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Friday, April 22, 2011
SAPOA President Calls Police on Salisbury Councilman
As reported in this morning’s Daily Times, Salisbury Area Property Owners’ Association (SAPOA) President Kris Adams filed a police report alleging that Salisbury city councilman Tim Spies "… insulted her and she perceived a threat". This incident occurred Monday evening in the council chambers after the swearing in of new council members.No charges were filed. Spies was not even aware that the Salisbury Police had been called until Tuesday during the city council’s work session.
A few minutes after the incident, Spies spoke about it. According to Spies, Adams and her daughter Alex (a student at Salisbury University and the purported publisher of The Other Salisbury News blog) were sitting in the council chambers and Alex Adams began making faces at Spies while he was delivering his comments after being sworn in. This is confirmed by Mayor Jim Ireton. In a statement to the Daily Times, Ireton said:"The Adams' family has a history of aggressive behavior with elected officials," he said in a written statement. "I watched the family heckle and make faces at Councilman Spies. This behavior is par for the course."Similar behavior from Miss Adams was also witnessed during the Camden Neighborhood Association’s candidate forum prior to the recent council elections.
After the meeting, Kris Adams approached Spies. Spies stated that he asked Adams if her daughter “had a touch of Tourette’s”. Adams suggested that Spies ask her. She then brought her daughter up to Spies. When Spies asked her about making faces while he was speaking, she mumbled, “Oh, I didn’t think you saw that.”. A few moments later, Adams came up to Spies and accused him of “intimidating her family”.
At the time this story was relayed, it was considered a mildly humorous anecdote and not thought to be newsworthy. It wasn’t until Adams filed a police report that she made it so.
How Do You Balance The National Debt?
You get out of three wars and until they hit the soil in the United States, let everyone else settle their differences.
Just imagine how wealthy America would be today IF we weren't in these BS wars.
Just imagine how wealthy America would be today IF we weren't in these BS wars.
GOP Struggles To Find A Frontrunner
Multisource political news, world news, and entertainment news analysis by Newsy.com
The Grand Old Party is searching for its next presidential candidate, and so far it looks like just about anybody could top the ballot.
Christine O'Donnell Amends Fundraising Reports
WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) -- The campaign for former Senate candidate Christine O'Donnell has filed amendments to fundraising reports filed in 2009 and 2010 with a lawyer blaming computer software for mistakes on them.
The Delaware Republican also filed her fundraising report for the first quarter of this year. The amendments and the 2011 report became public Thursday at the Senate Office of Public Records.
More
The Delaware Republican also filed her fundraising report for the first quarter of this year. The amendments and the 2011 report became public Thursday at the Senate Office of Public Records.
More
Maryland Woman Named MADD National President
MADD, the national organization dedicated to fighting drunk driving, announced Thursday that a Maryland woman who lost her 15-year-old daughter in a crash caused by an intoxicated motorist has been elected its national president.
ACLU Bites The Dust In Arizona School Choice Case
The Supreme Court’s decision to throw out the challenge to Arizona’s tuition tax credit plan gives needed breathing room to that state’s emerging and innovative school-choice system.
It also imposes common-sense requirements on opponents of school choice, including the American Civil Liberties Union, which now must come to court with people who have been actually harmed by the tax credit plan, and have more than just generalized complaints against it based on extreme notions of “separation of church and state.”
Arizona’s tuition tax credit program is just one part of the state’s bold school-choice plan to empower parents with the opportunity to select the best schools for their children. Arizona families can send their children to a vast array of charter schools that specialize in everything from drama to the classics to math and science. Home schooling flourishes with minimal state regulation, and home-school students can participate in extracurricular offerings, such as band or sports, at nearby public schools.
And Arizona helps parents who believe private schools are best for their children by offering a state income tax credit to individuals who voluntarily donate to school tuition organizations that award scholarships to students attending private schools. But the ACLU objected to this because the law allowed the organizations to choose to give scholarships to students attending religious schools as well as other private schools. The ACLU sued, and won in a lower court before the Supreme Court threw out its lawsuit.
