Listen to the full interview below, and check out our profiles with candidates Adam Schiff, Barbara Lee and Katie Porter.
Former Dodgers star Steve Garvey is on the defensive after his performance at the first debate for California’s U.S. Senate seat.
“It was 60 years since my last debate. I think it was junior year in high school,” Garvey told KNX News Chief Correspondent Charles Feldman. “I’m a rookie at this, you know. I’m not a career politician. I’m running to be the voice of the people.”
Garvey, a political newcomer, was criticized after the Jan. 22 debate for his vague, indirect answers about key policy issues. But he insisted he’s “developing positions on these issues by listening to the people.”
“Now, as time goes on and we get through the primary, there's eight months to get deeper into these issues,” he said. “And I will.”
Garvey hedged when asked how he feels about former President Donald Trump, particularly his comments about being a dictator on “day one” and using the Justice Department to go after his enemies.
“If some of those things were found to be true, obviously, you know, and anybody that would be running, it would be part of my decision-making process,” Garvey said.
When asked how he plans to boost affordable housing, Garvey said the answer lies in deregulation, though he wasn’t able to name any specific regulations that are hampering housing construction.
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“I think it's commitment to making that a priority,” he said. “I think, you know, if we can just take some of the handcuffs off, I think the private sector will then see a way that they can invest in affordable housing … Where is the private sector? Where are companies and corporations? Where are hedge funds giving back to society, reinvesting in their communities?”
Garvey said he also plans to tackle homelessness by going after drug dealers.
“I'm very tough on crime. That's one of my top couple of issues,” he said. “Let's get back to catching the criminals and prosecuting them. How can you go into a store and steal $950 and not get prosecuted? How can you sell drugs on the street and say, oh, well, that's just the culture?”
He also said we need to close the border to stop the flow of fentanyl and deter immigrants from trying to cross illegally. When asked how he would physically close the border, he wasn’t sure.
“Next time we're on, I'll have the definitive answer for it,” he said.
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