Politics

The Democrats vying for the open attorney general seat are just a few dollars apart when it comes to the size of their campaign war chests. On the other hand, former prosecutor James F. Shalleck — the only Republican to enter the race for attorney general thus far — has reported just a trickle of donations. U.S. Rep. Anthony G. Brown (D) reported having $617,520 on hand Wednesday, after raising $647,000 over the previous year.

Ivan Bates, one of two Democrats challenging Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby has out-fundraised her in the year leading up to the election by more than $43,000, campaign finance reports show. Bates, a defense attorney who ran for state’s attorney in 2018, reported raising $361,707 over the last year in a campaign finance report filed Wednesday. Of that, $128,000 was self-financed by a loan Bates made to the campaign.

It’s been well known for the better part of a year that Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby and Council President Nick Mosby were the subject of a federal investigation into their finances. Late Wednesday it was revealed the power couple spent thousands of dollars of campaign funds on high-powered law firms. In reports filed with the state, both Mosbys reported legal expenses paid out to multiple law firms over the course of the most recent reporting period, which encompassed most of 2021.

The Maryland Senate spent nearly $200,000 to construct a flag-draped platform for members of the chamber to conduct television interviews, Senate President Bill Ferguson (D-Baltimore) announced on Thursday. The money was used to install television lights, monitors, an audio system, a Capitol Hill-style lectern, American and Maryland flags, plush candy apple red carpeting, and a raised platform. Ferguson used the set-up for the first time on Wednesday, the first day of the legislature’s 90-day session.

Maryland’s state lawmakers returned Wednesday to Annapolis for their annual legislative session, with the coronavirus pandemic continuing to weigh on their minds and alter their procedures. Over the course of 90 days, they’ll wrestle with issues ranging from legalizing marijuana and addressing violent crime to spending a rare multibillion dollar budget surplus and setting the state on a path to combat climate change.

In spite of soaring COVID-19 infections and hospitalizations, the General Assembly’s pandemic safety protocols are shaping up to be much different — and more publicly accessible in some ways — than what occurred during the 2021 session. The public will be allowed in the State House and House and Senate office buildings, and lawmakers will be able to welcome visitors to their offices on a limited basis. But hearings will still be held virtually — for at least a month in the Senate, and possibly for the entire three-month session in the House.

For Maryland lawmakers, there’s always a fundraising scramble in early January leading up to the start of the General Assembly session, when a 90-day blackout on raising money kicks in for state legislators, the governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general and comptroller. According to lists of political events supplied by three Annapolis lobbying firms, at least 55 fundraisers for state lawmakers are on tap between Monday and the evening of Jan. 11, hours before the annual legislative session begins on Jan. 12. That’s pretty standard for this time of year.