The reason? The ACLU’s clients suffered no injury from the Arizona plan.
Under Article III of the Constitution, everyone coming to federal court must show that the government action they challenge has harmed them directly. Generally, taxpayers cannot show any specific harm inflicted on them by a government program, so courts dismiss their lawsuits.
But back in the 1960s, the freewheeling Warren Court granted an exception to allow taxpayers to bring lawsuits based on the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause. Since then, the ACLU and its secularist allies have rounded up taxpayers who oppose some government program that does not ban religious groups’ participation, then filed lawsuits claiming that the Establishment Clause requires those programs to shut out the religious groups.
However, those lawsuits have caused the Supreme Court to establish a more permissive set of standards than the harsh exclusions demanded by the ACLU. First, a general program that is open to or otherwise benefits everyone, including religious groups, does not violate the Establishment Clause. The fire department extinguishing a blaze at the Buddhist monastery is not government aid to religion. A Jewish synagogue connecting to the city’s sewer and water mains is not a government subsidy of religion. Everyone gets the same benefit.
The second principle is that when taxpayer money flows to a religious group because of the independent and voluntary decisions of individuals and not the government, there is no Establishment Clause violation. The fact that a senior citizen in North Dakota gives part of her Social Security check to her church does not mean the entire Social Security system violates the Constitution.
More
It also imposes common-sense requirements on opponents of school choice, including the American Civil Liberties Union, which now must come to court with people who have been actually harmed by the tax credit plan, and have more than just generalized complaints against it based on extreme notions of “separation of church and state.”
Arizona’s tuition tax credit program is just one part of the state’s bold school-choice plan to empower parents with the opportunity to select the best schools for their children. Arizona families can send their children to a vast array of charter schools that specialize in everything from drama to the classics to math and science. Home schooling flourishes with minimal state regulation, and home-school students can participate in extracurricular offerings, such as band or sports, at nearby public schools.
And Arizona helps parents who believe private schools are best for their children by offering a state income tax credit to individuals who voluntarily donate to school tuition organizations that award scholarships to students attending private schools. But the ACLU objected to this because the law allowed the organizations to choose to give scholarships to students attending religious schools as well as other private schools. The ACLU sued, and won in a lower court before the Supreme Court threw out its lawsuit.
The reason? The ACLU’s clients suffered no injury from the Arizona plan.
Under Article III of the Constitution, everyone coming to federal court must show that the government action they challenge has harmed them directly. Generally, taxpayers cannot show any specific harm inflicted on them by a government program, so courts dismiss their lawsuits.
But back in the 1960s, the freewheeling Warren Court granted an exception to allow taxpayers to bring lawsuits based on the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause. Since then, the ACLU and its secularist allies have rounded up taxpayers who oppose some government program that does not ban religious groups’ participation, then filed lawsuits claiming that the Establishment Clause requires those programs to shut out the religious groups.
However, those lawsuits have caused the Supreme Court to establish a more permissive set of standards than the harsh exclusions demanded by the ACLU. First, a general program that is open to or otherwise benefits everyone, including religious groups, does not violate the Establishment Clause. The fire department extinguishing a blaze at the Buddhist monastery is not government aid to religion. A Jewish synagogue connecting to the city’s sewer and water mains is not a government subsidy of religion. Everyone gets the same benefit.
The second principle is that when taxpayer money flows to a religious group because of the independent and voluntary decisions of individuals and not the government, there is no Establishment Clause violation. The fact that a senior citizen in North Dakota gives part of her Social Security check to her church does not mean the entire Social Security system violates the Constitution.
More
Brutal Mexican Drug Gang Crosses The Rio Grande
The signature crimes of the most violent drug cartel in Mexico are its beheading and dismemberment of rival gang members, military personnel, law enforcement officers and public officials, and the random kidnappings and killings of civilians who get caught in its butchery and bloodletting.
But this disparate band of criminals known as Los Zetas is no longer just a concern in Mexico. It has expanded its deadly operations across the southwestern border, establishing footholds and alliances in states from New York to California. Just last year, federal agents tied a cocaine operation in Baltimore to the Zetas.
