{"href":"https://api.simplecast.com/oembed?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmaking-l-a.simplecast.com%2Fepisodes%2Falex-padilla-from-pacoima-to-power-4keinsYb","width":444,"version":"1.0","type":"rich","title":"Alex Padilla: From Pacoima to Power","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_url":"https://image.simplecastcdn.com/images/820742b7-0847-4208-acff-e6469781da1a/69b3c7b8-81ae-4e25-a90e-73ecf7ed044a/la25-makingla-tile-final.jpg","thumbnail_height":300,"provider_url":"https://simplecast.com","provider_name":"Simplecast","html":"","height":200,"description":"What happens when a Pacoima kid turned MIT-trained engineer brings a wonk’s brain — and a line cook’s work ethic — into the halls of power?\nAlex Padilla is California’s senior U.S. Senator, a national voice on immigration and voting rights — and, as you may have seen recently, someone unafraid to challenge authority, even if it means getting handcuffed at a press conference. (This conversation was recorded before that moment, but you’ll hear crystal clear why these issues matter so deeply to him.)\nIn this episode: we’ll hear what it was like to serve as acting mayor of Los Angeles at just 28 years old in the wake of 9/11, how he helped change the way Californians do everything from vote to dine out at a restaurant, and how his family’s story shapes the quiet determination that continues to fuel his drive his public service.\nAlso: we’ll learn about the iconic L.A. restaurant where his father worked the line … for more than 35 years.\n"}