Conrad Tolson
The Robson Ranch Republican Club meets monthly and always has interesting and informative speakers. For example, we recently heard from Congressman Juan Ciscomani, our Congressional District 6 (CD6) Representative.
Juan is an example of how the American dream is available to all. His family immigrated to the United States when he was a young boy and settled in Tucson, where his father worked as a bus driver to give his children a shot at the American dream. Growing up in a working-class family taught Juan the value of hard work and the importance of a can-do attitude. He attended public schools in Tucson and worked his way through college at the University of Arizona to become the first in his family to graduate from college. He was elected to represent Arizona’s new 6th Congressional District (CD) in 2022, becoming the first naturalized American citizen from Mexico elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in Arizona history.
The Congressman gave the club a brief review of his time in Congress since January. CD6 was newly created as a result of the 2020 Census and covers much of the southeastern quadrant of the state. It is approximately 1/3 Republican, 1/3 Democrat, and 1/3 Independent. There are two military installations and more than 70,000 veterans living in this district. Upon his arrival in Washington, D.C., he was fortunate to get a seat on the influential House Appropriations Committee, something normally reserved for senior members. He was also able to get on the Veterans Affairs Committee.
He said he is honored to be living the American dream, having become a U.S. citizen in 2006 and elected to Congress 16 years later.
He flies home every weekend when Congress is in session and takes the “red-eye” flight back to D.C. on Sunday night, going to work in Congress the next morning. During the week he sleeps in his D.C. office on an air mattress.
Since he has been in D.C., the Veterans Affairs Committee has tackled processing times for disability claims, which were taking over a year to process. They are also working on training programs for vets returning to civilian life.
The first bills introduced in this session of Congress by Republicans were HR1 (to lower energy costs by increasing American energy production) and HR2 (Border security). With an upcoming budget deadline, the Appropriations Committee is focused on getting spending under control. Republicans and like-minded independents are welcome to join us. Email Club President Ceil Levatino at [email protected] for meeting times and locations.