“Those of us who live and work along the border know they’re already here,” said Zapata County Sheriff Sigifredo Gonzalez Jr., whose Texas county lies on the Rio Grande 50 miles southeast of the Zetas’ stronghold of Nuevo Laredo. “There’s already been killings and many residents here are living in fear.”
Sheriff Gonzalez, whose Texas Border Sheriff’s Coalition sought help from the federal government to control growing violence along the border, said the rising brutality of Mexican drug gangs, particularly the Zetas, “never stops shocking me.”
Trained as an elite band of Mexican anti-drug commandos, the Zetas evolved into mercenaries for the infamous Gulf Cartel, bringing a new wave of brutality to Mexico’s escalating drug wars. Bolstered by an influx of assassins, bandits, thieves, thugs and corrupt federal, state and local police officers, the Zetas have since evolved into a well-financed and heavily armed drug smuggling force of their own.
Known for mounting the severed heads of their rivals on poles or hanging their dismembered bodies from bridges in cities throughout Mexico, the Zetas have easily become the most feared criminal gang in Mexico — where 35,000 people have been killed in a continuing drug war. Everyone is a potential victim: men, women and children.
“The Zetas are determined to gain the reputation of being the most sadistic, cruel and beastly organization that ever existed,” said George W. Grayson, professor of government at the College of William & Mary and an expert on Mexican drug gangs. “Many of Mexico’s existing drug cartels will kill their enemies, but not go out of their way to do it.
The Zetas look forward to inflicting fear on their targets.
More here
But this disparate band of criminals known as Los Zetas is no longer just a concern in Mexico. It has expanded its deadly operations across the southwestern border, establishing footholds and alliances in states from New York to California. Just last year, federal agents tied a cocaine operation in Baltimore to the Zetas.
“Those of us who live and work along the border know they’re already here,” said Zapata County Sheriff Sigifredo Gonzalez Jr., whose Texas county lies on the Rio Grande 50 miles southeast of the Zetas’ stronghold of Nuevo Laredo. “There’s already been killings and many residents here are living in fear.”
Sheriff Gonzalez, whose Texas Border Sheriff’s Coalition sought help from the federal government to control growing violence along the border, said the rising brutality of Mexican drug gangs, particularly the Zetas, “never stops shocking me.”
Trained as an elite band of Mexican anti-drug commandos, the Zetas evolved into mercenaries for the infamous Gulf Cartel, bringing a new wave of brutality to Mexico’s escalating drug wars. Bolstered by an influx of assassins, bandits, thieves, thugs and corrupt federal, state and local police officers, the Zetas have since evolved into a well-financed and heavily armed drug smuggling force of their own.
Known for mounting the severed heads of their rivals on poles or hanging their dismembered bodies from bridges in cities throughout Mexico, the Zetas have easily become the most feared criminal gang in Mexico — where 35,000 people have been killed in a continuing drug war. Everyone is a potential victim: men, women and children.
“The Zetas are determined to gain the reputation of being the most sadistic, cruel and beastly organization that ever existed,” said George W. Grayson, professor of government at the College of William & Mary and an expert on Mexican drug gangs. “Many of Mexico’s existing drug cartels will kill their enemies, but not go out of their way to do it.
The Zetas look forward to inflicting fear on their targets.
More here
Obama: "We Are All Connected" Whether You Landed On Ellis Island Or Crossed Rio Grande
"No matter who you are. No matter where you can came from. No matter what you look like. No matter whether your ancestors landed here on Ellis Island or came here on slave ships or came across the Rio Grande, we are all connected. We will rise and fall together. That's the vision of America I've got, that's the idea of the heart of America," President Obama said at a fundraiser in San Francisco.
Video
Video
Leftists Visit, Hug Mother Of Fogel Family Murderer
Several ultra-leftist groups organized a visit to the Arab village of Awarta on Saturday, April 16, in support of the villagers and against the IDF's activities there in the search for the murderers of Ruth and Rabbi Ehud Fogel and their children Yoav (11), Elad (4) and Hadas (three months).
