CALIFORNIA SHU ~lCllnS California State Archives State Government Oral History Program Oral History Interview with MILTON MARKS California State Assembly 1958-1966 California State Senate 1967-1996 January 23, 1996, January 24, 1996, January 25, 1996, February 27, 1996, February 28, 1996 Sacramento, California By Donald B. Seney California State Archives Volume Two SESSION 4, January 25, 1996 [Tape 6, Side A] 211 Winston Churchill--Travels--Interests in Environmental issues--Local Government Issues--BART--Working with Senator Moscone--More about BART­ -The question oflegislative pay--The mini-bus mobile office--The leadership battle in the Senate after 1970. [Tape 6, Side B] 230 The leadership battle in the Senate after 1970 election--Senator Randolph Collier­ -The Senate Rules Committee and Committee appointments--Changes in the Transportation Committee under James Mills--Other changes in Leadership-­ Schrade replaces Way--Mills replaces Schrade--George Deukmejian--Problems for Schrade--Gun Controllegislation--The Bay Conservation and Development Act--Farewell tribute when Senator Marks left Assembly--1970 Reapportionment­ -The 1972 Election. [Tape 7, Side A] 252 Senator Marks' relationship with Willie Brown--The 1972 Senate Campaign--The issues in the 1972 Campaign--A big victory in 1972--Mrs. Marks' Campaign for the Board of Supervisors--Mrs. Marks' contributions to Senator Marks' career-­ The perils oflisting address and phone number--The 1972 Election Generally-­ H.L. Richardson--Voting to override a Reagan veto. [Tape 7, Side B] 276 The Senator's Partisan Split after the 1972 election--The Indian Affairs Committee and the location ofthe Governor's Mansion--Legislation Sponsored by Senator Marks' from 1959 on--Open meeting legislation--Early environmental legislation--Financing Laws--Establishing the California Arts Commission-­ Legislation dealing with Treatment for alcoholism--Commission on the Status of Women--Other legislation--Legislation dealing with the disabled. SESSION 5, February 27, 1996 [Tape 8, Side A] 297 Voting to override a veto by Governor Reagan--Meetings at Governor Reagan's home--Running for Mayor in 1975--Prominent Political People in San Francisco-­ The outcome ofthe Election for Mayor--Harvey Milk--Gay Politics. [Tape 8, Side B] 318 The assassination ofHarvey Milk and George Moscone--The Memorial Service-­ Seeking support in the Gay community--Lifelong opposition to discrimination-­ The 1976 Race for the Senate--The Consenting Adults Bill--More on the 1976 Senate race--Campaigning in General--Winning both the Democratic and Republican Primaries in the 1980 Election-- The 1982 Congressional Election-­ Phil Burton's Congressional District after Reapportionment in 1982. [Tape 9, Side A] 339 Opinion Polling done before the 1982 Congressional election--Lack ofsupport from the Republicans in the election--Deciding to run--Mistakes in fund raising-­ A very different campaign--More on the Lack ofRepublican support--A more Partisan campaign--The death ofPhil Burton--The problem ofgetting Bill Paril by the Republican County Committee--Paying offthe Campaign debt--The aftermath ofthe election--The 1984 campaign for Senate--Lia Belli's claims about her education--Reapportionment after the 1980 census. [Tape 9, Side B] 364 Running in Marin County for the first time after the 1980 redistricting--Lia Belli claims an endorsement--Questions about a Fulbright Scholarship for Lia Belli-­ Becoming a Democrat in 1986--What led to the decision--Becoming Democratic Caucus Chair--Senator John Garamendi--Reactions to Senator Marks' shift to the Democratic party--Participating in the leadership ofthe Democrats in the Senate-­ Raising money for the party as Caucus Chair--How the Democratic leadership works--Senator Lockyer as leader--James Mills as Senate leader--Letters of welcome to the Democratic party--After the decision was made--Relations over the years with the Republican in the legislature--Relations to the decision to switch parties--The Republican Party. SESSION 6, February 28, 1996 [Tape 10, Side A] 388 More on the 1984 Senate Race against Lia Belli--The 1988 race for Senate--Broad support as a Democrat in 1988--Clint Reilly, Political Consultant--Easier to run in San Francisco as a Democrat--Democratic State Mailers--The 1992 Senate Election--Joe Freites--Senator Marks'considered running for District Attorney in 1979--Joe Freites' campaign against Senator Marks in the Primary Election in 1992--The 1992 General Election--Chair ofthe Local Government Committee-­ The role ofcommittee consultants--Housing Legislation--Interest Groups--City­ County consolidation. [Tape 10, Side B] 412 Appointed Chairman ofthe Elections and Reapportionment Committee--Trying to discuss reapportionment with Governor Wilson--Senate Reapportionment Bill passes 37-0--Holding Hearing throughout the State on the Senate Reapportionment P1an--How the Earlier Reapportionments had been done--The role ofthe President Pro Tem--Senator Quentin Kopp and redistricting in San Francisco--Senator Milton Marks' District