April Showers Bring May Flowers April Fool's Day has come and gone. The Easter Bunny has done the same. The Christians and Jews brought families together during Easter and Passover celebrations. Along with these expressions of faith is good news:

In Maryland, the Orioles won two out of three first-of-season games against the N.Y. Yankees. In world news we watched the rescue of U.S. merchant ship captain, Richard Phillips, from Somali pirate captors reminiscent of Captain Hook in the Peter Pan adventures. With impressive precision, Navy Seal sharpshooters picked off three of the assailants with direct shots to the head and the American captain escaped unharmed on a lifeboat.

These are success stories, but let us examine springtime on the horizon. As Suzanne Wills notes with her usual wisdom, there are always "dandelions among the daffodils", at least on the Wills lawn!

The Usual "Maryland Government=Politics" News

Life, limb and property are safe, once again, as the Maryland Legislature adjourns. The Stimulus continues in the spirit of "a trillion here, a trillion there, and soon we'll be talking about real money". When colorful Senator Everett Dirksen first spoke those words in the Lyndon Johnson era, the amount was only "a million here, a million there."

Remembering the words of the late and Paul Harvey: "Now, here's the rest of the story"...

"During the 90 days yearly that the General Assembly meets, both man and God fear the worst". With ironic humor, George Delaplaine, longtime publisher and writer, gives this observation in his monthly "Dear colleagues, friends and relatives" letter. George is simply expressing the view that life, limb and property will become safe again as the Maryland State House empties of politicians this week. As Frederick County's premiere commentator, George brings us his usual wisdom and wit to observations about Maryland government, best described as a "quixotic" environment. Let us look at the landscape of this "Free State's" environment:

The State Budget: Is it Really Balanced?

Two months ago, Montgomery Gazette's astute political observer Barry Rascovar described Governor O'Malley's budget as a "mulligan", the golfer's description of getting a second chance when flubbing a tee shot. With the Maryland Legislature and the Obama Administration having been at work just two weeks, O'Malley decided to postpone action on immediate budget cuts and instead take a second swing at the $31.5 billion spending blueprint AFTER Congress acted on a pending stimulus package. Maryland was given a reprieve from its ongoing habit of ignoring a fundamental problem: that politicians allow their spending habits to overshadow willingness to raise taxes.

As of this week's closing of the General Assembly session, Maryland lawmakers plan to finalize a $14 billion budget that does not escape the plain simple truth: the politicians are delaying the most difficult decisions! Even with the Federal stimulus money, the Legislature will reconvene in another 9 months facing a budget gap that could exceed $1 billion.

Is this a failure to act with fiscal discipline, or is it just the Governor's "over-optimism" that an acquiescent Legislature will go along with the politics of postponement? The truth will come in 2010 when honest fiscal choices have to be made. The corresponding requirement is straight answers. Annapolis double talk will not work.

Neither will the maneuver of avoidance work; crossing one's political fingers does not guarantee that the economy will get better. There must be a willingness to deal with real fiscal problems in the same way that small businesses have to have sufficient income to cover expenses. Sufficient income applies to large corporations, as well as government. We have already seen bad outcome for some financial giants in avoiding fiscal discipline by the increase of corporate bonuses, beyond reason, untrammeled by reality.


Politics and the Preakness

Amidst all the political winds criss-crossing the State House, here's another: place the historic Pimlico racecourse in an "eminent domain" status to the Preakness race. Good or bad? Hard to prove either, but a local indicator of tough times during the current economic downturn does not necessarily warrant government control of the horseracing industry. Turning racetrack sites to eminent domain status is a disincentive to healthy competition that creates a better end result, particularly as we look to slots becoming part of changed racetrack operations. Somehow, the image of powerful Senate President Mike Miller, as a "legislative jockey" - even on a betting favorite - is not realistic. Magna is on the road to bankruptcy, and turning the Pimlico racecourse site into a shopping mall is not the answer. But, there are other entrepreneurs who are checking the racing landscape. Give them a chance without the interference of O'Malley, Miller, and Busch who will need to do serious budget balancing and management. Eminent domain is not a stimulus.


Problems and Prospects


Beyond the 90 days of rhetoric, some results from the General Assembly session are positive. But the bottom line remains: Maryland was able to avoid long-term hard decisions because of 2009 Federal stimulus help. Serious budget discipline will have to be applied in the coming months, including the willingness to exercise leadership from those who set fiscal policy. This challenge is well described by Delegate Susan Aumann this week.

A member of the Conference Committee for the 2010 Budget, Susan has been "where the rubber meets the road". Her summary recognizes the stimulus funding impact: "Growth in government spending is outpacing revenues and causing a deficit in Maryland ... I believe we should reduce the tax burden on our families and small businesses. During our deliberations, the Board of Revenue Estimates reported a downturn in revenues, and we had to trim the budget further."

As one who began a small public policy and communications business coinciding with the beginning of the Reagan era of 1980, I saw the impact of that Administration's move to reduce taxes on small business and individual executives as a core element of stimulating free enterprise to work. This policy is different from "super bonuses" to insulated executives who may need to face what I remember as a tough way to get started each morning: "Which client could fire me today?" Not easy, but it is only fair to recognize disproportionate taxes on small businesses is wrong.

Prospects

This commentary concludes with good news about wonderful Baltimore art centers, traditionally thought of as "museums". These special places are home for art in all of its creative forms and meaning.

The Baltimore Museum of Art, known to many of us as the BMA, home of the Cone sisters’ collection that brought Matisse, Picasso and their contemporaries to Baltimore, is a special place tied to childhood memories when BMA's Adelyn Dohme Breeskin, a second cousin, was the first woman director of a major national museum. It was cousin Adelyn who brought the Cone collection to Baltimore.

The American Visionary Art Museum, founded by the talented and energetic Rebecca Hoffberger, brings life, excitement and events to Baltimore's Federal Hill. The recent "Illuminated Exotic Ball' is as good as it gets for an evening of lively art as the environment for creatively dressed and motivated aficionados of modern art.

The Contemporary Museum is celebrating its 20th anniversary on Saturday May 9th at its 100 West Centre Street location. The Contemporary is proving that art is exciting and connected to celebration and is "going to Bollywood" to prove it!

Finally, congratulations to "Maryland Citizens for the Arts" that led the charge for lessening budget cuts for the arts initially planned by the Legislature. I was encouraged by BMA Director Doreen Bolger to combine my passion for art and watercolor with public interest lobbying. It was exciting to contact legislators to give art its fair share during these challenging economic times.  12:25 PM •