The leftists visited several homes in the Samaria village, including that of the Awad family, which spawned the murderers. The identities of the confessed murderers were released for publication on Sunday, the day after the visit. The murderers were already in IDF custody at the time of the leftists' visit and their arrest - including the fact that they are relatively young - was already widely rumored and hinted at by the press.
A photograph from the visit, posted by one of the activists on her Internet blog, shows Raya Yaron, spokeswoman of Machsom Watch, comforting a woman described as being 37 years old and "in a deep depression." The blogger explained in her post that the woman fainted during the leftist women's visit and was distraught over the arrest of her husband, her two sons and a daughter.
The woman is easily recognizable as Nuf Awad, mother of Hakem Awad, whose photograph was featured on the front page of Arab newspaper al-Hayat al-Jadida Monday.
"It is impossible that my son did this," she is quoted by the paper as saying. "My son doesn't know how to slaughter a chicken" (the translation is from the Seventh Eye media-watch website).
The two murderers confessed, however, to slaughtering five human beings and investigators reported that they expressed no remorse, and even said that had they realized there were two more children sleeping in the house, they would have killed them as well.
They saw no problem in slitting baby Hadas's throat, they explained, since she was a Jew.
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The two murderers confessed, however, to slaughtering five human beings and investigators reported that they expressed no remorse, and even said that had they realized there were two more children sleeping in the house, they would have killed them as well.
They saw no problem in slitting baby Hadas's throat, they explained, since she was a Jew.
More
Club For Growth: GOP Should Stand Tough On Budget, Debt Limit
Republicans should insist on a balanced budget amendment in return for agreeing to an increase in the debt limit, says Andy Roth, the Club for Growth’s government affairs vice president.
Roth kicks off an opinion column on Politico with a scolding for reporters, saying: "First off, it’s lazy journalism to state as fact that the country will default on its obligations if the debt ceiling is reached and not increased. The Treasury still collects tax revenue and has enormous capacity to pay its debts if such an event occurs."
Roth urges Republican resolve on the issue.
“There’s a growing consensus that Republicans should demand the balanced budget amendment offered by Sen. Mike Lee, Utah, and Rep. Joe Walsh, Ill.,” Roth writes. “This pro-growth proposal caps spending at 18 percent of GDP and requires super majorities in Congress to increase spending, taxes, and future debt limits. If such a proposal were adopted, the economy would take off like a rocket ship.”
More on Newsmax
Roth kicks off an opinion column on Politico with a scolding for reporters, saying: "First off, it’s lazy journalism to state as fact that the country will default on its obligations if the debt ceiling is reached and not increased. The Treasury still collects tax revenue and has enormous capacity to pay its debts if such an event occurs."
Roth urges Republican resolve on the issue.
“There’s a growing consensus that Republicans should demand the balanced budget amendment offered by Sen. Mike Lee, Utah, and Rep. Joe Walsh, Ill.,” Roth writes. “This pro-growth proposal caps spending at 18 percent of GDP and requires super majorities in Congress to increase spending, taxes, and future debt limits. If such a proposal were adopted, the economy would take off like a rocket ship.”
More on Newsmax
White House Readies ‘US Shake Out’ To Prepare Citizens For Earthquakes
The Departments of Homeland Security and Education are reaching out to millions of people in central U.S. states to get them to participate in an earthquake preparedness drill.
In an event called the “Great Central U.S. Shake Out,” Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and Education Secretary Arne Duncan are reaching out to areas in the Midwest that could be impacted by an earthquake along the New Madrid fault line.
According to the event’s website, more than 2.5 million people have committed to taking part in Thursday’s drill in which participants will be told how to react in the event of an earthquake.
Participants are told to drop to the ground, take cover under something sturdy, such as a desk or a table, and hold on to it until the shaking stops.
“It's critical that all members of the nation's emergency management team — including the federal government, state, local and tribal officials, the private sector and the public — are prepared,” said Napolitano.
