Ro Khanna for Congress

@RoKhannaUSA Hearing from the teachers, former school board members, parents&students about #edureform #CA17 pic.twitter.com/UqAmXjwo1M

— Sonam Jindal (@jindal_sonam) June 19, 2013

On this father's day, I am reminded of how much influence my father and my grandfather had on me.  I still remember when I was in first grade, walking around our apartment complex, with my father teaching me the multiplication tables.

 Ben Menor introduces Ro Khanna to a gathering of Milpitas voters.

Great read: @rokhannausa on tackling global warming, #KeyStoneXL, clean technology, & investing in America’s future. j.mp/1a0Xley

— 270 (@270Strategies) June 11, 2013

On Sunday June 9th, in San Jose Ro was invited to speak to West Valley for Change Democratic Club at San Jose West Valley Library.  During his presentation entitled "How to Create Jobs for the Middle Class," Ro emphasized the important role Silicon Valley has to play in the future of economic growth for the middle class.  The community members in attendance had the opportunity to ask questions about the causes they were most passionate about. Ro was asked to give his stance on citywide issues in places like Cupertino as well as environmental concerns such as the Keystone Pipeline XL.  At the end of the meeting Ro was given a round of applause by the group.

Today's job's numbers suggest that the economy is steadily improving, but we have a long way to go.  The fact that 175,000 new jobs were created should give us confidence that there is very little risk of us heading towards another recession.  Despite 175,000 new jobs, the unemployment rate inched up to 7.6%. This is largely because more individuals are entering the job market after having been discouraged for years.  It may take a while for the unemployment rate to come down because the new jobs that are being created will be offset by previously discouraged workers now entering a better job market.

You can thank a bisexual activist named Brenda Howard who chose the word #Pride and #June to honor the Stonewall riots. Happy Pride Month!

— Ro Khanna (@RoKhannaUSA) June 5, 2013

It seems like a while ago to me, but just a month ago, my friend Ro Khanna announced his bid to represent California’s 17th Congressional District. Since the day of the launch, I have been registering voters, spreading Ro’s positive message at community events and recruiting other grassroots volunteers and interns to support Ro in this critical election.

I was overjoyed when I first heard about Ro’s candidacy. But when I found out that Ro would be launching his campaign from De Anza College, there was no way I could miss the special moment. And so on a beautiful South Bay Sunday, I took my video camera out to Cupertino and joined up with a few hundred supporters from around the district to hear Ro’s vision and help set the groundwork for a winning campaign.

On Thursday, Ro was welcomed by the Rotary Club of Santa Clara as the guest speaker to talk about his book and answer questions from an audience of local community leaders.  Ro had the chance to explain his views in regards to the economy, green energy, and Congress while enjoying the company of civically engaged individuals.