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Md. lawmakers accuse Gov. Hogan of ‘assaults on ... our black communities’ Md. lawmakers accuse Gov. Hogan of ‘assaults on ... our black communities’
(about 2 hours later)
Maryland’s African-American lawmakers on Thursday blasted Republican Gov. Larry Hogan for policies they said are hurting black communities, the first time the governor has faced such explicit racial condemnation from Democratic politicians since taking office last year. Maryland’s African-American lawmakers on Thursday blasted Gov. Larry Hogan for policies they said are hurting black communities, the first time the Republican governor has faced such explicit racial condemnation from Democrats since taking office last year.
During a news conference, lawmakers tore into Hogan and reiterated other long-standing objections to actions by his administration, including Hogan’s decision to kill the Red Line light rail project in Baltimore and fund transportation projects elsewhere and to withhold extra education funding last year that was slated for Baltimore City, Prince George’s and other counties. They went further than their usual criticism by accusing Hogan of neglecting black residents in favor of the rural areas that overwhelmingly voted for him in 2014. During a news conference, lawmakers tore into Hogan and reiterated long-standing objections to actions by his administration, including the governor’s decision to kill the Red Line light-rail project in Baltimore and fund transportation projects elsewhere and to withhold extra education funding last year that was slated for Baltimore City, Prince George’s and other counties.
They accused Hogan of neglecting the black residents who make up 30 percent of the state’s population in favor of those who live in the rural, mostly white areas that overwhelmingly voted for him in 2014.
[NAACP challenges cancellation of Baltimore Red Line project][NAACP challenges cancellation of Baltimore Red Line project]
“There are assaults going on on our black communities across the state,” Del. Curt Anderson (D-Baltimore) said after the meeting of the Legislative Black Caucus of Maryland. “We are not going to take it any more. . . . We are not stupid. We know what’s going on, and we are going to retaliate.” “There are assaults going on on our black communities,” Del. Curt Anderson (D-Baltimore) said after the meeting of the Legislative Black Caucus of Maryland. “We are not going to take it any more. . . . We are not stupid. We know what’s going on, and we are going to retaliate.”
Hogan spokesman Douglass Mayer called the criticisms leveled by the black caucus “a new low” in Annapolis. Hogan spokesman Douglass Mayer called the criticisms “a new low” in Annapolis, where Democrats hold large majorities in both legislative chambers, and Hogan’s defeat of the state’s longtime lieutenant governor in 2014 came as a shock to the Democratic establishment.
“Members of the General Assembly have just accused the governor of racism,” Mayer said. “This is the last, desperate act of legislators who refuse to discuss actual policy or solutions to real problems.”“Members of the General Assembly have just accused the governor of racism,” Mayer said. “This is the last, desperate act of legislators who refuse to discuss actual policy or solutions to real problems.”
The governor prides himself on a diverse family and administration. His wife Yumi was born in Korea, and he selected Boyd Rutherford, an African American, as his lieutenant governor. Hogan prides himself on a diverse family and administration. His wife Yumi was born in Korea, and he selected Boyd Rutherford, an African American, as his lieutenant governor.
The unusually harsh language comes after a sharp dispute between the Democratic-controlled General Assembly and the first-term governor over whether to allow felons to vote while they are on parole or probation. Hogan campaigned in inner-city Baltimore in 2014, a relatively unusual tactic for a Republican. He has launched initiatives to benefit the city in the wake of last spring’s riots, including a program to provide free books for young children and a proposal for six-year schools that combine high school and college.
Hogan vetoed a bill that would have granted those voting rights, saying felons should not get to vote until their punishments are complete. Democratic majorities in both chambers recently overrode the veto, meaning the law will take effect next month, in time for up to 44,600 Marylanders, a disproportionate number of whom are African American and live in heavily Democratic Baltimore, to register for the April 26 primary.
[Maryland Senate overrides Hogan’s veto of felon voting bill]
After the override, Hogan accused Democrats of voting against the will of the vast majority of state residents and said some could lose their seats over the issue.
Del. Barbara Robinson (D-Baltimore), leader of the black caucus, singled out Hogan’s plans to fund a new Baltimore City jail while deferring projects at historically black colleges when she said she “absolutely” believes his actions are racially motivated.
