If I only have the biggest sign and wear cheetah shorts this time, that’ll do the trick!
h/t to Scott Goldberg for the video.
All posts by David Lublin
Republican Tore Down Campaign Signs in Wheaton
Kamenetz Committee Donates Remaining Funds to Baltimore Nonprofits
Today, the Committee for Kamenetz announced that it is donating a total of $1.36 million to four regional nonprofits. Here is the press release issued by the Committee. Sounds like a good use of the remaining funds in the wake of the sad and sudden death of County Executive Kevin Kamenetz.
Committee for Kamenetz Announces Donation of Campaign Funds to Regional Non-Profits
RANDALLSTOWN, MD (June 14, 2018) — The Committee for Kamenetz announced today that, in accordance with state campaign finance laws, the remaining funds in the late Kevin Kamenetz’s campaign account will be donated to several non-profit organizations across the Baltimore region.
In consultation with the Kamenetz family, the campaign’s remaining funds will be dispersed in the following manner:
- Central Scholarship will receive $915,000 to support a new college scholarship fund for Baltimore County Public School students.
- Northwest Hospital will receive $250,000 to establish a cardiac care program.
- The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore will receive $100,000.
- The Hippodrome Foundation will receive $100,000.
“I want to thank the thousands of Marylanders who supported Kevin and joined in his campaign for governor and we want to express our sincere gratitude for the outpouring of support we have received during this profoundly difficult time,” said Jill Kamenetz. “Our family, along with those who knew and loved Kevin, continue to grieve his loss, but are confident that these funds will build upon his legacy and provide significant support to organizations that Kevin thought so highly of and worked hard to promote.”
“While this is not the outcome any of us imagined, it is our hope the donations will make a tangible difference for countless lives across the Baltimore Region,” said campaign Finance Chair Charles Klein.
Representatives from the receiving organizations joined members of the Kamenetz family earlier today for a presentation at Northwest Hospital.
About Central Scholarship
Central Scholarship, founded in 1924, awards over $1 million annually in scholarships and interest free loans for career training and undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees. Central Scholarship also offers College Cash® education sessions to help students and their families become more informed consumers of higher education and reduce their loan burden. For more information, visit www.central-scholarship.org.
About Northwest Hospital
Northwest Hospital, located in Randallstown, is a 238-bed community hospital serving the health care needs of the northwest Baltimore metro area, including western Baltimore City and Baltimore, Carroll and Howard counties. Northwest Hospital is a part of the LifeBridge Health system and offers an array of services, ranging from emergency care and cardiac rehabilitation to orthopedics and ophthalmology. With focus on friendliness and patient-centered care, Northwest Hospital is recognized for its expertise in surgical innovation as well as patient safety and quality.
About The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore
Founded in 1876, The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore is the third oldest zoo in the United States and is internationally known for its contributions in conservation and research. More than 1,500 animals are represented in the Zoo’s varied natural habitat exhibits such as the award-winning Penguin Coast, Polar Bear Watch, the Maryland Wilderness, African Journey and the Children’s Zoo. Situated in Druid Hill Park near downtown Baltimore, the Zoo is accredited by the Association of Zoos & Aquariums. For more information, visit www.marylandzoo.org.
About the Hippodrome Foundation
The mission of the Hippodrome Foundation Inc., in addition to presenting the Broadway series at the Hippodrome is to maximize community access to the France-Merrick Performing Arts Center, and through free outreach and education programs, increase understanding and appreciation of all aspects of theater.
Delaney Endorses Baker
Here is the press release from the Baker campaign:
U.S. CONGRESSMAN JOHN DELANEY ENDORSES RUSHERN BAKER FOR GOVERNOR
Baltimore County, MD – Today, U.S. Congressman John Delaney (D-6) announced his support for Rushern L. Baker III, Democratic nominee for governor of Maryland. The announcement comes a day after Valerie Ervin announced she would be joining the Baker/Embry ticket. Over the weekend, Rushern Baker announced a wave of Baltimore County and Baltimore City support, including Julian Jones, the Chair of the Baltimore County Council; Delegate Adrienne Jones, Speaker Pro Tem of the Maryland House of Delegates; and two former Baltimore County Executives: Dennis Rasmussen and Ted Venetoulis.
Congressman Delaney will join Rushern Baker for an event next week. Time and location are TBD.
“I’m proud to endorse my friend Rushern Baker for Governor of Maryland. Rushern is a deeply good man and brings the perfect combination of experience, vision, optimism, grit, and decency to the job. I am particularly impressed with Rushern’s unwavering commitment to improve public education and he has a track record of working to do just that in Prince George’s County. There is nothing more important to the future of a country than a strong and innovative public education system focused on maximizing the amazing potential inherent in our children and Rushern is committed to that mission, which is why he has my full support,” said U.S. Congressman John Delaney.
“I am proud to have the support of my good friend, Congressman Delaney. Congressman Delaney is deeply respected as an advocate for his constituents and a leader in promoting environmental progress and job growth. I look forward to working with Congressman Delaney to improve education and create economic opportunities in Maryland’s 6th district and across the state,” Rushern Baker said in a statement.
