New assemblyman puts political roots to work

By: EDWARD SIFUENTES - Staff Writer
Editor's note: Reporter Edward Sifuentes spent a day, April 13, with Assemblyman Martin Garrick for this story. | Sunday, May 6, 2007 9:48 PM PDT ∞

CARLSBAD ---- Martin Garrick walked his first precincts for Ronald Reagan when he was 12. Now he's walking and driving them for himself.

The freshman assemblyman, who represents much of North County in Sacramento, says his first few months in elected office have "been both fun and challenging."

On a recent Friday, the 74th District legislator's nearly 10-hour day was packed with meetings involving constituents concerned with business, education and transportation issues. He visited several corners of the district, which stretches from Carlsbad south to Del Mar and east to parts of Escondido, before returning to his Carlsbad office in the early evening for more work.

The 54-year-old freshman Republican who represents the 74th District is in the minority in Democrat-dominated Sacramento, but he is at home in predominantly GOP North County, where he beat his Democratic rival by receiving nearly two-thirds of the votes.

The seat was formerly held by Mark Wyland.

At his office, he began the morning meeting with a group of building industry representatives.

They were asking him to oppose a Democratic-sponsored bill that would restrict contracting out highway construction duties, which are now done by state employees. They said private firms could do the work more cost-effectively while generating more jobs.

Garrick said he approaches most decisions with his business sense, which he honed as the founder and owner of two businesses, Admiral Industries, Inc., a telecommunications company, and Admiral Property Co., a real estate investment firm.

"We want to get the most out of those building dollars," Garrick told the builders, referring to Proposition 35, a measure approved by voters in 2000 that amended the state constitution and eliminated restrictions on the government's ability to contract with private firms for engineering and design work on roads.

In the minority

The Carlsbad office, which he opened in April near McClellan-Palomar Airport, reflects well his conservative political philosophy. It is sparsely furnished with a few bookshelves and a large desk flanked by the American and state flags. He has a picture of President Reagan speaking at the Berlin Wall, family pictures, and a folded American flag.

Though he fits the political mold of most state and federal representatives in North County, Garrick, a self-described Reagan Republican, is something of an odd duck in the state Capitol. The Assembly and Senate are both led by liberal Democrats, making it difficult for Garrick to push his agenda.

As evidence, he recently submitted a bill that would have required the state Department of Corrections to work with federal authorities to verify inmates' immigration status.

Garrick said the bill was a "common sense" measure that would help the state recoup some of the money it spends housing illegal immigrant inmates. But it failed to make it out of an Assembly committee led by Democrats.

He acknowledged that it's not easy to be in the minority.

"I asked for reconsideration and I'm going to continue to push for it," he said.

Addressing illegal immigration was a central theme in this campaign platform.

In his campaign, Garrick easily beat Democrat Roxana Folescu for the seat representing the predominantly Republican district in November. The real challenge was the Republican primary in which he raised nearly a half-million dollars, much of it his own, to fend off Escondido Councilwoman Marie Waldron and Carlsbad businessman Scott Packard.

Garrick used his considerable financial advantage to send mailers touting his tough stance on illegal immigration and hammer his opponents. He said he favored a state border police, sanctions on businesses that hire illegal immigrants and rules that bar those businesses from government contracts.

Opponents criticized Garrick's negative ads.

"I think there were two things that cost us this election: all the negative campaigning, and we didn't have money to respond," Packard, the son of former longtime North County Congressman Ron Packard, said after the campaign.

Garrick defended the ads, saying that "the most important thing in any form of advertising is telling the truth and telling the whole truth."

Out and about

After his morning meeting, he climbed into his district director's car and rode to a press conference in San Diego. The press conference, held at the San Diego Association of Governments' office, highlighted another of his key concerns: transportation.

The event touted a bill that would provide money for around-the-clock traffic monitoring in the county.

Escondido Mayor Lori Holt Pfeiler praised Garrick at the event.

"He's been very refreshing," she said. "We can call on him at any time. He is really committed to listening to cities."

In Sacramento, Garrick was appointed to three important committees on education, transportation and insurance.

Fellow Republican Assemblyman Joel Anderson of El Cajon described Garrick as "one of the rising stars in our party."

"His abilities and his business background make him uniquely qualified to serve in the Assembly," Anderson said.

In between appointments, Garrick used the time to make phone calls seeking support for some of his bills. He sought the support of firefighter groups to endorse a bill that exempts the installation of fire-sprinkler systems from increasing home property tax values.

After the press conference, Garrick attended a meeting with Escondido Union High School District officials at San Pasqual High School in Escondido. There he made effective use of his political charm to break the ice by telling the group that his wife, Jane, is a school teacher.

The couple have four grown children.

Born in Glendale, Garrick has a bachelor's degree in business administration from United States International University in Scripps Ranch, now called Alliant International University.

He said he began walking precincts when he was 12 years old for Reagan's 1966 gubernatorial campaign.

In 1980, he joined Reagan's presidential campaign and worked for the Reagan administration as the president's House-Senate liaison on energy policy until 1985.

After his stint in Washington, he returned to California to start his businesses. But he remained politically active, serving on various boards and committees and as the first vice chairman of the San Diego Republican Party.

Before returning to his office to wrap up the day, he visited the Encina Power Station in Carlsbad, Garrick declined to speculate on his political future.

He said he wants to focus instead on the work at hand, such as improving the state's business climate.

"As a freshman, I'm looking day to day, week to week and month to month," he said. "I'm not looking at six years down the line."

Contact staff writer Edward Sifuentes at (760) 740-3511 or esifuentes@nctimes.com. Comment at nctimes.com.

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