Passion, it seems, is more the province of activist Kelly Hayes-Raitt, who sent an e-mail to supporters today asking them to join her at hearings tonight and Wednesday on BHP Billiton's proposed Cabrillo Port liquefied natural gas terminal off the coast of Oxnard and Malibu. Hayes-Raitt says it's time to "send the mega-multinationals packing… When I fought offshore drilling as Lt. Gov. Leo McCarthy's statewide environmental representative, we beat the oil industry in our state's longest public hearing in history. We won then; we'll win now." In her e-mail, she compares the LNG industry to Enron before that energy company was "exposed for manipulating the market, creating false shortages and gouging customers."

I just leafed through the 22-page chapter on the environment in [her opponent's] book. Twice. It could be I'm missing something, but I don't see a word about liquefied natural gas.

In addition to endorsements and money, there is another factor to consider: energy. A labor official in Sacramento, assessing the race, told me the sense of many observers is that while [Kelly's opponent] is amassing the endorsements, civic activist Kelly Hayes-Raitt of Santa Monica might be working harder than the others.

Hayes-Raitt also picked up the endorsement of the Sierra Club, a significant addition to the résumé of any candidate in a district that includes 50 miles of coastline and the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area.

After 25 years of fighting the oil and gas industries, I'm tired of talking about energy conservation. It's time we talk about energy independence from the oil and gas industries. California has the brains, resources and sunshine to declare that independence. Let's put a solar panel on every roof in our state.

Politics is a dirty business. Fighting the battle to put good people into office is a tough job. I say this from the personal experience of having spent the last two weeks trying to get people to come to my home and meet Kelly Hayes-Raitt, a democrat to represent Santa Monica in the Assembly.

Hayes-Raitt is an open book. She's lived her life, and her career, in such a way that she has wonderful experiences to share. From her time working to help co-found Heal the Bay; through her travels in pre-war Iraq and then post-war Iraq; her willingness to get in the mix, has given her an ability to empathize with others that wafts over the crowd like a fine perfume − it is noticeable, but not annoyingly so.

A couple of the guys that I invited are veterans. They have real-life experience with war and its costs. Each of them cornered Hayes-Raitt to tell her of their experiences being home from the war. The amazing part of this is, they did it before hearing her speak, not after. These are tough guys, who immediately felt that they could be open with Hayes-Raitt and share their thoughts and their feelings with her.

Integrity is a rare currency in politics. Nearly every politician wants to shout from the highest mountain how much integrity they have. Most candidates spend huge sums of money on very glossy campaign brochures and slick advertising campaigns to tell you how much integrity they have, which is really quite funny because it always makes me wonder how much did they have to sell out to get the donations, to print the mailers and tell me how much integrity they have.

Every person I spoke with who came to my home to meet Hayes-Raitt said the same thing, "she didn't tell me about her integrity, she showed it to me."

Paw PAC, the state's leading political action committee for animals since 1980, and Action for Animals, which fights for habitat and animal protection, endorsed Kelly Hayes-Raitt to replace outgoing Assemblymember Fran Pavley.

"Kelly is the first candidate in the state we've endorsed this year," said Paw PAC's Virginia Handley. "We are impressed with her two decades of leadership in protecting open space and habitat areas, as well as with her compassion in opposing inhumane traps such as gill nets that trap dolphins and jaws of death traps that kill wildlife. We're proud to make Kelly Hayes-Raitt our first endorsed candidate. We need more leaders like her."

Kelly Hayes-Raitt has been endorsed by the Sierra Club, the nation's largest environmental organization, in her bid to replace outgoing Fran Pavley in the State Assembly.

"Kelly is the only authentic environmental leader running in this race," said Emil Lawton, chair emeritus of the political committee of the Los Angeles Chapter, Sierra Club. "Sierra Club urges anyone who cares about protecting our magnificent coast, mountains and clean air to vote on June 6th for Kelly Hayes-Raitt."

"We interviewed all the viable candidates and found Kelly to be not only the best environmental leader, but the hardest working candidate we've seen in a long time," continued Lawton, who chaired the interview committee.

Kelly Hayes-Raitt has filed an amicus brief in the National Education Association's lawsuit against the Bush administration over the "No Child Left Behind Act."

"No Child Left Behind is leaving thousands of California children behind, far behind," Hayes-Raitt said. "I decided to run for the Assembly to fight President Bush's efforts to eviscerate our public school system."

