SACRAMENTO – Noting the lofty focus and collaborative spirit of first-time visits to California from past U.S. presidents like Harry S. Truman and Lyndon B. Johnson, Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today sent President Donald J. Trump a letter reminding him that “in California we are focusing on bridges, not walls” and invited him to the Central Valley – where more than a dozen bridges and viaducts are being built for the nation’s first and only High-Speed Rail line.
The full text of Governor Brown’s letter to President Trump is copied below:
March 12, 2018
The Honorable Donald J. Trump
President of the United States
The White House
Washington, D.C. 20500
Dear President Trump,
When George W. Bush first set foot in California as President, he reminded the country why the largest state in the union matters, stating: “For decades, California has been the place where the future happens first. Your continuing success is essential to the success of our national economy.”
That is as true today as it was then. And the Golden State – the sixth largest economy in the world – is thriving. California added almost 3 million jobs since the recovery began.
But our prosperity is not built on isolation. Quite the opposite. California thrives because we welcome immigrants and innovators from across the globe.
President Harry S. Truman certainly recognized this when he used his first trip to California as President to witness the signing of the charter establishing the United Nations in San Francisco on June 26, 1945. So did President Lyndon B. Johnson, who met with the President of Mexico, in February 1964 during his first stop in California as President.
You see, in California we are focusing on bridges, not walls. And that’s more than just a figure of speech.
After you’ve examined your wall prototypes on the border, I invite you to head north to the Central Valley – the heart of California. Here in cities like Fresno and Madera more than a dozen bridges and viaducts are being built for the nation’s first and only High-Speed Rail line. We are already putting 1,700 Americans to work.
You have lamented that “we don’t have one fast train” in our country. Well, Mr. President, in California we are trying to fix that. We have a world-class train system under construction. We invite you to come aboard and truly “Make America Great Again.”
Respectfully,
Edmund G. Brown Jr.
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