And this is the huge "budgeting" success that Anthony Brown is more than happy to take credit for - a $188M structural deficit for the next governor to inherit which he has had 8 years to fix; 40 successive all completely REGRESSIVE taxes, not to mention a 3 percent tuition hike at Maryland State Colleges (which were already on shaky financial ground).
In the past two days, I have spoken to at least 100 people. I cannot begin to tell you how many times I have heard something akin to the following from blacks, whites, poor, middle class, and relatively well-off folks alike: "I have been a Democrat all my life. But after the last eight years - and it has absolutely nothing to do wht the President or the color of anybody's skin, I just don't know what I am going to do. We have lived here all our lives and set aside what we thought was going to be enough to live off in our old age. But Annapolis just doesn't get it. Not only have they passed laws and taxes that made every neighboring state much more competitive than Western Maryland, they keep raising taxes on everything. Of course gasoline is the worst. If you are going to tax gasoline like this, you should at least have a huge offset against some other tax. It'd be one thing if they were raising gas taxes to these levels and lowered income taxes. But no - they keep raising the fees for everything. We just can't afford to live here any more. And we can't even get half of what our property was valued at when we go to sell. Something has really got to change. Brown and O'Malley claim they care about us but they haven't done a single thing that has really helped the people of this state, with the exception possibly of one or two counties and even that is doubtful.
We are so fed up. I really can't tell you who I am going to vote for. Right now, I'd leave this state if I could - and as soon as I figure out how to, we're going to be gone. And whether these two idiots in Annapolis get it or not, it is all because of them."
Of course, Brown and O'Malley pass the buck and blame Glendenning.
Ridiculous.
Doug Gansler has specific aggressive proposals and plans - pages and pages and pages worth - on how to create jobs and stimulate industrial growth in this state and begin to make it competitive again. It is apparent that Brown and O'Malley have never listened to a word the Attorney General has had to say on this particular subject - and they certainly are not hearing the voters of this state.
The last person I can recall who was this completely out of touch with reality was the first George Bush with the "read my lips,no new taxes" statement.
And even he seemed to be more cognizant of the economic realities and currents about to drown him.
Is anyone the least bit surpirsed that Gansler has begun to very rapidly overtake Brown now that people are actually beginning to pay attention to this race?
I think not.
Also I think it noteworthy that Brian Frosh has once again pulled way upfront and is certain to be a force de majeure and very likely the Democratic nominee for Attorney General. Again, this is really a no brainer. Just sit down and compare the records, the public service, the difficult issues tackled, the very hard work and even handed approach with ultimate respect for the law and innovative applications of precdents to new and demonizing situations.
In the case of both Gansler and Frosh, we are looking at excellence and brilliance. The thing about excellence and brilliance is that it ought to amaze and impress people and command respect. It doesn't. As a very dear friend of mine, Shana Alexander (of 60 Minutes fame) once told me, "it doesn't. It scares people."
Many people are intimidated by such high quality leadership; they would prefer hum drum cronyism and lackadaiscal results because for reasons unfathomable they feel comfortable and secure with what they know and understand.
These are not ordinary times. The crises that face our state, our nation and, in fact, our world - and how we do or do not solve them - will determine whether humanity itself survives. The roaches will definitely survive. Humanity is much more fragile.
Your vote does matter. You owe it to yourself and to the entire world in one very broad sense to do your best to look at each of these candidates objectively. To take enough time to think through which is most likely to provide the truly heroic leadership to tomorrow - assuming we get to tomorrow - and to exercise a vote in this Democratic gubernatorial primary. This is the first time in as long as any one can remember that we have had a split Democratic gubernatorial run-off in a primary; there are enormously fundamental differences between the two leading contenders. One is the obvious champion, the true leader. The other pretends to be. Vote for Doug Gansler and Jolene Ivey either in early elections (Thurs Jun 11 to Thurs Jun 18, Sat and Sun inclusive) or on primary day Tues, June 22.
You can really make a difference. Your one vote does really count. The more of us who have been loyal and who have played by the rules and who are horrified by what we see our own party doing - not to mention mortified by the alternative - must make our voices known very loudly and very clearly. Doug Gansler is a champion for all of the people of the State of Maryland - regardless of county, color, creed, sex, age, gender identity, any of the things that those who seek to oppress commonly use to divide and conquer. We must unify - Doug Gansler will make job creation and bringing work back to this State and putting every person regardlesss of race, age, sex, gender, marginalization who wants to work to work at the very best possible job that that person can do! We deserve no less. If we as a nation can put a man on the moon in less than 10 yeas, there is no reason we can not put our entire population that wants to work to work at decent jobs. Stop taxing labor - tax energy consumption; that would encourage conservation. It would allow small and medium sized companies to hire large numbers of people and those people in turn would spend money bringing in sales taxes. In the end, the state would likely actually bring in more money and our entire workforce would be employed. Accepting this idea that so that some may work, some must always be unemployed is just plain buying into a very big and destructive lie. I realize that making a transition on this scale would not be easy but it does not have to be done overnight; it could be phased in gradually to be sure each piece works. In the meantime, this non stop REGRESSIVE tax tax tax policy without even an attempt to really go after new industry or new jobs has been so destructive. We must not let Brown continue it - or Maryland will be a ghosttown. Has anyone seeen Blazing Saddles? Know the true story of how the West was won? RAILROAD WORKERS. Paint the town red. It is time for the people of this State to take the power vested in them back into their own hands and to exercise a vote. And your vote has never been more critical.
http://thedailyrecord.com/eyeonannapolis/2014/01/15/mission-failure-omalley-budget-wont-erase-structural-deficit/#more-5310
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