Stonier to host telephone town hall tonight

Residents of the 17th legislative district are invited to participate in Rep. Monica Stonier’s (D-Vancouver) live telephone town hall at 6 p.m. tonight. The conversation will focus on issues currently before the state Legislature, including education, transportation, jobs, and the economy.

17th-district residents should receive a call at about 6 p.m. tonight. Those wishing to participate can simply pick up the phone and follow the prompts. Stonier will deliver a short opening statement followed by a Q&A session until the town hall concludes at 7 p.m.

Constituents who don’t receive a call can still take part by calling 1-877-229-8493 between 6 and 7 p.m. and entering 18646 when prompted.

Pausing to remember

On February 19, 1942, US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066. With that penstroke, three generations of Japanese-Americans had their lives changed forever. Children, parents and grandparents -- the majority of them American citizens -- were removed from their West Coast homes and forced into what were then called "War Relocation Camps."  Today they are more-widley known as interment camps.



The 442nd Regimental Combat Team hiking
up a muddy French road in late 1944.

Whatever you call them, the camps became de facto prisons for more than 110,000 legal residents of the United States for nearly three years during World War II.

Today, the House of Representatives took a few minutes to remember this injustice, and also to honor our Nisei Veterans.  The 442nd Infantry Regiment was almost entirely made up of  Japanese-American soldiers - and was the highest-decorated regiment in the history of the U.S. Army and was involved in liberating prisoners at Dachau and saving the famous "lost battalion" from Texas. 14,000 volunteers served their country with uncommon distinction, even though their families were being detained in the relocation camps back home.

Rep. Sharon Tomiko Santos and Rep. Monica Stonier both had family members in the camps, and spoke on the House floor today.  Here is an excerpt from  Rep. Stonier's speech:

"He [her great-grandfather] had 11 children to gather and calm when Exec. Order 9066 came. Four of his sons, at a time when their government failed them, put on the same uniforms of those who kept their family behind fences, and stepped forward, like the others from the 442nd in the galleries today.

When most families would have likely been fighting their interment and would have been fighting to get their rights back, many people – like my uncles, persistently showed their love for our country.

Mr. Speaker, this is the day we remember what can happen, even in a country as great as ours, when fear drives our actions."

Read this story in Spanish.

Meet the new member: Rep. Monica Stonier

Continuing with our "Meet the new member" series, we sat down with Rep. Monica Stonier this week. Monica was elected to the House of Representatives Pos. 1 seat last November, which was vacated by former representative Tim Probst.

Monica is a wife of 11 years, mother of two young children, and an educator at Pacific Middle School in Vancouver.

Borrowing from a great bit by James Lipton, we asked Monica ten questions that she'll likely never be asked again in a political setting.

What is your favorite word/phrase? Resonate

What is your least favorite word/phrase? "No offense, but…"

If you could spend 30 minutes with any famous person from history, who would that be? Billie Holiday

If we looked at your iPod, which song would have the most plays? The Ghost of Johnny Cash by Shawn Mullins

What song is your guilty pleasure? Bust A Move by Young MC

Who is your favorite TV character and why? Frasier Crane because he's quirky and internally conflicted

What job would you be doing if you weren't in politics or education? Probably running a community youth center

Which world leader do you admire most? Abraham Lincoln because he was a moderate in a swing state who put doing what was right before politics

In five words or less, how do you want to be remembered? Someone who makes hours count

After a few weeks as a lawmaker, name one part of this job that was completely unexpected? The incredibly high caliber of staff

Read this story in Spanish.

“I’m in for a whirlwind for sure”

Rep.-elect Monica Stonier

Truer words were never spoken by a freshman lawmaker. That statement was from Rep.-elect Monica Stonier of Vancouver on this week’s edition of TVW’s The Impact.

House Democrats are welcoming nine new members – and one returning member - to our caucus to kick off the 2013 legislative session next week. Check out the video below to see what it’s like for a new lawmaker to get ready for the whirlwind that is the legislative session in Olympia.

You can also hear Rep.-elect Stonier in this week’s edition of the HDC Capitol Ideas podcast.