“Learning how to protect yourself and your loved ones in the event of an earthquake or other disaster is a vital life skill — and we look forward to working with schools, colleges and our other partners to strengthen the resiliency of communities across the central United States,” she said.
The White House is reaching out to schools in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Tennessee.More
In an event called the “Great Central U.S. Shake Out,” Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and Education Secretary Arne Duncan are reaching out to areas in the Midwest that could be impacted by an earthquake along the New Madrid fault line.
According to the event’s website, more than 2.5 million people have committed to taking part in Thursday’s drill in which participants will be told how to react in the event of an earthquake.
Participants are told to drop to the ground, take cover under something sturdy, such as a desk or a table, and hold on to it until the shaking stops.
“It's critical that all members of the nation's emergency management team — including the federal government, state, local and tribal officials, the private sector and the public — are prepared,” said Napolitano.
“Learning how to protect yourself and your loved ones in the event of an earthquake or other disaster is a vital life skill — and we look forward to working with schools, colleges and our other partners to strengthen the resiliency of communities across the central United States,” she said.
The White House is reaching out to schools in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Tennessee.More
U.S. Republicans Seek To Reassure Elderly On Medicare
Republicans pushing deep cuts to U.S. government spending are seeking to reassure older Americans that their health insurance will remain intact even if Medicare is privatized.
Elderly voters could be pivotal in the 2012 election, where both Democrats and Republicans will be judged for proposed cuts to the federal health insurance program to reduce deficits.
President Barack Obama has proposed trims to the old-age benefits while denouncing as "radical" a Republican plan that would replace Medicare with vouchers giving recipients a fixed amount of money to buy private insurance.
Pushing back, Republican lawmakers have been holding town halls across the country with a clear message: Medicare is unsustainable in its current form and only their plan will guarantee future seniors access to healthcare.
Freshman Republican Steve Stivers said there is a need to reform Medicare to ensure coverage for future retirees.
In an interview, Stivers said he has been busy explaining to people aged 55 and up that they will see no change in their benefits under the Republican plan which would save nearly $6 trillion over the next decade.
"I talk about how for people 54 and under we are preserving the system, we are reforming it to save it because frankly in nine years if we do nothing Medicare goes broke," he said.
That message is crucial if Republicans hope to win support for their plan to privatize the popular government-run program, said John Feehery of Quinn Gillespie Communications and a former Republican congressional staffer.
"In order to be able to sell it, you've got to come up with a communications plan that tells senior citizens that are 55 and over that this is not going to touch you," Feehery said.
Read more
Elderly voters could be pivotal in the 2012 election, where both Democrats and Republicans will be judged for proposed cuts to the federal health insurance program to reduce deficits.
President Barack Obama has proposed trims to the old-age benefits while denouncing as "radical" a Republican plan that would replace Medicare with vouchers giving recipients a fixed amount of money to buy private insurance.
Pushing back, Republican lawmakers have been holding town halls across the country with a clear message: Medicare is unsustainable in its current form and only their plan will guarantee future seniors access to healthcare.
Freshman Republican Steve Stivers said there is a need to reform Medicare to ensure coverage for future retirees.
In an interview, Stivers said he has been busy explaining to people aged 55 and up that they will see no change in their benefits under the Republican plan which would save nearly $6 trillion over the next decade.
"I talk about how for people 54 and under we are preserving the system, we are reforming it to save it because frankly in nine years if we do nothing Medicare goes broke," he said.
That message is crucial if Republicans hope to win support for their plan to privatize the popular government-run program, said John Feehery of Quinn Gillespie Communications and a former Republican congressional staffer.
"In order to be able to sell it, you've got to come up with a communications plan that tells senior citizens that are 55 and over that this is not going to touch you," Feehery said.
Read more
Federal Labor Board Seeks To Ground Boeing
Can federal bureaucrats tell a private company where to build a factory?
Members of President Obama's National Labor Relations Board think they can.
In a decision that even the New York Times is describing as "highly unusual for the federal government," Lafe Solomon, who was appointed to the board by Obama, filed a complaint on behalf of the NLRB on Wednesday seeking to force the Boeing Co. to build an assembly line in Washington state instead of South Carolina.
