U.S. Senator Kamala Harris (D) California
Before friends and family in a packed chamber, Kamala Harris was sworn in as California’s newest U.S. senator Tuesday morning. She became the first black woman the Golden State has sent to the Senate and the first Indian American to ever serve in the body.
Lives in: Los Angeles Born: Oct. 20, 1964, in Oakland Religion: Baptist Marital status: married to Douglas Emhoff Education: Howard U., economics B.A. 1986; UC Hastings, J.D. 1989 Career: County deputy district attorney Political history: San Francisco city attorney, 1998-2003; San Francisco district attorney, 2004-11; attorney general, 2011-present
California’s first new U.S. senator in 24 years is also the first Indian American to serve in the Senate, and the first black person the state has sent to the chamber. Those are the latest in a series of firsts for Harris, who was also the first woman elected as San Francisco’s district attorney and the first woman elected as California’s attorney general.
Harris’ time as attorney general included forcing several big banks to cough up $20 billion in mortgage relief, defending same-sex marriage and reducing repeat offenses among drug offenders. She has said she wants to focus on modernizing the country’s criminal justice system and civil rights, as well as protecting the environment and addressing California’s water needs.
Harris has planted an early flag as an immigration foil to President-elect Donald Trump, saying shortly after the election that she will do everything in her power to protect immigrants, including those in the country illegally, from the incoming president’s promise to deport millions of people.
Harris, 52, a Democrat from Los Angeles, was sworn in by Vice President Joe Biden shortly after 9 a.m. PT as Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and her new Senate colleagues looked on. Harris’ husband, Los Angeles attorney Doug Emhoff, her stepchildren, brother-in-law Tony West, sister Maya Harris, extended family as well as several state officials from across the country who traveled to celebrate with the now former state attorney general watched from the gallery.
“Whatever advice she wants, all she has to do is ask,” Feinstein said. “I have said to her that I would like to have a close relationship.”
Feinstein and Harris met repeatedly in the weeks since the election, with Feinstein sharing advice on how to set up the largest Senate office in the country, including how to deal with the up to 100,000 emails, letters and phone calls that can come into a California senator’s office in a given week.
Harris, one of seven new senators, replaces Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer, who retired after 24 years in the Senate.
Source : https://goodblacknews.org/2017/01/03/kamala-harris-sworn-in-as-californias-1st-black-u-s-senator-and-1st-indian-american-senator-la-times/
http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-pol-ca-california-new- members-20161116-story.html
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