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CHC Roundup: Rep. Sylvia Garcia (TX-29) - A Dedicated Public Servant for Houston [1]
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Date: 2025-04-26
Rep. Sylvia Garcia has faced long odds before in her life. No effort she has championed faces longer odds now in the Trump regime than her efforts at passing comprehensive immigration reform. Yet she persists in pushing for her bipartisan legislation known as the American Dream and Promise Act.
Amidst those developments, Garcia said she will re-introduce the American Dream and Promise Act. The act was originally introduced in 2021 and refiled in 2023, and the bill failed to pass both times. The proposed law would provide conditional permanent resident status for 10 years to a qualifying individual who entered the United States as a minor. The bill would help people who fit this criteria who are deportable or inadmissible, have deferred enforced departure or temporary protected status, or those who are the child of “certain classes of non immigrants.” “[Immigration reform] is a problem the Republicans like to keep at the forefront,” Garcia said. “They don’t want a solution because it helps them with their politics. We want to talk about solutions. We are not about grandstanding.”
Instead, she has to make impassioned speeches stating a moral case for protecting DACA recipients from the Trump regime.
Also, her constituents need town halls that clearly define their rights in this country even as those rights are being shredded.
Dozens of community members, organizers and local officials filled an auditorium at the Houston Community College Northline campus this week for a “Know Your Rights” town hall. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has arrested thousands of people nationwide since President Donald Trump was inaugurated Jan. 20, according to the federal agency. ICE says it’s been arresting people who are in the U.S. without legal status through targeted enforcement operations, calling them “planned arrests of known criminal aliens who threaten national security or public safety.” In a recent White House press briefing, the Trump administration confirmed its considers all immigrants without legal status to be criminals. U.S. Rep. Sylvia Garcia, a Democrat who represents a large part of east Houston, hosted the town hall on Wednesday. She said immigration enforcement from the Trump administration has gone beyond targeted efforts. “He’s also targeting many undocumented immigrants who do not have a criminal record and have been in our country for years,” Garcia said. Speakers at the town hall provided general information that people without legal status may need, ranging from immigration policies at schools and hospitals to information about what to do if a family member is arrested.
Rep. Sylvia Garcia is a dedicated public servant from Houston. But who is this Texas native of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus? What are her priorities? What legislation has she sponsored or co-sponsored? Join me in learning about Rep. Sylvia Garcia below the fold!
Personal History
Rep. Sylvia Garcia came from humble beginnings and made it to Congress like so many others.
Rep. Sylvia Garcia was born on September 6, 1950 in the small town of San Diego, Texas. She grew up in sparsely populated Jim Wells County in southern Texas on a farm. From these humble beginnings, Garcia would eventually become the first Latina (though she doesn’t like that term) to represent Texas.
Well, bio is probably easiest. I, I was born in San Diego, which is Duval County. And I was born in my aunt’s house and delivered by a midwife with... I think one doctor in the county came by to verify that I was a girl and signed the birth certificate. Then, you know, I was taken to the ranch the next day. It’s a farming community. It’s called . It’s , (a little farming community), as you would say. And there’s never been more than a hundred people in that, that, that, that little town. My father was Rick García. He was one of eleven. And my mother was Antonia Rodriguez. And she was, she was from San Diego, which is why I was born at my aunt’s house there. And my father was a farmer all his life. He probably would think, I think he finished the second grade. He may have actually entered the third. We’re not sure because he, all he ever did was work on the farm where he spoke no English or read or, or, or, you know... He was completely illiterate in English, but he always spoke Spanish. He couldn’t read or write Spanish either. And so, we grew up speaking Spanish. My mother, I think, finished the fifth grade, which she taught herself to read and was an avid reader. Luckily we, all my little, you know, paperbacks after I got through with them, I always took them home. And I am one of ten children. There are five boys and five girls. We all grew up on the farm. And we had to do chores and, you know, all that. All, all our lives was really the farm and, and going to church on Sunday. And they, you know, a little bitty church that they’d have one Mass on Sunday at nine o’clock either then or you miss it.. A priest from San Diego will come to do that Mass. And school activities. And ever since, you know, I was this tall.... The only thing we were told was that we had to go to school. I mean, my brothers would get up at five in the morning, go milk the cows, and then, they still had to come in and clean up and walk to the end of the road to catch the bus. I mean, we were all expected to do things in the morning. But they always made us get up and make sure that we’d go to school. Because they both, particularly my mother, always figured that was the only way we’d get out of having to do the farm work. So, we were told from an early age that you had to go to school and work hard and believe in God. And that we would be rewarded. All of us finished. All ten of us. And my mother got a certificate when the youngest brother finished. We were like the largest family in that town.