The NLRB action stems from Boeing's October 2009 decision to build a new factory for its new 787 Dreamliner airplane near Charleston, S.C. Boeing first sought to build the new plant near its existing facility in Puget Sound, but negotiations with the International Association of Machinists broke down when the union refused to agree to a long-term no-strike clause. The IAM had struck four times since 1989, costing Boeing at least $1.8 billion in revenue.
That's when Boeing chose South Carolina, a right-to-work state where, unlike Washington, workers are not forced to join unions. As a result of this policy, only 6.2 percent of South Carolinians belong to unions. Construction of Boeing's new Charleston factory is nearly complete, and the company has already hired more than 1,000 new employees, drawn mostly from within the immediate region. And back in Washington, Boeing has actually increased employment at its Puget Sound plant by 2,000 workers.
But that isn't good enough for the IAM or the Obama White House. After suffering major defeats in Wisconsin and Ohio, the labor movement is looking for a scalp. Obama's NLRB is trying to turn Boeing into one.
More at the Washington Examiner
Members of President Obama's National Labor Relations Board think they can.
In a decision that even the New York Times is describing as "highly unusual for the federal government," Lafe Solomon, who was appointed to the board by Obama, filed a complaint on behalf of the NLRB on Wednesday seeking to force the Boeing Co. to build an assembly line in Washington state instead of South Carolina.
The NLRB action stems from Boeing's October 2009 decision to build a new factory for its new 787 Dreamliner airplane near Charleston, S.C. Boeing first sought to build the new plant near its existing facility in Puget Sound, but negotiations with the International Association of Machinists broke down when the union refused to agree to a long-term no-strike clause. The IAM had struck four times since 1989, costing Boeing at least $1.8 billion in revenue.
That's when Boeing chose South Carolina, a right-to-work state where, unlike Washington, workers are not forced to join unions. As a result of this policy, only 6.2 percent of South Carolinians belong to unions. Construction of Boeing's new Charleston factory is nearly complete, and the company has already hired more than 1,000 new employees, drawn mostly from within the immediate region. And back in Washington, Boeing has actually increased employment at its Puget Sound plant by 2,000 workers.
But that isn't good enough for the IAM or the Obama White House. After suffering major defeats in Wisconsin and Ohio, the labor movement is looking for a scalp. Obama's NLRB is trying to turn Boeing into one.
More at the Washington Examiner
Broader Sales Tax A Good Idea......
Broader sales tax a good idea to fix deficit, Senate Budget chairman says, and O’Malley likely to propose tax hike to fund transportation
MLB Seizes Control Of L.A. Dodgers
With the Mets allegedly involved in Bernie Madoff's Ponzi scheme and near league-wide attendance problems, the last thing Major League Baseball needed was yet another headache. But that's exactly what it got when the Dodgers front office imploded, forcing the league to step in and take control of the team for the time being.
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Make Your Own Dishwashing Detergent At Home
The same ingredients you can use to make your own laundry detergent at home can be used to make your own dishwashing detergent, also at home.
More »
More »
Attorney General Forms Team To Look Into Oil Price Manipulation
Someone at the Attorney General's office must have finally looked at how high gasoline prices are right now and thought, "Maybe there's something more than meets the eye here," because President Obama announced earlier today that the AG is gathering his forces to see what, if any, behind-the-scenes shenanigans are going on to keep prices so high.
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Visit Your National Parks This Week
And don't forget to take advantage of National Park Week, running from April 16th - April 24th. There is free admission to national parks all across America. This year's theme, Healthy Parks, Healthy People, highlights the connection between humans and environmental health.
Cell Phone Tracking
Cell phone location-tracking, attracts scrutiny on Capitol Hill. Representative Ed Markey and Senator Al Franken write to Apple. They want to know more about why the company collects a database full of information on the movements of iPhone users. Apple isn't alone. Phones using Google's Android operating system also transmit their locations back to the company. Both efforts appear aimed at helping the companies gain a foothold in the market for location-based services. That market is worth nearly $3 billion a year now, and it's growing.