Hayes-Raitt cited the "teaching to the test" criticism of Bush's policy, saying that teachers should be "treated like the professionals they are, not test administrators."

But the most egregious harm No Child Left Behind inflicts, she said, is in forcing school districts to "backfill" the gap between funds required to implement the Federal act, and funds actually delivered to local districts by the Federal government.

California Sen. Richard Alarcón (D-San Fernando Valley), who offered his endorsement for Hayes-Raitt six months ago, agrees. "Kelly is someone who not only says what she believes in and is very progressive about it, but also acts on what she believes. She's been a longstanding activist well suited for the district she's running for."

"The woman can't help but lead," declares Tia Skulski, who, as chair of the Santa Monica Commission on the Status of Women, worked closely with Hayes-Raitt, even sponsoring her for the Los Angeles County Woman of the Year Award given by the L.A. County Commission on the Status of Women. "She's definitely a person you would want on your side."

First of all, forget about local big-shots; that's Martin Sheen standing arm-in-arm with Kelly Hayes-Raitt, flashing the thumbs-up sign on her campaign Web site (www.kellyforassembly.com).

We followed Hayes-Raitt back in the day when she was speaking locally about her travels to Iraq (before and after the war began) and about the women she had met there. We liked her then; we like her even more now as she embarks on a quest for a seat on the State Assembly.

A tireless advocate for the environment, women's rights and civil rights, she helped found Heal the Bay, served as executive director for the statewide Coalition for Clean Air, started the Women's Health Campaign and was named by the L.A. County Women\'s Commission a 2004 Woman of the Year.

A political office seems like the next logical step for Hayes-Raitt and we'll be watching her all the way to Sacramento.

Kelly Hayes-Raitt, a Santa Monica community leader and member of the Santa Monica Commission on the Status of Women, was honored by the City of Los Angeles Friday, October 22nd, for promoting women's rights locally and internationally.

"Kelly Hayes-Raitt embodies the courage and leadership we need to inspire women to succeed in our world," said Paula Petrotta, executive director of the Los Angeles women's commission.

"We are proud to honor Kelly for her willingness to travel to Iraq and see firsthand the impact our country's war is having on women and children," Petrotta said.

"Our Vote Environment Committee understands just how important it is to elect a leader when we see one," said Erich Pfuehler, Clean Water Action California director.

"Kelly won't just be a good vote on our issues, she will lead the fight to protect our environment, preserve our coastline, and fight for safe drinking water."

"We know protecting our environment is more than just an issue for Kelly, it is a deeply held part of her life," Pfuehler said.

"When ranking nations for the involvement of women in public office, Rwanda ranks number one − and the U.S. ranks a dismal 61st," said commission vice chair Kelly Hayes-Raitt, who will emcee the event.

Santa Monica resident Kelly Hayes-Raitt is the media coordinator of the group, which is the local affiliate of California Women for Kerry.

"You may already know about Kelly's long history of leadership for environmental protection… Recently, Kelly won legislation to set health standards on toxic mold and helped the National Resources Defense Council's efforts to phase out dirty diesel school buses," [wrote Martin Sheen].

"Kelly has been a national spokesperson to protect civil rights. She started the Women's Health Campaign to hold pharmaceutical corporations accountable for the deadly products they market to women.

"It's always a pleasure when National Women's Political Caucus endorses a leading advocate for women – and one who can win," said Ventura County Caucus president Catherine Smith. "Kelly Hayes-Raitt is such a leader…[and] clearly the most viable candidate and the strongest advocate for women."

Forty percent of our county's homeless men and women served their country under the most grueling of circumstances, only to be left alone to deal with their demons upon return.

When more veterans served in Congress and in our state legislatures, programs supporting vets were more fully funded. Funding for the Veterans Administration's mental health programs has been slashed in recent years, and the situation will get worse, especially for Californians. Our state has sent more soldiers to the Iraq War than any other state. We will have more war widows, more war orphans, and more injured soldiers relying more heavily on our state and local social service programs at a time when the Bush/Schwarzenegger Administrations are balancing budget shortfalls with proposed tax cuts for the wealthy. In fact, just a few short weeks before President Bush sent another generation of young Americans to war in Iraq, he cut health benefits for existing veterans.

Programs for veterans must be fully funded. We ask our young men and women to risk their lives for our country; the least we can do is support their lives when they return home.

Sheen, one of the Westside's leading activists and Malibu resident, said he was impressed with Hayes-Raitt's two humanitarian trips to Iraq and her on-going work for peace.