RASKIN WON’T RUN FOR CARDIN’s SENATE SEAT: U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin said Friday he will not run next year for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by the retirement of Democrat Ben Cardin. Jeff Barker/The Baltimore Sun.
- Raskin, 60, a member of the House select committee that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol and was the lead manager of former president Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial, announced the decision Friday after months of speculation about his political future. Ovetta Wiggins and Erin Cox/The Washington Post.
- “I am profoundly grateful …to those from all over Maryland who have strongly encouraged me to run for the U.S. Senate seat,” Raskin said in a lengthy statement. “If these were normal times, I am pretty sure that this is what I would be announcing now.” Louis Peck/MoCo360.
DEAL TO HELP W. MARYLAND UTILITY CUSTOMERS TO GOOD TO BE TRUE? The Maryland Public Service Commission took a vote recently that could save electric ratepayers millions of dollars and accelerate the closing of one of the state’s last remaining coal plants. It sounds like a win-win situation for the climate and consumers — and that may turn out to be the case. But nothing is ever simple when it comes to policies and regulations that govern electric utilities. Josh Kurtz/Maryland Matters.
POLITICAL BRIEFS: JAWANDO CAMPAIGNS; ENERGY POLL; PLAYING BOTH SIDES: Montgomery County councilmember and U.S. Senate candidate Will Jawando (D) traveled across the border to neighboring Prince George’s County Thursday evening to tell a few stories. The Maryland Choose Who You Use Coalition, a 501c4 advocacy organization, is out with a poll showing that Maryland consumers favor more competition in the gas and electric supply margins. National climate organization F Minus is targeting lobbying firms in state capitals that represent both the fossil fuel industry and clean energy entities. This week, the group’s website and 50-state database of registered lobbyists went live. William Ford and Josh Kurtz/Maryland Matters.
OPINION: SEN. WEST ON DONALD TRUMP: Ever since Donald Trump descended that escalator in 2015, I have been asked how I feel about Mr. Trump. Until now, I have nearly always declined to speak publicly about this subject because, first as a state delegate and, since 2018, as a state senator, my work representing my constituents has had nothing to do with Mr. Trump. I work on state issues, not federal issues. Mr. Trump has only focused on Washington, D.C., while I have focused exclusively on issues arising in Annapolis. Sen. Chris West/Maryland Reporter.
ARUNDEL SCHOOLS FLAG BAN PROPOSAL LIKELY DEAD: As a vote on a proposed Anne Arundel County schools ban on flags that don’t “promote national, state, and local government pride” approaches, at least four school board members have expressed opposition to the measure, meaning it’s likely to fail. At least five of eight members must vote yes for a proposal to be approved. Megan Loock/The Capital Gazette.
OPINION: DOBBS COULD BE A GIFT TO MARYLAND: It has not yet dawned on Maryland Gov. Wes Moore or Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott that the uncertainty of access to abortion induced by Dobbs may be a gift similar to the Welfare Reform Act of 1996 for Baltimore and Maryland in addressing their most serious social problem: family breakdown and the attendant crime and delinquency. Baltimore’s vital interest in socializing its minority young is being subordinated to a vote-buying agenda promising short-sighted college coeds a moral climate fostering situation ethics and free love. As the post-Dobbs statistics relating to unwed motherhood improve, it is to be hoped that the governor and mayor will withdraw from their exposed positions. George Liebmann/The American Conservative.
ROSENBERG CALLS FOR ACTION OVER B’MORE HOUSING ISSUE: Just hours after The Brew published an article chronicling what they say are long-standing serious maintenance issues at the northwest Baltimore property, state Del. Sandy Rosenberg was calling for action. Laura Fay/The Baltimore Brew.
MARYLAND PONDERS HOW TO ADDRESS RENTAL HOUSING CRISES: Housing advocates in New York state mounted a fierce campaign in support of a once-obscure policy called “just cause eviction,” which requires that landlords provide a valid reason such as unpaid rent or property damage, for removing tenants. Since 2019, California, Oregon and Washington have all adopted “just” or “good” cause policies, while Maryland, Colorado, Connecticut and New York considered them. More than 20 cities — including Baltimore and Washington, D.C. — also have adopted some form of just cause protections, often over the objections of landlords. Caitlin Dewey/Maryland Matters.
MARSHALL PORTRAIT TO HANG IN CITY HALL PRIOR TO NEW HOME: A portrait honoring civil rights lawyer and U.S. Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall will hang in Baltimore’s City Hall before moving to a new education and community resource center in West Baltimore. Aliza Worthington/Baltimore Fishbowl.
BALTIMORE SHOOTINGS CHALLENGE SCOTT ADMINISTRATION: In the aftermath of an early morning shooting that injured more than two dozen people and left two young people dead, Mayor Brandon Scott’s administration has flooded the southernmost tip of the city. The Scott administration’s response is a challenge and an opportunity less than a year from when Baltimore voters will decide whether to grant him a second term. Hallie Miller and Tim Prudente/The Baltimore Banner.