Rep. Sylvia Garcia was part of that first generation to graduate high school in her large family. She would go on to Texas Women’s University on a scholarship and start a career as a social worker. She would eventually return to school at Texas Southern University and get a JD degree and start practicing law.
Garcia moved to the growing Houston metropolitan area and eventually work her way up through the judicial ranks. In the 1980s, she served as the presiding judge of the Houston municipal system. This was only the start of her service to the city of Houston.
Commissioner Sylvia R. Garcia was elected to Harris County Commissioner's Court in November 2002. The first Hispanic and first woman to be elected in her own right to the office, Garcia replaced Commissioner Jim Fonteno who served nearly 30 years on the Court. Prior to her election, Commissioner Garcia served as Controller for the City of Houston where she earned a reputation as the taxpayers' watchdog who fought to protect people's pocketbooks. Garcia also served as Director and Presiding Judge of the Houston Municipal System for an unprecedented five terms under two mayors.
Her service received the Edward Roybal award in 2019 and her career was summarized as such:
García was recognized as a trailblazer herself; before coming to Congress, García served in the Texas state senate and was the first Latina elected to the Harris County Commissioners Court, the main governing body for the county, which includes Houston. She also served as a presiding municipal judge and as a city controller in Houston.
She served in these critical roles until 2010, when the red wave election ousted her from the Harris County Commissioners Court.
Rep. Sylvia Garcia would later run for office in 2013 for a vacant seat in the Texas State Senate. This wasn’t her first run for a legislative position. When the 29th district of Texas was created in 1992, she ran a distant 3rd in the busy Democratic primary for the new district. She would eventually replace the winner, former Rep. Gene Green, in Congress.
Anyways, she ran for the vacant 6th district in the Texas State Senate and won the runoff in the busy special election. After she was sworn in, Garcia went on to serve on the Criminal Justice, Intergovernmental Relations, Natural Resources and Economic Development, and Transportation committees. She ran unopposed in 2016 for a full term.
When former Rep. Gene Green retired in 2018, Garcia was seen as his natural successor. This was solidified when Green endorsed her in the busy seven-way primary, stating that “she's a legislator, and that's what a member of Congress should be.” After winning the primary election with 63% of the vote, she was easily elected to Congress as the 29th district is a solidly blue district and the Democratic primary is tantamount to election here.
Rep. Sylvia Garcia came to Washington, DC to continue her record of public service for the city of Houston.
Issue Positions and Work in Congress
Rep. Sylvia Garcia was an impeachment manager for the first Trump impeachment.
If you want a progressive record right now, it would be difficult to eclipse Rep. Sylvia Garcia. She has a DW Nominate score of -0.781 for the 119th Congress, which makes her the most liberal member of Congress based on her voting record. Progressive Punch rates her fairly highly (but not the highest) as well, with a 94% lifetime score and an A- rating. However, it does note that for the current Congress she has one of the highest scores. There’s not much room for debate — Rep. Sylvia Garcia has an impressive record!
Rep. Sylvia Garcia surprisingly has been the primary sponsor of only one piece of legislation that has become law. That can be chalked down to only having one Congress (the 117th) where the House, Senate, and Presidency all were controlled by the Democrats. For the 119th Congress, Garcia has sponsored 5 pieces of legislation or resolutions and co-sponsored 87 other pieces of legislation or resolutions.
As covered in the opening, her signature piece of legislation is the American Dream and Promise Act which would overhaul our antiquated immigration system. That’s not the only legislative effort that she is known for as her campaign website touts many accomplishments. I found it interesting that the very first one she lists is the “I Am Vanessa Guillen Act” which overhauled the Military Code of Justice.
Perhaps her most important work in the House came in 2020 when she served as one of the House impeachment managers in front of the Senate. This was for the 1st impeachment of President Trump 1.0.
The job of the impeachment managers in a Senate trial is to lay out the House approved arguments for removing the president from office. The president’s lawyers will argue the opposing point, and the Senate will ultimately vote on whether to remove Trump from office. In that sense, the task of the impeachment managers resembles that of a prosecutor in a civil trial, although the rules and procedures for an impeachment trial are completely different.
Her experience as both a judge and as a legislator gives her an excellent perch on both the Judiciary Committee and the Committee for Financial Services for detailed and sharp questioning. Her most viral video features her derailing a “Weaponization” hearing two years ago where she totally dragged Matt Taibbi about the so-called “Twitter files”.
Another instance of her standing up to the hyperpartisan GOP Rep. Gym Jordan came last year at another “Weaponization” hearing. She once again clashed with a star witness and discredited him before Congress.
