Listen to this articleMOORE ANNOUNCES NEW CABINET PICKS: Maryland Gov.-elect Wes Moore (D) named six more department heads to his cabinet Thursday, with an eye toward making it the most diverse collection of top state officials ever. Article includes photos and bios. Bill Zorzi/Maryland Matters (No paywall)
- Moore announced nominations Thursday for six cabinet positions, including fellow Army veterans as heads of the state health and veterans affairs departments and a former Microsoft executive with experience in the Obama administration as labor secretary. Hannah Gaskill/Baltimore Sun
- Moore is tapping medical leadership veteran Dr. Laura Herrera Scott as the next Maryland secretary of health. Herrera Scott has worked as a vice president at Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, held the position of medical director of population and community health at Johns Hopkins Healthcare and served as deputy secretary of public health under former Gov. Martin O’Malley. Scott Maucione/WYPR (No paywall)
FORMER U.S. ATTORNEY IN MD TO LEAD BIDEN INVESTIGATION: Robert Hur, the former Trump-appointed U.S. attorney in Maryland, was appointed as special counsel to investigate the presence of documents with classified markings found at President Joe Biden’s home in Wilmington, Delaware, and at an office in Washington. He takes over from the top Justice Department prosecutor in Chicago, John Lausch, who was earlier assigned by the department to investigate the matter. Zeke Miller and Eric Tucker/Associated Press in WBAL AM (No Paywall)
- The appointment comes after the White House revealed Thursday morning that more classified documents from President Joe Biden’s time as vice president were discovered outside of secure government facilities, this time in the garage at his Wilmington, Delaware home. Jennifer Shutt and Jacob Fischler/Maryland Matters (No paywall)
- Hur served as Deputy U.S. Attorney for more than a decade in Maryland leading the investigations of former Mayor Catherine Pugh and other convicted politicians. Jeff Abell/WBFF (No paywall)
WITH PUBLIC SAFETY PRIORITY, COMMITTEE LEADER INTRODUCES GUN CONTROL BILLS: A series of gun control proposals are before the General Assembly this year, including a unique approach to address ghost guns. David Collins/WBAL TV (No paywall)
PRE-FILED BILLS INCLUDE GUN CONTROL, CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE MEASURES: As the 2023 session gets underway, lawmakers are expected to consider legislation that would tighten restrictions for concealed carry gun permits and expand civil liability for child sexual abuse. The measures were among the more than 250 pre-filed bills that were read across the desks in the House of Delegates and Senate on Wednesday afternoon. William J. Ford/Maryland Matters (No paywall)
OPINION: CONCEALED CARRY BILL IS ABSURD, UNCONSTITUTIONAL: A proposed bill would ban concealed carry in public places, but no person who intends to use a firearm to harm people in a place of public accommodation (which by the way includes gun ranges) is going to be stopped from doing so by the passage of this law. No, this law is aimed squarely at law-abiding gun owners whose constitutional right to carry legally in Maryland was restored after the Supreme Court’s decision in NYSRPA v. Bruen. Brian Griffiths/The Duckpin (No paywall)
LAWMAKERS GIVE PREVIEW TO SESSION AT LEGISLATIVE BREAKFAST: State lawmakers said Maryland’s 90-day legislative session will be dominated by recreational cannabis, public education, and other issues as they gave business leaders an overview at the Anne Arundel Chamber of Commerce’s Legislative Breakfast on Jan. 10 in Annapolis. George Berkheimer/Business Monthly (No paywall)
IVEY FAMILY NOW AT ALL LEVELS OF POLITICS: With Glenn Ivey’s election to Congress in Maryland’s 4th District, the Ivey family has completed a rare trifecta: a family of elected officials at every level of government — local, state and federal, each representing Prince George’s County. Meagan Flynn/Washington Post
MARYLAND COLLEGE SAVINGS 529 PROBLEMS PERSIST, LAWMAKERS CONCERNED: Problems with Maryland’s popular prepaid college trust tuition program have affected almost 500 families across the state. The complaint caught the attention of Anne Arundel County Sen. Sarah Elfreth, D-District 30, who sent a letter that was signed by more than two-dozen other lawmakers to the colleges and universities where students are attending on 529 plans. Tim Tooten/WBAL TV (No paywall)
UPROAR AT COLUMBIA ASSOCIATION OVER BOARD/CEO DISPUTE: Twenty-four hours after Columbia Association President and CEO Lakey Boyd said she had no choice but to be transitioned out of her role, residents of Maryland’s second-largest city packed the nonprofit’s boardroom Thursday night to testify in support of the embattled leader and demand transparency from the board. Ethan Ehrenhaft/Baltimore Sun Media
