Region : Local Politicians on Display

Their appearances didn’t make the major commercial networks, but Diamond Bar Mayor Jay Kim and supervisorial aide Sarah Flores of Glendora did have moments in the spotlight at the Republican National Convention on Monday.

Those watching the stick-to-the-podium coverage on C-Span saw Kim and Flores deliver three-minute speeches.

Kim, the Republican nominee in the 41st Congressional District, described how as an immigrant from Korea he worked his way up from dishwasher to business owner. He said he is “proof that the American dream can come true.”

Using a theme he emphasized in his primary campaign, he said that government should be run like a business. “I can tell you when times get tough, I don’t raise prices; I cut expenses. That’s what the government needs to do.”

Flores, deputy to Supervisor Mike Antonovich, used her time to bash the Democratic Party. She said Republicans “sincerely believe in equality of opportunity, offering a hand up, not a handout,” while Democrats are still supporting failed welfare policies that “fostered dependency, destroyed neighborhoods and drove families apart.”