Even as the news conference was going on, Hogan — in a separate appearance on WBAL radio — said he was trying to reduce spending on a jail that lawmakers had wanted.
“The idea that I want to take money away from kids to incarcerate people and build a jail is simply nonsense,” said Hogan. “If they don’t want this jail in Baltimore, I don’t want it either.”
Robinson later Thursday said she still believes Hogan’s actions are racially motivated as long as projects benefiting black residents remain unfunded.
“Instead of coming to Baltimore and saying what Baltimore needs, he needs to listen to what the people in Baltimore say we need,” said Robinson.
Mayer said the complaints by the black caucus aren’t factual. Among other things, Hogan has launched efforts to demolish vacant buildings in mostly African-American parts of Baltimore and eventually replace them with new development. He also has pushed new educational initiatives in the city.
[Hogan unveils plans to knock down vacant Baltimore blocks][Hogan unveils plans to knock down vacant Baltimore blocks]
“Since taking office, the governor has spent more time in Baltimore City than any other jurisdiction and has invested more state dollars in regions of the state that are predominantly African American than anyplace else,” Mayer said. “There is not a single statement, fact or anything else that supports the lie that was perpetrated this morning.” Black lawmakers say they are furious that Hogan, among other things, did not include funding for a hospital in Prince George’s County and for demolition of blighted properties in Baltimore in his initial budget proposal (he announced funding for both after an outcry).
Black caucus members said Hogan wouldn’t meet with them until April 7, near the end of session. But Mayer said the governor offered to meet with them in early March, on a different day of the week than the regular caucus meeting. Del. Barbara Robinson (D-Baltimore), leader of the black caucus, singled out Hogan’s plans to fund a new Baltimore City jail while deferring projects at historically black colleges, saying she “absolutely” believes his actions are racially motivated.
The feud is the latest example of the governor and lawmakers saying routine political bickering is overheating and crossing a line. Democrats blamed the governor’s rhetoric for a deluge of hateful messages sent their way after the override of the felon voting bill, and condemned him for Thursday remarks on WBAL that lawmakers are treating session like spring break. “Instead of coming to Baltimore and saying what Baltimore needs, he needs to listen to what the people in Baltimore say we need,” Robinson said.
“This is not a good day for the governor,” Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. (D-Calvert) told reporters Thursday. “He’s got a fine personality, and he needs to use it to find his way.” Hogan — in a separate appearance on WBAL radio on Thursday — said the jail project was an effort to cut costs and improve correctional services, and had been requested by lawmakers.
House Minority Leader Nicholaus R. Kipke (R-Anne Arundel) says the attacks on Hogan are mean-spirited and politically motivated. “The idea that I want to take money away from kids to incarcerate people and build a jail is simply nonsense,” said Hogan. “If they don’t want this jail in Baltimore, I don’t want it either.”
“The majority party is desperate to knock down the governor’s approval ratings, so they come up with these distracting political shows in an attempt to drag the governor into defending himself,” said Kipke. Hogan clashed sharply with Democrats last week over the General Assembly’s decision to allow felons to vote while they are on parole or probation — a change that advocates say will make up to 44,600 Marylanders, many of them black and from Baltimore, eligible to go to the polls.
[Maryland Senate overrides Hogan’s veto of felon voting bill]
Hogan vetoed a 2015 bill that would have granted those voting rights, saying felons should not get to vote until their punishments are complete. Democrats last week overrode the veto, meaning the law will take effect next month, in time for the April 26 primary.
After the override, Hogan accused Democratic lawmakers of voting against the will of the vast majority of state residents and said some could lose their seats over the issue. Democrats then blamed the governor’s rhetoric for a deluge of hateful messages they said they were receiving.
The sniping on Thursday wasn’t limited to the black caucus news conference. In the radio interview, Hogan of accused Democratic lawmakers of acting like they were “on spring break” during the 90-day legislative session, and denounced several bills they are considering that would limit his authority on the budget and other issues.
Sen. Bobby Zirkin then took to the Senate floor to demand an apology. Hogan spokesman Doug Mayer later said Zirkin “needs to learn to take a joke.”
By Thursday afternoon, lawmakers who were taking up bills in committee meetings were tweeting about their work with the hashtag #notspringbreak, and the phrase was trending on Twitter.
Ovetta Wiggins contributed to this report.