Congressman Delaney joins a growing list of Maryland elected officials in endorsing Rushern Baker, including former governor Martin O’Malley, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen, U.S. House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer (MD-05), Governor Parris Glendening, Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh, Montgomery County Executive Ike Leggett and over 50 state senators, delegates, mayors and sheriffs. Additionally, The Baltimore Afro, Jmore Baltimore Jewish Living and The Washington Post endorsed Rushern Baker. The Washington Post calling him, “by a wide margin, the strongest candidate in the primary field.”
Rushern’s Run
Prince George’s County Executive Rushern Baker
After serving in the House of Delegates and two terms as Prince George’s County Executive, Rushern Baker is making a bid for Maryland’s top office.
He has a serious claim. Prince Georgians should remain grateful that Baker fought against corruption before it was fashionable. Despite opposition from the county establishment, Baker took on sitting Prince George’s County Executive Jack Johnson in 2006. During the campaign, Baker showed he was willing to take the fight directly to Johnson notwithstanding Jesse Jackson’s endorsement of his opponent. Baker nearly won.
Had Baker won, Prince George’s would have been spared the humiliating spectacle of the arrest of both Johnson and his wife, Councilmeber-Elect Leslie Johnson, who infamously tried to flush ill-gotten gains down the toilet and hide them in her bra. In contrast, no such scandals or anything remotely close have tainted the Baker administration and Prince George’s is vastly better off for his leadership against corruption.
The more one looks into Rushern Baker’s personal life, the more impressive his accomplishments look. Baker’s wife suffers from debilitating memory loss that requires a great deal of care. Until the Washington Post wrote about it long after this family tragedy started, it wasn’t known in the Maryland political world. One might contrast this approach with that of Gov. Larry Hogan, who has tried to turn the serious lemons of his cancer treatment into lemonade not just by comforting other sufferers but by also milking it for every drop of publicity in the public eye and his social media accounts.
Baker has one Achilles heel: the public schools. Laudably, Baker recognized that the school system was not providing the education that Prince George’s kids need and deserve. He managed to gain a much more power over the system with a great deal of political assistance from Annapolis. Baker tried to raise property taxes by 15% in a tax allergic county to fund education but was ultimately only able to obtain a 4% raise that went to fund teacher pensions. Reforming schools is a long-term task, not prone to producing short-term gains, which makes the endeavor all the more commendable.
Unfortunately, a number of scandals have emerged on Baker’s watch. The county lost its federal Head Start grant in 2016. Grade manipulation led to many students obtaining diplomas that they didn’t earn in violation of county policy. Ben Jealous attacked Baker scathingly for this problem yesterday on Twitter, though Jealous has never had to actually run a county or a school system. Ultimately, the superintendent has been forced to go.
The Washington Post’s editorial page’s response in their endorsement to give Baker a pass and say essentially “Well, at least he tried.” I don’t know that Maryland voters will be as forgiving of these problems on an issue for which Baker has taken ownership. Troubling for Democrats, education is Hogan’s weakest issue according to surveys but he might be able to switch from defense to offense if Baker is the Democratic nominee.
Notwithstanding this significant problem, even though Baker is not my candidate, he would be a very solid Democratic nominee. Baker has been notably successful at building cross-racial support during an era of increased racial political polarization, as his endorsements from a variety of prominent Democrats attest. Based on the last gubernatorial election, we need a nominee who knows how to reach out.
As county executive, Baker has valuable experience has grappled genuinely with issues, like the school system, not in theory but in practice. Most importantly, Rushern Baker is an honorable person who has restored stature to Prince George’s County government.
Update on Vignarajah Eligibility Case / Renewed Racism and Sexism Claims
My blog post from yesterday faithfully reports the information online and that I confirmed with the Anne Arundel Circuit Court at the time. I also tried to speak with the Vignarajah campaign but they would not discuss in advance of their press conference.
Since then, there have been some updates. The case was dismissed on grounds of timeliness. As a result, the petition for declaratory judgement has been dismissed. Mr. Horn has just notified the media that he intends to appeal. I don’t know if he can get a hearing before the primary election or his chances for success.
In a press release, Vignarajah did her best to claim vindication and that she was “absolutely eligible,” though she neglects to mention why the petition was dismissed and that no decision was reached on the merits. When I spoke with her campaign’s chief of staff, Aryn Frazier, she promised someone would get back to me on this question but no one ever did.
Vignarajah’s press release goes on to claim that the evil nefarious establishment is trying to stop her:
It’s not a surprise that the establishment and political operatives are trying desperately to stop women of color from disrupting the old boys club in Maryland, but as a lifelong Marylander, I’ll continue fighting to support our schools, curb violent crime, and build a more inclusive economy for our state.
I asked Aryn Frazier for any evidence backing up these inflammatory claims of racism and sexism. Again, Ms. Frazier promised that someone would get back to me, but no on ever did.
Vignarajah’s serious charges undermine the causes for which she claims to be fighting. They are exactly the sorts of spurious claims that cause people to take a jaundiced view when serious claims of sexism and racism are made. Her constant waving of these banners jars all the more when one considers her voting record.
