THE POLITICIANS' SUPERBOWL - MARYLAND The problem of excess money put into election campaigns, attack advertisements and manipulative political "handlers" has become an incursion on democracy, benefiting a few who get rich off election campaigns-the longer, the richer.

Here in Maryland, we have been infected by a cross-barrage of attack ads between 4th Congressional candidates Pipkin, Gilchrest, and Harris, amounting to several millions for one Congressional seat. Two teams lead the competition in the Annapolis “Super Bowl” of politics-as-usual v. creative economic growth:

1. Maryland politics and one party power through a special session legacy from a Governor and Senate president who is quarterbacking potential damage to Maryland’s economy and technology sector, and

2. a growing coalition of computer service companies dubbed “our digital harbor” by then Mayor O’Malley, who as Governor, has permitted a 6% computer services sales tax without a corresponding reduction of state government spending.

It is a shame that such an enormity of funds is wasted on campaigns instead of helping the “real” people. Consider Jericho, a private and public sector project to help prisoners coming out of Baltimore jails matriculate into the "real world". In a highly competitive process, Jericho, funded by Episcopal Community Services (ECSM), a private non-profit human needs agency, earned a grant of $600,000 for 3 years. It has achieved to date, nearly 70% re-employment for many ex-prisoners who undergo intensive training in a small row house in the Collington Square section of east Baltimore. This section of town faces many challenges of drugs and crime, but citizens' work is being done to help disadvantaged children (the "ARK) and teenagers (the CLUB AT COLLINGTON SQUARE).

ECSM runs after-school youth assistance programs. As an ECSM Board member, I was among several volunteers last week who saw "JERICHO" prisoners reemerging into society. We had the opportunity to listen and learn what successful human recovery and help really means to people in struggling communities.President Bush was in attendance; and after his departure, one of the prisoners spoke to me with tears in his eyes : "There I was in jail 6 months ago! It was my birthday that I never cared about. But today the President told me 'happy birthday' and wished me luck! "

Another possible contender in Maryland’s “Super Bowl” might be Nancy Grasmick and public education. It appears that this competitor, an experienced, result-driven professional educator has already won. Did Governor O'Malley suddenly see the light when a tested professional was welcomed to continue her work as State Superintendent? The answer is probably more connected to the reality of improvement of school performance: a contrast with 12 underperforming Baltimore City schools that Nancy Grasmick offered to assist. It was Grasmick's offer to help that candidate-for-Governor O'Malley saw as a threat to his election prospects. But once elected, he saw the threat become votes of legislators that could displace his desire to politicize public school management.

In the Governor's fiscal 2009 operating budget, there are no additional funds for the Sellinger Program that supplements independent college support-a sharp contrast to a 9.1 % increase for public universities and 12% increases for community colleges.

Other contenders, independent colleges and universities, have been part of Maryland's system of higher education for 225 years. In effect, the proposed budget no longer includes independent higher education as a necessary part of our State's ability to balance essential support for all components of college education. If "politics as usual" wins, Maryland citizens lose on this one. Why? Maryland's independent colleges and universities receive 4% State funding for higher education, yet confer 25% of all degrees in the State. This is an investment in the future of ALL Maryland college students. It is neither wise nor right that,as a statutory program, Sellinger is undermined by a complex sounding "Budget Reconciliation and Financing Act" to sever the long-standing cooperation and link between public and independent college funding.

Might an upset over this kind of politics be successful in the Legislature's "4th quarter"?

Wouldn't it be better for this competitor to have a 4th quarter upset? Wouldn't it also be better if money poured into politician's attack ads could be diverted into more "Jerichos” of Maryland and the United States!

That's the kind of "Super Bowl" we all need! It leaves "politics as usual" where it belongs-behind the real priorities of technology growth, education/public and private, and real help to real people.

Labels: Governor O'Malley, Grasmick, Maryland politics

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FOR OUR COUNTRY: FOR OUR STATE: HAD ENOUGH? FOR OUR COUNTRY: HAD ENOUGH? VOTE INDEPENDANT!FOR OUR STATE : HAD ENOUGH? KEEP POLITICS OUT OF EDUCATION!

First , OUR COUNTRY

As the sun rises on the first cold day of 2008, a welcome to the new year is in order. Remember the days when Presidential campaigns were reasonable in length and not tied to campaign contributions that travel quickly ---

into the pockets of wheeler - dealer political "handlers" of the Karl Rove and the James Carville variety;
into the advertising cash registers of rhetoric-driven television commercials and advertising agencies;
into the relentless candidate sound bites, in Iowa & New Hampshire, out of the mouths of Hillary, Huckabee to all the others that promise a "new dawn" even more exciting than the Times Square image of the new year's arrival.

But, on the last day of last year -- December 31, 2007 -- an independent group of "centrists" / solution seekers have called for forming a "government of national unity"!