ARPA-E Survives Budget Battle
ARPA-E has survived the budget battle. The high-tech federal research agency will get $130 million for five new program areas. The programs focus on rare-earth alternatives, biofuels, thermal storage, grid controls and solar power electronics. The funding comes from this month's federal budget deal, just two months after ARPA-E said six of its projects secured more than $100 million in outside private capital investment. That's a sign that the business community wants to invest in solutions to the country's energy challenges.
Cuts Across The Board
Defense Secretary Robert Gates says the worst thing they can do is just make cuts across the board. He says that would lead to a "hollow" military. So, Defense.gov reports, Gates is holding a comprehensive review to ensure any cuts are based on analysis of the consequences. Gates said he's had only one meeting, so far, to find ways to conduct the review, and hasn't decided on an approach yet. He says one possible approach would begin with the Quadrennial Defense Review, and to consider the implications of scaling back or eliminating specific missions.
Warming Up For 2012 Race, Obama Pitches Budget Plan
President Barack Obama hit the road Tuesday to start selling his plan to cut runaway budget deficits, saying his blueprint is more balanced than a rival Republican plan because he'd ask more people to share the sacrifices — mainly wealthier Americans.
"The debate isn't about whether we reduce our deficit. The debate is about how we reduce our deficit," he said in a town hall meeting at the Northern Virginia Community College, a Democrat-friendly campus just outside Washington.
The debate, in fact, is also about rival visions of government in 21st century America, and it's likely to dominate the 2012 elections, and unlikely to be resolved before them.
More
"The debate isn't about whether we reduce our deficit. The debate is about how we reduce our deficit," he said in a town hall meeting at the Northern Virginia Community College, a Democrat-friendly campus just outside Washington.
The debate, in fact, is also about rival visions of government in 21st century America, and it's likely to dominate the 2012 elections, and unlikely to be resolved before them.
More
Fasten Your Seat Belts, Maryland — Bumpy Fiscal Ride Ahead
Good day, ladies and gentlemen, this is your Captain (and State Delegate) Herb McMillan.
We've leveled off at our cruising altitude, but you need to keep your seat belts fastened. We're in for a rough ride. Here's why.
Our route of flight isn't what I voted for, but the liberal flight planners in our General Assembly think the economic weather is improving. Looking to the left, you see they increased state spending by another billion dollars, and that we project $1.4 billion deficits for years to come.
They gave state employees a $750-per-person bonus that cost $55 million, and $39 million in gambling subsidies to the horse-racing industry. Sounds like they're ready to pop the bubbly. Embarrassingly short of cash, they raided $344 million from special funds (Transportation Trust Fund, Program Open Space) and then borrowed money to fill the gaps they created. They raised taxes and fees by $315 million, and are hoping to have $243 million left over from this year to spend (because they spent it!), and used $124 million in federal stimulus money to fund their spending increases. They believe they are fiscally prudent for "eliminating $608 million in planned spending increases" — and call this a cut. (Do you call not increasing your spending a cut?)
From my cockpit, our route of flight doesn't look good. We have a lot of storms to pick our way around. Maryland owes $34 billion in future retirement and health care payments. Our State Board of Revenue Estimates warns of "significant economic risks" and concerns that "the skyrocketing price of gas might lead to a double dip recession." In January, Maryland employers cut 7,100 jobs — the fifth-largest drop in the U.S. According to USA today, 55 percent of us have taken a pay cut or lost a job within the last three years. On top of that, Maryland has the fifth-highest cost of living in the U.S.
Pilots plan for the worst and hope for the best; those liberals back in the General Assembly plan for the best and hope it won't get worse. No pilot would live to see retirement doing it their way. Republicans in the House proposed an alternative budget that really cut $621 million, increased education funding and got rid of the deficit in two years. Our liberal colleagues paid little attention.
