Candidates for 74th seat face off in debate
By: EDWARD SIFUENTES - Staff Writer | ∞
VISTA ---- Helping small businesses and curbing illegal immigration were dominant themes in a debate Monday night among candidates for the 74th District seat.
The group included three Republicans and one Democrat vying for the seat that Assemblyman Mark Wyland, R-Escondido, decided to give up to try to win a seat in the state Senate.
The candidates are Republicans Martin Garrick, a small-business owner from Solana Beach; Scott Packard, a Carlsbad businessman; and Marie Waldron, an Escondido councilwoman; and Democrat Roxana Folescu, an educator from Encinitas.
The GOP candidates touted their experience as small business owners during the 90-minute debate sponsored by the Vista Chamber of Commerce and held at the Avo Playhouse in Vista.
Folescu, a political science professor at MiraCosta College, highlighted her experience working in Washington D.C., as a legislative adviser.
"Most businesses that fail, fail in the first year because of red tape," Packard said. "Government just needs to get out of businesses' life."
The debate, which attracted a small crowd of about a dozen people, covered a wide range of issues, from local bond measures to higher education. The North County district, which is predominantly Republican, runs from Del Mar up the coast to Highway 78 north of Carlsbad, then stretches east to include Vista, San Marcos and Escondido.
All three Republicans said, if elected, they would place illegal immigration as their one of their top priorities.
Waldron said one her first objectives would be to push for the creation of a state border enforcement agency to curb illegal immigration. Garrick said he would also support creating the agency and would support giving local police authority to enforce immigration laws.
"Illegal immigration is the place to start," Garrick said.
Folescu disagreed, saying that the state cannot afford to take on the responsibility of enforcing immigration law for the federal government.
Packard, the son of former longtime North County Congressman Ron Packard, said he would not support creating a state immigration law enforcement agency without knowing how it would be paid for.
Each of the Republican candidates appealed to conservative sensibilities.
Packard evoked his father's name on several occasions. Garrick named former President Ronald Reagan several times during his comments, noting that he worked in a number of positions in the Reagan Administration.
Waldron peppered her remarks with references to her two terms as a councilwoman in Escondido and outspoken efforts against illegal immigration. She noted her successful push to have the Escondido City Council take a vote in favor of the California Border Police Act, which would create the state border enforcement agency.
The lone Democrat said she was a moderate, common sense candidate who would benefit from her party affiliation in a Democratic-dominated Legislature.
The candidates face a primary election June 6 for their party's nomination and a general election Nov. 7.
Contact staff Edward Sifuentes at (760) 740-3511 or esifuentes2@nctimes.com. To comment, go to nctimes.com.
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FROWISS wrote on May 9, 2006 7:06 AM:Marie Waldron is the only candidate with credible experience and voting record, eight years on Escondido's City Council and she's a solid conservative, strong on border security and immigration reform. Assembly Minority Leader George Plescia has endorsed her and wants her leadership experience with him in Sacramento. Garrick had a job in the Reagan administration because his late father, an Admiral, was in charge of filling 6,000 appointments. Both Packard and Garrick are riding on their father's coattails.
Ed wrote on May 9, 2006 7:22 AM:"Most businesses that fail, fail in the first year because of red tape," Packard said. "Government just needs to get out of businesses' life." Ah, if only the government had stayed out of Enron's life! We would not be paying for the California power crisis for decades to come!
Vista Voter wrote on May 9, 2006 12:43 PM:I will be voting for Roxana Folescu! She has valuable experience and is able to lead rather than follow the pack. The red tape that Packard complains about is often necessary stuff that protects the public and workers from injury and/or charlatans and protects our enviornment. Marie Waldron strikes me as a crazy who panders to the worst instincts of the voters. She is a cheerleader for hatred and division and she plays on emotions rather than providing leadership. Her brand of politics doesnt serve anyone well.
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