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Friday, Mar 29, 2024

Next-Gen Reformer

Justin Clark’s mother likes to say he has been discussing politics from the moment he learned to talk. The 19-year-old California State University – Northridge student is running as a Republican to fill the vacant state assembly seat left by representative Matt Dababneh (D-Woodland Hills), who resigned in December after being accused of sexual assault. Clark lives with his family in Calabasas and works at a local ice cream shop between classes and campaign stops around the West Valley. While his political memory stretches only as far back as George W. Bush’s re-election campaign, he is well-equipped to discuss the issues affecting California voters and businesses, ranging from the minimum wage to corporate tax reform. Like his hero Theodore Roosevelt, who began his political career as a New York state assemblyman at the age of 24, Clark aims to combat political corruption in the statehouse and pass legislation that makes a significant impact on voters’ lives. Clark finished as one of the top two candidates in April’s special primary election, likely because he was the only Republican in the race. As a result, his name will appear twice on the June 5 ballot to represent Assembly District 45 — once in the special top two run-off against Democrat Jesse Gabriel to serve the remainder of the current legislative session and once in a primary election for the subsequent term. The Business Journal caught up with Clark to learn why he got into politics, how he plans to help local businesses and how he likes to relax when not on the campaign trail. Question: What inspired you to run for state assembly? Answer: I originally filed my paperwork a year ago in June because I was disenfranchised with the fact that there was no serious challenger to Dababneh. Jerry Kowal was running a campaign – but not so much an active campaign – to unseat him. He was more of just a name on the ballot, and I thought that that was unfair, especially considering how Dababneh’s voting record was harming the Valley. I just wanted to prevent that from happening again. How much time do you have to dedicate to your campaign? I feel that if you’re going to run, you have to run seriously. Now that I’m running, I can see how it might be frustrating, especially on the fundraising side. But you still made that commitment. And when I’m not in school or not working, I’m campaigning. That’s because I’m doing this for the people of the Valley. My community members and my neighbors are hurting because of the actions of the California Legislature. What does campaigning look like for you day-to-day? It’s been mostly grassroots efforts. A lot of canvassing, including at residential houses and small businesses. I’ve been reaching out and talking directly to everybody because [this election] affects all of them. How does your age set you apart from other politicians? I’m not a politician; I’m a community member. I believe in the idea of a citizen legislature and have pledged to only serve two terms in the State Assembly (not including the special election term). My age gives me a fresh perspective and leaves me uncorrupted by any establishment. I’m going in there to represent the people. I don’t have any other commitments. I will be the assemblyman of this district 24/7 if I’m elected. What do you believe is broken about the political establishment? This is a perfect example of the revolving door that we have in California: We had Councilman (Bob) Blumenfield – who used to be the assembly member for this district – who had his name on the ballot for both the state assembly and the L.A. City Council. He’s still serving as a city councilman, and you have situations like this all across the state. Legislators are either jumping form political position to political position or are retiring and going to lucrative jobs at lobbying firms. How do you plan to address this issue? You have a lot of politicians who run on standing up to special interest groups and never follow through. I’m going to try and pass legislation that is truly a step forward for my district and for California. And we’ll see which groups come out against that legislation. And if those interest groups are going to get in the way of what is healthy for my district, then they’re going to see me fight back. How do you plan to help businesses in the West Valley? I’m a listener. We have thousands upon thousands of regulations that I haven’t yet familiarized myself with. So, I’m going to have to listen to businesses and I’m going to have to listen to people. That’s what I’m really good at. I’m willing to go out and listen to people more often than a traditional campaign canvasser that knocks on doors and hands out literature. I’m stopping and listening. It’s slower and you cover less ground, but you make more of an impact and you also learn information that will help once you get elected. Do you think local and state governments have failed to listen to business owners? I’ve met with a lot of small businesses on Reseda Boulevard near CSUN. There was recently a multimillion-dollar bike lane put in front of these businesses. The bike lane took away entirely from storefront property. All of the businesses opposed it, and it immediately decimated their clientele. So, you have these situations where people just feel completely ignored. The city and the state both do this. They get an idea in their head and they run with it. I don’t know how many of the (Los Angeles) city councilmembers who voted for this project had actually been to this portion of Reseda Boulevard. It’s the same with the Legislature. How many people in this distant capital understand the context of what they’re passing and how it will affect the businesses in their district? They’re looking at it through the lens of the big corporations and the special interest groups that are whispering in their ear. What are some of the specific policies or regulations you hope to reform? One of the first things I’m going to work towards is separating tax filings for people who own a small business. It’s screwing up their tax returns because small business filings are being taxed as personal income under our current tax code. It’s not fair and it’s something I’d look to change right away. Another thing is balancing environmental regulations with a healthy business climate. The word I would use to describe the state of California’s economic