Monday, May 6, 2013
A Quinnipiac University poll shows the Maryland governor in the back of the pack regardless of whether or not Hillary Clinton decides to run in 2016.
The early prospects for 2016 White House bid for Gov. Martin O'Malley are dim, according to one national poll. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton would get 65 percent of the vote in a Democratic primary, according to a poll released last week by Quinnipiac University. Trailing Clinton is current Vice President Joseph Biden and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo with 13 and 4 percent of the vote respectively, according to the poll. O'Malley joins Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, and Virginia Sen. Mark Warner at the back of the pack. Each polled with 1 percent of less of the support in the national poll. If Clinton were to decide not to run, Biden becomes the frontrunner with 45 percent of those polled saying they would support the vice …
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
DREAM Act, expanded gambling and congressional redistricting also survive referendum challenges.
UPDATED (2:26 a.m.)—Same-sex marriage is the law in Maryland. The passage of the controversial law was the biggest win among a list of six other statewide ballot questions including the DREAM Act, expanded gambling and congressional redistricting that all also passed. Gov. Martin O'Malley took to the podium to address the Question 6 victory party at The Soundstage in Baltimore early Wednesday to chants of his last name. O'Malley thanked the crowd for all they had done "in this noble battle to move Maryland Forward." The governor praised supporters for all their hard work and for securing support for the controversial ballot question by talking to their families and their religious institutions. "You were carrying this banner of human …
Friday, November 2, 2012
Del. Pat McDonough urges voters to vote no on Question 4.
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Friday, November 2, 2012
The burden on the citizen taxpayer will never stop if the so-called Maryland Dream Act is allowed to become law. Let us put aside emotional misinformation and whip out our calculators. One illegal alien student completing a four-year college program will cost the taxpayers up to $42,000. It breaks down to an $8,000 tuition discount for two years of community college and a $32,000 discount for two years at the University of Maryland. The advocates for the Dream Act claim that only one percent of the student body statewide will be illegal aliens. That translates into 1,500 Dream Act students per year, costing the taxpayers $63,000 annually. When all four classes are established and in place, taxpayers will be compelled to pay $228 million a …
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
The outspoken state delegate spoke to CCBC students and community members about the bill, which was sent to referendum for the November ballot.
If a controversial ballot question passes next month, state Del. Pat McDonough said Tuesday, the first thing he will do on Nov. 7 would be to start readying a case for federal court. "It won't be over on Nov. 6, probably no matter what happens, no matter who loses," McDonough said. McDonough, a Middle River Republican who represents portions of Baltimore and Harford counties, made the remarks during a forum on the Maryland Dream Act at the Community College of Baltimore County-Essex, in front of a crowd of about two dozen, mostly CCBC students. The Dream Act, patterned after similar legislation in 11 other states, would guarantee in-state college tuition for illegal immigrants, provided, among other things, that they spent at least three …
Thursday, October 18, 2012
How will you vote on the Congressional redistricting plan on Nov. 6?
In addition to more notable referendum questions such as same-sex marriage, DREAM Act and expanded gambling, Maryland voters will also be asked to decide the fate of the state's recently redrawn congressional districts. Earlier this week, Comptroller Peter Franchot announced he intends to vote against the maps and asked voters to do the same. The comptroller said the recent maps drawn by Gov. Martin O'Malley and approved by the General Assembly are unfair and make Maryland "the poster child for gerrymandering." A spokeswoman for the governor noted that the maps have survived a number of challenges in the courts and that the process used to create them is legally sound. Voters on Nov. 6 will be asked to vote for the referred law or against …
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Community colleges and four-year universities could lose revenue and might have to reduce the number of classes offered or increase tuition.
Voter approval of a bill granting in-state tuition to some illegal immigrants could have economic benefits totalling $66 million annually, according to a study released this week. The study, released by the Maryland Institute for Policy Analysis and Research at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, also found that costs to community colleges and four-year universities may not be fully covered by state subsidies. The shortfall could result in either an increase in tuition or the reduction of classes offered. Authors wrote that the study highlights "that by increasing educational attainment, the DREAM Act will increase lifetime earnings of beneficiaries, as well as tax revenues." [A copy of the study is attached to this article.] …
Friday, September 28, 2012
A Deer Park Middle School teacher is a speaker at a Saturday neighborhood canvassing event in Baltimore supporting the act.
Baltimore County teacher David Cooper said he was growing uncomfortable talking to his students about college when he knew they didn't all have a fair chance of attending. Cooper, a seventh grade math teacher at Deer Park Middle School, is one of the speakers at a Saturday Baltimore event defending the Maryland DREAM Act, which would allow certain undocumented immigrants to attend state colleges at in-state tuition rates, ahead of the November ballot. Following the press conference, supportors will canvass Baltimore neighborhoods to discuss the issue. "I have a hard time as a teacher telling students they have equal rights to college when they don't," he said. Cooper, whose class theme is Dream Chasers, said there are a good number of …
Thursday, August 30, 2012
With two months until Election Day, a new campaign is launched to win two controversial ballot initiatives.
Casa de Maryland, the state’s largest immigrant advocacy organization, and Equality Maryland, the largest LGBT rights group, have forged an alliance to convince voters to approve same-sex marriage and to allow certain college-bound illegal immigrant students to pay in-state tuition. Dubbed “Familia es Familia,” the campaign launched Tuesday in Langley Park with advocates framing same-sex marriage and the Maryland Dream Act as kindred causes grounded in a family-first sensibility. The campaign will draw its persuasive power from the personal experiences of young, LGBT immigrants. Montgomery County Councilwoman Nancy Navarro told the story of her brother Pedro, who came out to her and her sister 17 years ago, reported The Washington Blade…
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Supporters say law gives students who are illegal immigrants "a level playing field."
Karina is a "Dreamer." She says she's not the only one. The 22-year-old illegal immigrant and Montgomery College student spoke Wednesday at a news conference at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County to kick off Educating Maryland Kids, an effort to pass the Maryland DREAM Act. "My mother has always told me that education is the path to my success and I very much believe that," said the woman who was only identified by her first name. Karina, who plans on graduating next year with dual associate degrees in general studies and mental health, called for support for a bill that would grant in-state tuition rates to students like herself who are in this country illegally or are considered undocumented immigrants. The law that would grant…
Monday, August 1, 2011
The lawsuit seeks to overturn successful petition drive.
UPDATED(3:43 p.m.)—Supporters of a bill granting in-state tuition rates to some illegal immigrants filed a lawsuit Monday seeking to overturn an effort to put the issue on the 2012 ballot. Casa De Maryland, in a statement released this morning, said the lawsuit was based on "illegalities discovered in the signatures submitted to and incorrectly validated by the Board as well as the grounds for relief." In all, opponents of the bill collected 132,071 signatures. The Maryland State Board of Elections certified that about 83 percent of those signatures—108,923— were valid. The bill was to have gone into effect on July 1 but is now on hold because of the referendum. Representatives of Casa De Maryland did not return calls from a reporter …
Maggie Mae McGrath
11:19 am on Wednesday, May 15, 2013
I had to listen to O'Malley speak about how much he has done for the state of Maryland during my daughter's commencement speech. Then President Urgo told us just think how much he can do nationally. I, along with most people there, just about threw up. more ›