Nearly a dozen candidates, both Republican and Democrat, aiming to be Maryland’s next United States Congressional District Six representative came to the Washington County Free Library in downtown Hagerstown on Saturday to share their remarks with the community. The forum, sponsored by the Washington County branch of the NAACP, gave each candidate a couple minutes to introduce themselves to the dozens assembled in the upstairs conference room before moderator Eddie Peters, the president and owner of Vocal Expressions, asked candidates questions prepared in advance from the nonpartisan organization’s political action committee.

With Maryland’s 90-day legislative session ending Monday night, lawmakers Friday remained at odds over the future of horse racing in the state and the process through which colleges and universities receive approval for new academic programs, among other issues. The Senate and House of Delegates say they’ve reached consensus on most major policy proposals, including the budget, juvenile justice reform and new regulations for utility marketing and sales, though it remains to be seen which bills will be rammed through in the final hours of session and which will fall short.

Greater Baltimore’s wealthiest resident in 2023 moved to Florida, and now his cousin and business partner is the region’s richest man. Billionaire Jim Davis of Cockeysville, 64, is worth $4.4 billion, according to Forbes’ 2024 World’s Billionaires List. At No. 712 on the list, that leaves Davis as the richest man in Greater Baltimore after his cousin — Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti — moved to Hobe Sound, Florida.

As it is with most things we take for granted, the shocking collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge has reminded us, now that it’s gone, how vital the structure was to the region’s operations. Its loss, along with the effect of the wreckage on the Port of Baltimore, has threatened the livelihood of thousands of workers and caused supply chain disruptions along the East Coast. Many area residents have reached out to share personal connections to the landmark.

In the Senate chamber, lawmakers moved swiftly through dozens of bills in a Saturday afternoon session. The legislative flow was only disrupted occasionally, due to brief technical errors, confusion over which bills were being discussed, or senators away from their seats when they were supposed to lead floor discussion on legislation.

As the clock ticked closer to the end of this year’s Maryland General Assembly session — and with scores of bills still to pass — the longest debate during a Saturday gathering of the House of Delegates was one that’s been ongoing for a half-century. The Equal Rights Amendment, which proponents say would bolster protections for women in the U.S. Constitution, has always been the subject of fierce debates in state legislative chambers and in the halls of Congress.

 

U.S. Rep. David Trone was hospitalized Saturday for feeling dehydrated and running a fever forcing him to withdraw from a scheduled Sunday afternoon face-off in Dundalk with his U.S. Senate Democratic primary opponent, Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks. What was going to be the first Democratic candidate debate of the U.S. Senate race, had to pivot to a question-answer format.

 

 

Two local craft beverage companies are joining forces to open an “all day and all night” concept in Timonium. Aveley Farms Coffee Roasters and Diamondback Brewing Company announced on Friday that they’re planning a venture that will be a mash-up of both: a roastery and café from Aveley and a brewery, taproom and pizza kitchen from Diamondback.

 

Gov. Wes Moore (D) is understandably and necessarily consumed with the Francis Scott Key bridge disaster and its myriad impacts. But the ship of state continues sailing, and as House and Senate leaders continue to clash over the governor’s $63 billion operating budget proposal in the waning days of the General Assembly session, some lawmakers wish they would get stronger signals about the administration’s preferences for how to resolve their differences.

What does it say that Gov. Wes Moore has to hat-in-hand seek Republican support for emergency aid to address last week’s collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge? And not just help to build a new bridge, but also to simply drag away the remnants of the 47-year-old span so Baltimore’s port can reopen and the nation’s supply chain can be fully restored? When a hurricane hits a Gulf Coast state, do we debate whether the federal government should help affected communities rebuild washed-out roads?