Vignarjah couldn’t be bothered to vote in the 2014 primary, when she could have helped the first black woman win election from Maryland to the U.S. Senate. She also didn’t vote in the 2014 general election, when she could have aided Anthony Brown’s quest to become the first African-American governor in Maryland. Indeed, this “lifelong Marylander” never voted here before 2016.
MCEA’s Awkward Alliance
This year, the Montgomery County Education Association (MCEA) – the teachers union – decided to support Ben Jealous for governor. Fine, so far.
But this just got very awkward after last night’s education forum. Except for Rich Madaleno from Montgomery, all of the other candidates, including Ben Jealous, embraced a new wealth based formula for education funding that just kills Montgomery.
I imagine it also does little for affluent Howard. The new formula zeros out funding for Talbot, Kent, and Worcester counties. Not only would it eliminate all no state aid for these three Eastern Shore jurisdictions, it also would require all that money to be made up in local taxes. Every penny cut would be required by state law to be replaced by local funds.
If there is one thing MCEA opposes, it’s cutting funds for Montgomery County Public Schools. Now, they’re supporting a candidate who wants to siphon large sums of money away from Montgomery to other jurisdictions.
Beyond the large number of portable classrooms, Montgomery faces a growing number of students who need extra help for a variety of reasons but who don’t come from families with a lot of extra money to help pick up the slack.
In the past, Adam Pagnucco has written about state funding formulas are already skewed against Montgomery, even as we face burgeoning problems in the public schools. Separately, a hike in the millionaires tax, paid primarily by Montgomery, has helped fund a burst of construction in Baltimore and elsewhere in the State.
The changes endorsed by all candidates except Madaleno would massively undermine efforts by Montgomery to address the achievement gap here. Indeed, the County would be hard pressed to maintain its current commitment with the size of cuts proposed, as Adam has explained well in a piece aptly titled “Hell, No!”
While this is awkward for Montgomery advocates of greater state school funding who support a variety of candidates, I imagine it might dismay county officials who support Rushern Baker at least partly in the hope that the D.C. area would get more attention to its increasingly serious needs.
But the problem is particularly acute for MCEA. They’ve found themselves behind a candidate whose platform would result in enormous pressure on the salaries and pensions of their members or force major cuts elsewhere in an already pressed county budget despite county efforts for years to protect education funding.
Sun Endorses Jealous
This morning, the Baltimore Sun endorsed Ben Jealous for governor:
Maryland voters deserve a real choice in November’s election for governor, and we believe Democrat Ben Jealous provides the clearest alternative to Gov. Larry Hogan. It’s not just that the former NAACP president and CEO has the stature or political skills to run a competitive campaign against the popular and extremely well funded Republican incumbent (though he does), it’s that he presents the strongest contrast to the governor in his vision for the state. We give him our endorsement in the Democratic primary.
Jealous is already doing well in the Baltimore region and this should only aid his efforts there.
Ervin Drops Out, Plans to Endorse Baker
Former Montgomery County Councilmember Valerie Ervin, who faced an uphill battle in her effort to run for governor has decided to leave the race and to endorse Rushern Baker.
Ervin decided to run after the sudden and sad death of her running mate, Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz. She faced an uphill battle due to her inability to access his campaign funds. The Board of Elections also could not change the ballots this close to the election, despite Ervin’s complete eligibility under state law to run in Kamenetz’s place and select a new running mate.
Vignarajah’s Day in Court
The Anne Arundel County Circuit Court made its first decision in Horn v. Vignarajah et al, the case on Krish Vignarajah’s eligibility to run for governor. The court granted the motion by the defendent’s (i.e. Vignarajah’s) attorney to dismiss a request for declaratory judgement by the plaintiff.
I suspect this decision will allow Vignarajah to remain on the primary ballot. There probably is not enough time between now and the primary election for the judge to hear the case and to reach an outcome.
The Vignarajah campaign has called a press conference on the steps of the Anne Arundel Circuit Court – no doubt to declare this a victory and probably to reiterate her claims that her eligibility is beyond question despite having only voted here once and repeatedly declaring her residency in D.C.
Careful observers, however, should note that the case continues. The judge made no determination on the underlying issue of her eligibility, which is also clouded by the time limit for a challenge arranged by the State Board of Elections.
The most likely outcome to the case is dismissal due it being moot after Vignarajah loses the primary. Of course, it would continue if she somehow managed to win the nomination. Her voting record and residency issues provide a buffet for Hogan in any case.
Vignarajah has heavily implied questioning of her ballot access is sexist and racist:
Vignarajah’s campaign spokeswoman, Aryn Frazier, told the Post in an email in response to the lawsuit that “Sadly, it’s no surprise that the only two candidates in this race who have had their ballot access questioned by political operatives are the two women of color.”
Except that Valerie Ervin and Krish Vignarajah’s cases are wholly different. Ervin unquestionably meets the requirements. The judge’s decision focused on the ability to reprint the ballots – not on her eligibility – and all candidates and Democrats agree that she is eligible and would have preferred fixing the ballot.
Instead of claiming sexism or racism, it’d be nice if she would fulfill her promise to release her tax returns.