regulations is oppressive. We can still care and be stewards of our environment, but also make sure that what we’re doing is fair to business. Where do you stand on minimum wage? I think a lot of people feel just completely and utterly defeated that no one cares for them in California. When you raise the minimum wage, the costs get passed on to the consumer, plain and simple. The way I like to describe the minimum wage increase that was passed three years is that it’s a Band-Aid fix. They claim they want to make California more affordable, but they are making it more expensive. On paper it looks like it’s going to help, but it’s not. They’re trying to put a Band-Aid on a bullet wound. Do you think the minimum wage increases are making California less affordable? You look at U-Haul prices. A U-Haul from Los Angeles to Las Vegas is over $1,000. But a U-Haul from Las Vegas to Los Angeles is only $200 because people are leaving California in droves. My father left California because he could no longer afford to live here. They’re leaving because they either want to raise a family and do so comfortably or they are small business owners who can no longer afford to operate their business in the state. And the minimum wage is part of that. If I couldn’t lower the minimum wage, I would work towards other solutions to decrease the cost of living. We often here from local businesses about their frustration with union-backed initiatives, such as a looming proposal in Los Angeles that could limit how retail stores schedule employees. How would you deal with unions and labor groups pushing for these types of initiatives? I think we need to meet them in the middle. Where (these concerns) come from is the workers. In the union case, they run way too far with it. There are valid concerns, but should a bill be written in any way that leads to possible unionization? No. Should employers, for the sake of people to live their lives, allow decent scheduling? I think the L.A. Times published an article saying that most retail workers don’t know their schedule at least a week in advance. And I think that’s a problem and that’s probably what the employees were complaining to their union about. It will vary from initiative to initiative, but I think for the most part it will be about meeting them in the middle. You’re currently enrolled at California State University – Northridge. Is student debt an issue that is important to you? This is absolutely a part of my education platform. There are two routes we need to go with for higher education. One is that under our current system, tuition has increased 100 percent after you account for inflation. And that’s because the universities know that student loans will continue to be handed out and that students will pay it. So, we need to properly regulate that and we need to make higher education affordable. What is the second part of your education platform? We also need to understand that college isn’t the correct route for everyone. We have state-funded universities, why don’t we create more state-funded vocational training? There are lot of people who aren’t fit for college. But if we set up vocational schools, we can teach them a skilled trade. A lot of skilled trades pay more at base than what a college degree will get you. The starting salary in my field is about $30,000, but an electrician can make $60,000. Why is it important for the state to invest in education? I think this is the biggest investment California can make. It has the highest return possible because you’re investing in a workforce that will keep your society going like all of the little gears inside the clock. What have you learned from working at an ice cream shop? I’m a shift lead, so I work to make sure everything is efficient. My big thing is efficiency and organization. It’s also a customer service job, which isn’t always the easiest, but it has taught me how to deal with people and always have a smile on your face. What do you like to do when you’re not campaigning? When I actually had time to do other things, which I have not had in a long time, I enjoyed hiking, reading and hanging out with my friends. Playing video games here and there – typical things that people my age do. What are some of your favorite movies? “The Godfather” is one of my favorites. I also love “Star Wars.” I still have the VHS tapes that I watched as a kid of “Star Wars” and Indiana Jones films. Are you excited for the new Han Solo movie? The other spin off, (“Rogue One: A Star Wars Story”), was great so I’m hoping this will be great too. Who are some of the people you most admire? Theodore Roosevelt is one of my greatest role models. I absolutely adore Roosevelt. I think he had a great work ethic and was way ahead of his time politically. People talk about Democrats protecting the working man, but the president who first stood up to the robber barons was a Republican through and through. He did so many things beyond politics. And then once he entered politics, he took his passions and used them to found our national parks. We have some of the fair working conditions because of President Roosevelt. He was a president who stood up for the people. Who else? Politically, I admire President (Ronald) Reagan because he was someone who was able to stick to his values but still compromise. I don’t have selective memory loss about the Reagan presidency like a lot of Republicans do, where they want to ignore everywhere he comprised. I admire President Reagan for everything he stood for. Why do you think so many younger people today are turned off by the Republican party? Young people in general are fiscally conservative. I just don’t think they’ve had anyone articulate the message properly to them. I think more people in America are actually libertarian, but they just don’t understand what the word means. Most people think libertarians are anarchists, but what it actually means is that you’re socially liberal and fiscally conservative. I’ve also noticed that many younger people can be hardcore liberals or hardcore conservatives. But I actually believe that most of them are centrists if you can properly articulate both sides and let them think for themselves. What is the best piece of advice you’ve received? The biggest value instilled in me by father and my grandfather was just to work hard. I think that’s essential because you can’t get anywhere in life if you don’t work hard.

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