and the needs ofthe Asian Community--The Supreme Court's original plan for Senator Marks' district-­ Republican attempts to take reapportionment away from the legislature--Why the Senate and Assembly Reapportionment plans were combined into one bill-­ Governor Wilson's intentions--The Federal Voting Rights Act--How the actual plan was drawn. [Tape 11, Side A] 434 Reapportionment and the Federal Voting Rights Act--The role ofthe leadership-­ The Congressional Reapportionment--The role ofthe staff--The use ofcomputers­ -The role ofnon-legislative groups-The Assembly passes three separate plans-­ The conference committee on reapportionment--The Supreme Court takes over reapportionment--Chairing the Criminal Procedure Committee--More on Reapportionment--Governor Pat Brown--Governor Ronald Reagan--Governor Jerry Brown--Governor George Deukmejian. [Tape 11, Side B] 458 Governor George Deukmejian--The various Governor's staff--Governor Deukmejian and the start ofhis first term--A veto by Jerry Brown--Governor Pete Wilson--Proposition 187--The job Governor Wilson is doing--The 1994 election for Governor. SESSION 7, February 28, 1996 [Tape 12, Side A] 474 Examples ofcorruption in the California Legislature--Campaign contributions-­ Lobbyists and Lobbying--The Press--Television and the Legislature--Sponsoring legislation for the main State Archives Building--Other Legislation dealing with the State History--Legislation on the behalfofthe disabled. [Tape 12, Side B] 498 Legislation on behalfofthe disabled--How the Legislature has changed over the years--The Marks' family and children--The social life ofthe Legislature in the 1980s--How the Legislature became more partisan--The growth ofthe Legislative staff--The increasing cost ofelections--Changes in the public perception ofthe Legislature over the years--Bob Monagan as Assembly Speaker--Leo McCarthy as Assembly Speaker--Willie Brown's Speakership--Ken Maddy as a Senate leader--The Democratic Senate Leaders--United States Senator from California. [Tape 13, Side A] 522 California's United States Senators--What Senator Marks considers to be his most important Legislation--Leaving the Senate because ofterm limits--A career in the Legislature--Other important legislation--The Marks' children and politics. Names'List 1 276 MARKS: Right. SENEY: Oh. Well, I know at this point that he thought you'd tried to pull a fast one apparently when you got up and asked permission to have this heard earlier. MARKS: It's a normal thing to do. You get up on the floor ofthe Senate and you ask to do it. SENEY: Right. Well, he made a comment, according to -- you were quoted in the press saying, "Well, they were going to be watching you, whoever they were.") Who did you understand that to be, when he said that to you? MARKS: The John Birch society or people like that. SENEY: The right wing and whatnot. People who could only have done you good in your district, right? MARKS: Right. SENEY: Mr. Richardson is still around, is he not? MARKS: He stays around. He's not in the Senate anymore. [Begin Tape 7, Side B] SENEY: Go ahead, Senator. What we did miss was we were saying that H. L. Richardson is still around with a gun PAC [Political Action ) San Francisco Examiner June 23, 1973 p.l. 277 Committee], something ofthat kind. MARKS: Right. SENEY: Let me ask you, in the aftermath ofthe 1972 election, the Senate was split 19 to 19 at this point and there were two empty seats and one ofthem was subsequently filled by [Senator] Alan Robbins [a Democrat] out ofthe San Fernando Valley and John Stull [a Republican] won the other seat. So it maintained the 20/20 split. And Jim Mills is president pro tern at this point. Ofcourse, as long as it's evenly split, he stays in office. Right? MARKS: Right. SENEY: Nobody can get him. MARKS: Right. SENEY: Do you remember that period when he didn't really have a majority and how the Senate worked and what his problems were as leader during that point? MARKS: I think it was close. It was very close. It was very, very indecisive. SENEY: You know, you were talking about how the Rules Committee was selected. The Democrats maintained control over the Rules Committee because even though they no longer had a majority, they still had the Rules Committee majority because you couldn't change anything with this 19 to 19 vote. Did the Senate still function? MARKS: It did. I'm trying to recall -- the votes were very close on many issues. 278 Sometimes it'd get 21 votes. SENEY: So it must have been difficult to conduct business. MARKS: It was difficult. SENEY: To pass anything that was controversial at all during this period. The Republicans had hoped, ofcourse, that they were going to end up with both the district that Robbins won-- MARKS: I supported Robbins. I shouldn't have, but I did. SENEY: Well, you didn't know, ofcourse. MARKS: [At this point, Senator Marks deleted one sentence.] SENEY: Well, you can edit it out. But he was! He was a convicted felon and I think that's a fair thing for you to say. There's nothing libelous or scurrilous about what you've said.