U.S. House of Representatives (2009–present)
Elections 2009 special Initially, Garamendi planned to run for governor in the
2010 election. However, Representative
Ellen Tauscher resigned from her U.S. House seat for
California's 10th congressional district to become
Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security. Garamendi announced his intention to run in the 2009 special election there despite living outside the district. There was some confusion about the location of Garamendi's residence. Garamendi said: "My front yard is in the district, our bedroom is not." He continued to fuel speculation about his residence when he said the same thing to
The New York Times in July. Later reports confirmed that his home was outside district boundaries. In the September election, no candidate reached the 50% threshold to avoid a runoff. Garamendi ranked first among Democrats with 26% of the vote, defeating State Senator
Mark DeSaulnier (18%) and Assemblymember
Joan Buchanan (12%). In the runoff on November 3, Garamendi defeated Republican nominee David Harmer, 53% to 43%. Garamendi was sworn in as a member of the House of Representatives on November 5, 2009.
2010 Garamendi was reelected to his first full term, defeating Republican nominee Gary Clift 59% to 38%.
2012 After redistricting, Garamendi filed papers in March 2012 to run in the newly redrawn
3rd district. Garamendi was running in a district that was over 77% new to him. While the old 10th district traditionally favored Democrats, the new 3rd was somewhat more of a swing district. But the bulk of its vote was in Democratic-leaning territory between the Bay Area and Sacramento, Garamendi's base. Garamendi defeated Republican Kim Vann 54.2% to 45.8%.
2014 Garamendi was reelected, 53% to 47%, over Republican Assemblyman
Dan Logue of
Yuba County.
Political positions Abortion Garamendi supports abortion access for everyone. He called
Roe v. Wade a "fundamental human right to bodily autonomy". He opposed the 2022
overturning of Roe v. Wade, calling the decision "devastating".
Donald Trump Garamendi was critical of President
Donald Trump, suggesting in December 2016 that because of his international real-estate business, Trump was weighed down by conflicts of interest. He also said he was disturbed by the placement of "generals, ex-generals in every one of the key positions dealing with the military, dealing with international affairs." At a July 2017 town hall in
Davis, Garamendi said that developments in the Trump administration were "far more serious" than
Watergate. In July 2017, Garamendi said that during recent visits to Vietnam, South Korea, and Australia, he had encountered "angst, worry and concern about what's happening in America."
Environment On February 24, 2019, Garamendi announced on Facebook that he had become a co-sponsor of H.Res.109, also known as the
Green New Deal. This decision came after pressure from community members. The post read, "I welcome the energy and commitment of the supporters of H.Res.109, and I join with them as I continue my decades-long effort to stop Climate Change and save our planet." In late 2022, Garamendi introduced a bill to strengthen the
Jones Act when dismantling
offshore oil & gas platforms and installing
offshore wind farms. Industry commentators noted the risk of delaying such projects and/or increasing their costs due to lack of US vessels and personnel.
Health care On December 9, 2021, Garamendi became a cosponsor of H.R.1976, the
Medicare for All Act of 2021.
Joe Biden Garamendi voted with President Joe Biden's stated position 100% of the time in the
117th Congress, according to a
FiveThirtyEight analysis.
Economic policy In January 2018, Garamendi called the
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 a "tax scam" that would primarily benefit the so-called "1 percent". He asserted that House "deficit hawks" wanted to "cut out the social safety net" to pay for the bill. In a January 2018 interview, Garamendi said of the U.S. treasury: "There's no money. They gave it all away." He complained that current economic policies, including the
large 2017 tax cuts, benefited the rich and corporations, not the middle class. The same month, he introduced an amendment to the
National Defense Authorization Act that would withdraw 90% of troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2013. Along with eight other members of Congress he wrote a letter to President Obama asking him to end the war. With
Dianne Feinstein and
Martin Heinrich, Garamendi sponsored the Due Process Guarantee Act, a 2012 bill that would bar the military from indefinitely detaining U.S. citizens or residents within the country without charge or trial. Garamendi actively opposed a GOP-backed construction of a
missile defense site on the East Coast, saying it was fiscally irresponsible to be "spending up to $5 billion in the next three years on a missile defense system that doesn't work." He voted against extending the
Patriot Act.
National security In a May 2011 article, Garamendi wrote, "our national security is much more dependent on ending desperate poverty, funding good schools, and empowering women in the developing world while eradicating international terrorist networks like
al Qaeda. With bin Laden dead and al Qaeda in Afghanistan largely extinguished, it's time we revisited the wisdom of continuing the war in Afghanistan." In April 2018, he expressed opposition to building a border wall and said, "If you want to go where the problem is, fund the Coast Guard."
Student loans In the fall of 2017, Garamendi and
Brian Fitzpatrick co-introduced H.R. 4001, the Student Loan Refinancing and Recalculating Act. "For many Americans, the price of a college education is too high," he said.
Syria On November 19, 2015, Garamendi voted for HR 4038, legislation that would effectively halt the resettlement of refugees from Syria and Iraq to the United States. On March 31, 2018, he described Trump's approach to Syria as "helter-skelter" and "chaos".
Water supply In a June 2017 article, Garamendi rejected the proposal known as
California WaterFix, calling it an "expensive boondoggle", and instead expressed support for Proposition 1.
Committee assignments For the
119th Congress: •
Committee on Armed Services •
Subcommittee on Readiness (Ranking Member) •
Subcommittee on Strategic Forces •
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure •
Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation •
Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings and Emergency Management •
Subcommittee on Highways and Transit •
Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment Caucus memberships • House Democratic Caucus •
Congressional Progressive Caucus • American Sikh Caucus (co-chair) • Air Force Caucus • Alzheimer's Task Force •
Blue Collar Caucus •
Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus •
Congressional Equality Caucus •
Congressional Ukraine Caucus • Military Families Caucus • Peace Corps Caucus (co-chair) •
Rare Disease Caucus • Shipbuilding Caucus • Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition •
United States Congressional International Conservation Caucus •
Veterinary Medicine Caucus • Wine Caucus Source: == Electoral history ==