2:54pm | Long Beach City Councilman Robert Garcia celebrated Cinco de Mayo this year as a guest of the president and his wife in their home at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. in the nation’s Capitol.
Garcia was among a throng of prominent Latino lawmakers nationwide who received an invitation from President Barack Obama and his wife, First Lady Michelle Obama, to attend their Cinco de Mayo Reception, at the White House. The evening holiday celebration found him rubbing shoulders with the likes of Labor Secretary Hilda Solis, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chairman Charlie Gonzalez.
“I am honored to have been invited by the President and the First Lady to the White House,” Garcia said in a statement issued in the days leading up to his departure for Washington. “I am looking forward to celebrating this historic day with other Latino Americans.”
Garcia, of Peruvian descent, is the first Latino male and the youngest person ever to be elected to the Long Beach City Council.
He serves as the Council’s Federal Legislative Committee vice-chair.
No taxpayer dollars or other city funds were used to cover the costs of this trip, as Garcia was not in attendance on official city business.
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