Assemblyman Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) was on Capitol Hill this week for meetings related to his work in the state Legislature and his campaign for the open 2nd district.

Huffman is running for the newly drawn district, which stretches from the northern end of the Golden Gate Bridge in Marin County up the coast to the Oregon border. It leans strongly Democratic, so Huffman’s greatest competition will come from within his own party.

In a Tuesday morning interview with Roll Call, Huffman said the district has one of the highest unemployment rates in the country thanks in part to the decline of the timber industry on the north coast. Along with the economy, he said, the environment is a top concern, as the district has “over 500 miles of the greatest coastline” in the country.

Huffman said he has a progressive voting record in the Legislature and would consider joining the Congressional Progressive Caucus if elected. He also is generally supportive of the president’s latest plans for job creation and deficit reduction.

“I’m hoping the president is finding his legs,” Huffman said. “I will support him all the way. He’s beginning to do the things that a lot of us wanted him to do.”

In a little more than two days on Capitol Hill, Huffman was scheduled to meet with Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D) on water issues in the state, Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) on the CPC, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, the state’s Democratic delegation and Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-Calif.), whose retirement  produced an open-seat race in the district. He was also attending a campaign fundraiser.

Huffman is an Independence, Mo., native and three-time All-American volleyball player at the University of California-Santa Barbara. He was an environmental attorney at the Natural Resources Defense Council before being elected to the Assembly five years ago.