Surprise? the answer is "maybe", until the American voter notes who is sounding a trumpet call. As reported by respected Washington Post analyst David Broder, some past and current respected national leaders are calling for change. Look at a sampling of those sounding the alarm, in the spirit of Paul Revere, "Watch out! the partisan politicians are coming! "

Jack Danforth, former Missouri Senator and Episcopal minister who says that politics should not dominate one's faith;
Sam Nunn, former Georgia Senator whose leadership of the Senate Armed Services / Intelligence committees reached out for workable solutions to serious international problems;
Christie Todd Whitman, former New Jersey Governor and EPA Administrator, who saw the need for attention to the "Inconvenient Truth" of global warming being factored into environmental regulations;
Charles Robb, former Va. Senator , who has lent his experience to post-911 bipartisan commission work, based on crossing the line of Democratic -- Republican divide;
William Cohen, former Maine Senator and , as a Republican, served as Secy. of Defense during the Clinton Administration;
Charles Hagel, current Oklahoma Senator and Vietnam veteran, who has expressed concern with rigidity of both the Democratic and Republican party machinery during the current national and international issues, some of which have little past precedant. As 2 examples: globalization of trade and economic issues, the contrast of terrorism that cannot be easily anticipated by traditional military forces that won the 20th century's 2 world wars.

One of this growing group is Susan Eisenhower, personal friend with whom I have had the opportunity to work,as a Board member, of the Eisenhower Institute: a public policy center in Washington, that has takes a leadership role in practical steps towards more cooperation with Russia during the post-Soviet/Stalin era. During his private sector interlude, I worked directly with Chuck Hagel on a election /voting machine reform project that, several years later was proven to be valid during the "chads blizzard" in recent elections. I saw and admired Bill Brock, former Senator from Tennessee, when he -- after moving to Maryland -- worked to bring a broader base to this State's Republican party, then reduced to a narrow minority by the "boss-driven" control of the majority opposition.

What are these people and a growing number of others calling for? Answer and no surprise: Election of a respected leader not embedded to the consultants and the draw-down of millions of dollars being diverted from civic , education causes to which voters might contribute in preference to the online suction of money into campaign advertising and "fix it", overpaid political handlers.

The action line of this new "get the work done", moderate coalition , is to seek an "independent" candidate sufficiently tested in the battlefield of private sector and government management.
The person with whom this group is meeting in less than a week: Michael Bloomberg : no -nonsense Mayor of New York; preceded by private sector business leadership in the communications field and, in Baltimore -- support of higher education as Chair of the Johns Hopkins Board of Trustees and force for funding, by personal example, with the Hopkins School of Public Health and other similar initiatives.

Where will a growing desire for American government, less dominated by partisan bickering , be seen once again? -- in the spirit of once isolationist Republican Senator Arthur Vandenberg crossing the aisle to support the United Nations and the Marshall Plan for European recovery.

We do not know the answer to that question -- perhaps, in the maze of the impending Iowa and New Hampshire voting, a shadow of concern about the manipulated, partisan politics of today will be cast over the voter landscape!

ANOTHER PARTISAN INTRUSION: IN MARYLAND AND PUBLIC EDUCATION

Partisan manipulation is not confined to the national scene; we are seeing a threat Maryland's higher education system, managed professionally by a respected former public school teacher and State Superintendent under 1 Republican and 2 Democratic Governors, now at risk: Dr. Nancy Grasmick does not and has never functioned as an advocate for politics in schools -- whether by the teachers union or by outside forces not focused on the improvement of opportunity for creative learning by students -- particularly in impoverished parts of Baltimore.

Recently, as a volunteer trustee of a privately funded social services community needs organization (Episcopal Community Services of Md.), I had the opportunity to work with Nancy Grasmick in assessing the potential of pre-school help to kids being successfully implemented in ECSM's program to assist kids from broken family and home environments. A half day with Dr. Grasmick and her team, was in a word: inspirational, as she listened to staff and volunteers describe how they worked with little kids to enable them to reach higher, even at the pre-school age. What Nancy is now examining is the application of what the ARK does to what can help strengthen the start of kids in the public schools of Maryland.

How can anything go wrong with nonpartisan and professional leadership of public education?

An unnecessary and wasteful battle appears to be emerging for Maryland public education, as competent leadership is beginning to be the unnecessary victim of politics in the management of our State's public schools.Behind the obvious reasons to continue the service of respected professional Nancy Grasmick is emerging the wrong issue: a the willingness of the Governor and others to reverse the nonpolitical help proposed by Ms. Grasmick to provide a properly funded / improved management over the most troubled Baltimore City schools.

Along with discriminatory taxes on small business, there appears on the Annapolis horizon, a cloud similar to partisan national politics where "crossing the aisle" to work with those of different views, seemsto becoming the norm. THE ANSWER ? WATCH FOR THE NEW YEAR TO UNFOLD!

Stay tuned, citybizlist readers! I will report back to you as we move from New Year's day to the first weeks of January-- as more will be learned about the need to VOTE INDEPENDANT for the future of America-- as more will be learned about the O'Malley -Mike Miller - Michael Busch axis to inject partisan politics into Maryland public education.

In hopes for a sensible and more nonpartisan 2008 , your correspondant -- George Wills

Labels: education, Grasmick, Maryland politics

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