State Roundup, October 23, 2012

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5th IN MACHINE GUNS: Virginia is home to more fully automatic machine guns than any other statein the nation, with Maryland following a close fifth, writes Scott McCabe in the Washington Examiner.

RALLY FOR GALLAUDET EMPLOYEE: Two ministers starring in television ads supportive of same-sex marriage in Maryland announced Monday that they will lead weekly protest rallies on behalf of the Gallaudet University employee put on leave after taking part in a petition drive led by same-sex marriage opponents, reports the Post’s John Wagner.

ON THE PHONE: Bolton Street Synagogue in Baltimore City is urging voters to back gay marriage as congregants take to the phone banks, writes Larry Perl of the Messenger.

DREAM ACT: UMUC President Javier Miyares, an immigrant from Cuba, calls Maryland’s Dream Act good for students, colleges and the state in an op-ed in the Sun.

Caleb Calhoun of the Hagerstown Herald Mail conducts man on the street interviews concerning voters’ stands on the Dream Act.

TRUTH BEHIND GAMING CLAIMS: Neither deep-pocketed side is telling the full truth about Question 7, which would allow for a Las Vegas-style casino in Prince George’s as early as 2016, as well as table games such as blackjack and roulette at Maryland’s five previously authorized slots venues, probably starting next year, writes John Wagner in the Post.

NEW GAMING AD: Baltimore City Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and former Ravens star Jonathan Ogden star in a just-released ad warning voters that casino owners in West Virginia are behind the opposition to the proposed gambling expansion plan on the Nov. 6 ballot, writes Michael Dresser of the Sun.

TERPS VOTE: Thanks to a new in-house voter registration system, along with a concerted effort by the University of Maryland Student Government Association and several other campus groups, more than 4,000 students registered on the campus before the Oct. 16 deadline, compared with about 2,500 students during the 2008 election.

O’MALLEY TAX CLAIM QUESTIONED: Tax Foundation bloggers Joseph Henchman and Scott Drenkard follow up a tweet by Gov. Martin O’Malley that “Maryland has the 3rd lowest taxes as a share of income.” His tweet prompted responses from Maryland residents questioning the claim.

2nd DISTRICT CANDIDATES: Sara Blumberg of the Capital-Gazette offers up the views of incumbent U.S. Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger of the 2nd District and Republican challenger Nancy Jacobs and Libertarian candidate Leo Dymowski on a variety of issues from immigration to military spending. The list is in the sidebar to the article.

6th DISTRICT FORUMS: U.S. Rep. Roscoe Bartlett and his 6th District Democratic opponent John Delaney sparred last night over the best way to heal the government deficit that both said threatens the nation’s future, writes Bethany Rodgers in the Frederick News Post. The two diverged over whether the country’s leaders should rely solely on budget cuts to achieve fiscal health. Margie Hyslop of the Gazette covers their Sunday night debate.

8th DISTRICT DEBATE: Although they both acknowledged the need for bipartisan solutions, 8th District U.S. Rep. Chris Van Hollen and Republican competitor Ken Timmerman challenged each other about where they are able to reach across the aisle and where they should draw the line, Bethany Rodgers reports in the Frederick News Post.

FRANCHOT FOR GOV: In the Capital-Gazette, Julie Baughman of CNS profiles potential gubernatorial candidate Comptroller Peter Franchot. Franchot prides himself in being what he calls, “a fiscally responsible, progressive Democrat.” This trait will give him an edge if he decides to enter the 2014 gubernatorial race, he says.

PERVERSION FILES: A once-prominent Eastern Shore congressman who left office in 1980 amid allegations that he had solicited sex from a 16-year-old male prostitute was flagged the same year by the Boy Scouts of America in the organization’s expansive “perversion files,” even though he had only a tangential interest in the organization, reports Kevin Rector of the Sun.

PRIVATE COP OVERSIGHT: Following the Sun piece on the powers of private security guards, Baltimore City and state legislators say they will push for greater regulation of longstanding but little-known laws that allow security guards to be granted law enforcement powers to arrest and search citizens, report Justin Fenton and Luke Broadwater in the Sun.

About The Author

Cynthia Prairie

cynthiaprairie@gmail.com
https://www.chestertelegraph.org/

Contributing Editor Cynthia Prairie has been a newspaper editor since 1979, when she began working at The Raleigh Times. Since then, she has worked for The Baltimore News American, The Chicago Sun-Times, The Prince George’s Journal and Baltimore County newspapers in the Patuxent Publishing chain, including overseeing The Jeffersonian when it was a two-day a week business publication. Cynthia has won numerous state awards, including the Maryland State Bar Association’s Gavel Award. Besides compiling and editing the daily State Roundup, she runs her own online newspaper, The Chester Telegraph. If you have additional questions or comments contact Cynthia at: cynthiaprairie@gmail.com

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