Although 74 years old, Rep. Sylvia Garcia is still spry and can hold her own in the political arena. She is still the same dedicated public servant for Houston that she was back in the 1980s when she started!
x Happy Friday—it’s time for my #WeeklyUpdate! This week, I’ve been on the ground in the district, fighting to protect our community and defend the benefits our seniors have spent a lifetime earning. I’ll always stand up for TX-29. pic.twitter.com/hY7JOnIQwf — Rep. Sylvia Garcia (@RepSylviaGarcia) April 25, 2025
Congressional Chronicle: Week of April 21, 2025
The latest on Capitol Hill when it comes to the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.
Congress is adjourned (except for pro forma sessions) for the week of April 14 and the week of April 21. That means that the CHC is busy holding town halls in their districts and attending to other district matters.
April 19/20
x Yesterday I heard from veterans across Northern Arizona and Flagstaff. They’re scared of the uncertainty. They’re done with Elon Musk and his DOGE boys firing their friends and gutting the services they earned. I’ll keep fighting this anti-veteran administration every step of the way.
[image or embed] — Senator Ruben Gallego (@gallego.senate.gov) April 19, 2025 at 6:11 PM
x Join me for a town hall in San Antonio, Texas
https://t.co/JfuXPdf8jz — Congressman Greg Casar (@RepCasar) April 19, 2025
April 21
No notable events took place today.
April 22
x
https://t.co/iIrlH9FbtD — Senator Ben Ray Luján (@SenatorLujan) April 23, 2025
x Thank you to @joaquincastrotx.bsky.social for joining me at our town hall to hear directly from seniors about the fight to protect their benefits. The fear is real — people rely on Social Security, Medicare, and SNAP for food, medicine, and basic needs. We won’t let Trump take that away.
[image or embed] — Rep. Sylvia Garcia (@sylviagarcia.house.gov) April 22, 2025 at 1:46 PM
x It was great to join @sylviagarcia.house.gov in East Aldine for a town hall to discuss the journey ahead to protect Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, SNAP, and other benefits for our seniors. Thank you for joining us and sharing your stories.
[image or embed] — Joaquin Castro (@joaquincastrotx.bsky.social) April 22, 2025 at 2:49 PM
x What an incredible town hall tour. This past week, I had the honor of meeting hundreds of you from across the district. From #BeaumontCA to #IndioCA to #ElCentroCA, thank you for showing up with energy and heart. The work continues, and I’m proud to keep fighting for you in Congress.
[image or embed] — Congressman Raul Ruiz, MD (@repraulruizmd.bsky.social) April 22, 2025 at 8:14 PM
April 23
x Held a productive Town Hall with Inland Empire seniors to hear directly from them about their concerns and priorities, share updates about how I’m fighting to protect Social Security and Medi-Cal and lower the cost of living.
[image or embed] — Rep. Pete Aguilar (@reppeteaguilar.bsky.social) April 23, 2025 at 8:00 PM
April 24
x Frost: And if you're here and you voted for trump in the past, my message is simple. I'm sorry you were lied to, but welcome to the team.
[image or embed] — Acyn (@acyn.bsky.social) April 24, 2025 at 8:42 PM
April 25
x Thank you to everyone who joined us in Berwyn for a town hall, and a special thanks to Representatives Rashid and Senator Porfirio for the invitation and steadfast leadership.
[image or embed] — Rep. Chuy García (@chuygarcia.house.gov) April 25, 2025 at 1:38 PM
x I had a community meeting with senior citizens in Pelham Parkway, answering questions about democracy, the economy, and the social safety net—especially Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare.
[image or embed] — Ritchie Torres (@ritchietorres.bsky.social) April 25, 2025 at 4:29 PM
x Thank you to everyone who joined me, @repbonamici.bsky.social, & @whipkclark.bsky.social at our seniors town hall in #Beaverton. We’re going to keep fighting back against President Trump’s attacks on Social Security, Medicare, and other critical benefits that Oregon seniors have earned and deserve.
[image or embed] — Congresswoman Andrea Salinas (@salinas.house.gov) April 25, 2025 at 4:51 PM
x Great town hall last night in Jersey City with @newjerseyoag.bsky.social. Always enjoy getting to engage with our neighbors and share the work we’re doing both here and in DC. Thanks to everyone who came out and made their voices heard. We are in this fight - together.
[image or embed] — Rep. Rob Menendez (@menendez.house.gov) April 25, 2025 at 7:50 PM
April 26/27 and Beyond
x Join me for a town hall this Saturday at 11 am! I will be holding a town hall focused on fighting back against the Trump/Musk agenda, including the Administration’s anti-immigrant agenda and its attempts to rip away your healthcare! RSVP required: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
[image or embed] — Rep. Luz Rivas (@repluzrivas.bsky.social) April 22, 2025 at 7:44 PM
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