John Garamendi
Liberal
Democrat
House Representative
California - District 8
Current Position: US House Representative CA-8
Running For: House Representative - District 8
Policy Positions
Economic Policy
- Against privatizing Social Security, dismantling Medicare, and defunding Medicaid
- For robust transportation infrastructure investments and Make It In America policies
Business & Labor
- For Buy America requirements increasing from 60% to 70% for federally funded transportation purchases
- For raising the minimum wage as part of women's economic initiative
Health Care
- For the Affordable Care Act and expanding healthcare access; supports implementing a national public option to increase competition
- For allowing Medicare to directly negotiate prescription drug prices and importing drugs from countries with safety standards
Education
- For student loan refinancing to lower interest rates and faster loan forgiveness for primary care physicians in underserved communities
- For federal investments in STEM education and against destructive cuts to education funding
Environment
- For clean energy investments and against the $15 billion twin tunnels project in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta
- For protecting existing California water rights and building surface water storage like Sites Reservoir
Civil Rights
- For women's economic rights including equal pay, paid sick leave, and expanding child tax credits
- For full LGBT equality including marriage equality and the Equality Act
- Against ending Don't Ask Don't Tell policy
- For the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Act
- For improving veterans' benefits, reducing VA claims backlog, and streamlining veteran job certifications
Voting Rights & Democracy
- For restoring the Voting Rights Act after Supreme Court ruling and against voter suppression efforts
Immigration & Foreign Affairs
- For diplomacy as first mission in international relations while maintaining strong military deterrent