Doris Matsui

Matsui was born Doris Okada in the Poston War Relocation Center internment camp in Poston, Arizona, and grew up in Dinuba, in California's Central Valley. While attending the University of California, Berkeley, where she earned a B.A. in psychology, she met her husband. They had one child, Brian. Doris Matsui was a volunteer on Bill Clinton's 1992 presidential campaign. When he was elected, she served on his transition team. After his inauguration, Matsui was appointed deputy special assistant to the president and deputy director of public liaison, working under Alexis Herman. One of her duties was to work with the Asian American community. She served in the White House from 1993 to 1998. Clinton appointed Matsui to the board of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in September 2000. Later, she became a lobbyist in Washington, representing corporate clients until 2005, when she decided to run for Congress against a field of local Democrats. ==U.S. House of Representatives==

Tenure in Denver, Colorado, in her capacity as convention parliamentarian. Matsui's husband, Representative Bob Matsui, died from complications of myelodysplastic syndrome on , two months after being elected to a 14th term in what was then the 5th district. On January 9, 2005, the day after his funeral, Matsui told supporters she was running for his open seat. In the special election on March 8, 2005, she garnered 68% of the vote and was sworn in for the balance of her husband's term. Press reports said that Matsui won the election before the polls opened, as most votes in the election were absentee ballots, which she won overwhelmingly. Matsui was elected to a full term in 2006 and has been reelected eight more times without serious difficulty. The 7th is the most Democratic district in interior California; it and its predecessors have been in Democratic hands without interruption since 1953. Matsui voted with President Joe Biden's stated position 100% of the time in the 117th Congress, according to a FiveThirtyEight analysis. Women's rights Matsui is pro-choice and received an endorsement from NARAL. She supports federal health funding that includes abortion funding. Matsui has advocated for access to reproductive health care by funding contraception programs and making them readily available. She supports emergency contraceptive capabilities in hospitals for rape victims. Matsui opposes restricting minors from traveling across state borders for abortion procedures. She has voted to continue stem cell research. On March 8, 2021, on the second anniversary of the U.S. women's national soccer team's pay discrimination lawsuit, Matsui and Rosa DeLauro introduced the Give Our Athletes Level Salaries (GOALS) Act, to ensure the U.S. women's national soccer team was "paid fair and equitable wages compared to the U.S. Men's team". The GOALS Act threatens to cut federal funding for the 2026 World Cup if the U.S. Soccer Federation does not comply. Technology As Ranking Member of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Communications and Technology, Matsui has been recognized for her leadership on issues related to technology and innovation. She chairs the Congressional Spectrum Caucus and has worked to promote the deployment of next-generation wireless technologies, stressing the importance of maintaining a healthy spectrum pipeline. Matsui has worked on policies that support access to reliable, affordable, high-speed broadband for families and students, and authored legislation to close the divide on digital equity and access. Energy and the environment Matsui is a member of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce and co-chairs the Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition (SEEC). Matsui supports American energy independence and desires that the U.S. run on at least 25% renewable energy by 2025. Matsui opposes the expansion of oil production, offshore drilling, and subsidies for oil and gas exploration. She voted to provide tax subsidies for investment in renewable, alternative sources of energy. She has opposed many attempts to repeal, reduce, or privatize Medicare or Medicaid. In addition, Matsui has sought to expand medical coverage to children and the mentally ill. She voted against patients being denied treatment for non-emergency issues without a Medicare copay. • Committee on Energy and Commerce • Subcommittee on Communications and Technology (Ranking Member) • Subcommittee on Energy Caucuses and other memberships • Junior League of Sacramento, CA • Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus • Congressional Wildlife Refuge Caucus • Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition (SEEC), Co-Chair • Congressional Food Allergy Research Caucus, Co-Chair • Rare Disease Caucus, Co-Chair • Congressional High-Tech Caucus, Co-Chair • Congressional Spectrum Caucus, Co-Chair • National Service Congressional Caucus, Co-Chair • Congressional Caucus to Cure Blood Cancers and Other Blood Disorders, Co-Chair • House Democratic Caucus Task Force on Aging and Families, Co-Chair • Smithsonian Board of Regents • Congressional Mental Health Caucus • Democratic Women's Caucus • Congressional Equality Caucus • Gun Violence Prevention Task Force ==Electoral history==

Matsui has one son. She has two grandchildren. ==See also==