economy that works right now. I’m fighting against the extreme MAGA forces that are threatening the country – that’s going to be the focus of my efforts: not fighting my fellow Democrats.