By Len Lazarick
The Ringling Brothers circus closed earlier this year, and it looked like lobbyist Bruce Bereano had bought one of their tents as the longtime Annapolis influencer hosted the biggest gathering at the annual J. Millard Tawes Clam Bake and Crab Feast in Crisfield Wednesday.
It’s one of few truly bipartisan political events of the year, as left, right and center bent over steamed crabs, clam strips and Smith Island cake. The guests themselves got hot and steamy under the big tent on one of the hottest days of the year.
I’ve long ago given up trying to create a narrative out of a series of brief conversations and genial schmoozing. It’s hard to be uptight when everyone is sweaty and cleaning off crab spices to shake hands.
Here’s a gallery of snapshots by MarylandReporter.com. Like all content on this website, they are published a Creative Commons License allowing anyone to use the images with attribution to MarylandReporter.com.
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- Comptroller Peter Franchot and lobbyist Bruce Bereano at the vestibule of Bereano’s big tent. MarylandReporter.com photos
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- Gov. Larry Hogan does a TV interview in one of the brief moments when he wasn’t posing for pictures for anyone who asked.
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- Del. Shelly Hettleman, D-Baltimore County, Sen. Cheryl Kagan, D-Montgomery, and Del. Mary Beth Carozza, R-Worcester — all have been mentioned as considering a run for higher office next year.
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- Father and son: Former Senate Finance Committee chair Tommy Bromwell, left, talks to Del. Steve Arentz, R-Queen Anne’s, and Del. Eric Bromwell, D-Baltimore County, vice chair of Health and Government Operations Committee, talks with lobbyist Bob Douglas (back to camera).
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- Shore buddies: Dels. Steve Arentz, R-Queen Anne’s, left, and Johnny Mautz, R-Middle Shore.
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- Governor’s legislative staff: Kieffer Mitchell and Ali Kean as Matt Palmer tries to lean out of the photo.
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- Del. C.T. Wilson, D-Charles, talks with middle school science teacher Rachel Lazarick-Ward. She admired his appearance in the Netflix series “The Keepers.”
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- Former delegates Bob Costa, R-Anne Arundel, and Jon Cardin, D-Baltimore County, who ran for attorney general.
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- Former delegate Melony Griffith, left, with ex-Sen. Gloria Lawlah, former secretary of Dept. of Aging. Griffith’s run for Senate to replace retiring Sen. Ulysses Currie in Prince George’s County has now been endorsed by most of the political establishment.
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- Hogan Chief of Staff Sam Maholtra with former state schools superintendent Nancy Grasmick.
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- Sen. Rich Madaleno, D-Montgomery, announced his run for governor Tuesday. Here he is with Juliette Bell, president of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore in Prince Anne, which you pass on the way to Crisfield.
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- Former Sen. Tommy Bromwell, right, shares a laugh with Sen. Joan Carter Conway as Deputy Transportation Secretary Jim Ports, a former Republican delegate who represented a Baltimore County district with Bromwell, joins in. Conway says she’ll be back in front row seat as chair of the Education, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee come January.
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- Del. Vanessa Atterbeary, D-Howard, and Del. Dereck Davis, D-Prince George’s, chair of the Economic Matters Committee.
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- Former senator Sandy Schrader, director of intergovernmental for Howard County talks with Hogan Chief Legislative Officer Chris Shank, another former Republican senator.
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- As he worked the big tent, Comptroller Peter Franchot talks to former Harford County executive Eileen Rehrmann.
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- Dels. Eric Luedtke, D-Montgomery, and Carlo Sanchez, D-Prince George’s.
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- John Fiastro, director of government affairs with the Maryland Energy Administration, and Del. Charles Barkley, D-Montgomery. Republican Fiastro will likely run for delegate in District 42, Baltimore County, where he once chaired the central committee. Barkley is running for Montgomery County Council.
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- Sun reporter Pam Wood is hard at work interviewing Prince George’s County Executive Rushern Baker, a Democratic candidate for governor. Wood produced two stories out of the event in addition to the videos.
Ringling Brothers Circus may be gone, but Maryland has a never ending and non-entertaining circus called the Legislature…
Great photos!