Nervous fliers might enjoy a drink right now. Our flight attendant will conduct a beverage service shortly. Unfortunately, our General Assembly flight planners also jacked up alcohol taxes by 50 percent. They want the alcohol tax increase to "create more revenue" and "create jobs."
Ladies and gentlemen, please don't yell at me or the flight attendants. We know government doesn't create revenue, it can only consume it; and government cannot create a job without taking money from businesses that could've used it to maintain or create private sector jobs. We get it. Sadly, they don't. It's enough to drive a person to drink. Cheers …
Now that you've had that drink, here are two more things you should know about the journey we are on.
A new program, Invest Maryland, will sell $100 million worth of tax credits to raise $70 million, which a governor-appointed board will invest. If we have a 44 percent return on our $70 million investment, we'll make back our $100 million and break even. Anyone know where we can find a 44 percent return on investment?
Finally, there are some stowaways on this flight. Against my strong objections, the General Assembly decided to give illegal immigrants in-state tuition benefits, even though they neither paid for their tickets nor went through security, like you did. This will attract more stowaways and ultimately increase your ticket prices. After all, somebody has to pay for their ticket; there is no free lunch.
Now you know why I left the seat belt sign on; and if you think things are bad in the cabin, you should see all the warning lights flashing in the cockpit."
Del. Herb McMillan, an Annapolis Republican, is a captain for a major airline.
We've leveled off at our cruising altitude, but you need to keep your seat belts fastened. We're in for a rough ride. Here's why.
Our route of flight isn't what I voted for, but the liberal flight planners in our General Assembly think the economic weather is improving. Looking to the left, you see they increased state spending by another billion dollars, and that we project $1.4 billion deficits for years to come.
They gave state employees a $750-per-person bonus that cost $55 million, and $39 million in gambling subsidies to the horse-racing industry. Sounds like they're ready to pop the bubbly. Embarrassingly short of cash, they raided $344 million from special funds (Transportation Trust Fund, Program Open Space) and then borrowed money to fill the gaps they created. They raised taxes and fees by $315 million, and are hoping to have $243 million left over from this year to spend (because they spent it!), and used $124 million in federal stimulus money to fund their spending increases. They believe they are fiscally prudent for "eliminating $608 million in planned spending increases" — and call this a cut. (Do you call not increasing your spending a cut?)
From my cockpit, our route of flight doesn't look good. We have a lot of storms to pick our way around. Maryland owes $34 billion in future retirement and health care payments. Our State Board of Revenue Estimates warns of "significant economic risks" and concerns that "the skyrocketing price of gas might lead to a double dip recession." In January, Maryland employers cut 7,100 jobs — the fifth-largest drop in the U.S. According to USA today, 55 percent of us have taken a pay cut or lost a job within the last three years. On top of that, Maryland has the fifth-highest cost of living in the U.S.
Pilots plan for the worst and hope for the best; those liberals back in the General Assembly plan for the best and hope it won't get worse. No pilot would live to see retirement doing it their way. Republicans in the House proposed an alternative budget that really cut $621 million, increased education funding and got rid of the deficit in two years. Our liberal colleagues paid little attention.
Nervous fliers might enjoy a drink right now. Our flight attendant will conduct a beverage service shortly. Unfortunately, our General Assembly flight planners also jacked up alcohol taxes by 50 percent. They want the alcohol tax increase to "create more revenue" and "create jobs."
Ladies and gentlemen, please don't yell at me or the flight attendants. We know government doesn't create revenue, it can only consume it; and government cannot create a job without taking money from businesses that could've used it to maintain or create private sector jobs. We get it. Sadly, they don't. It's enough to drive a person to drink. Cheers …
Now that you've had that drink, here are two more things you should know about the journey we are on.
A new program, Invest Maryland, will sell $100 million worth of tax credits to raise $70 million, which a governor-appointed board will invest. If we have a 44 percent return on our $70 million investment, we'll make back our $100 million and break even. Anyone know where we can find a 44 percent return on investment?
Finally, there are some stowaways on this flight. Against my strong objections, the General Assembly decided to give illegal immigrants in-state tuition benefits, even though they neither paid for their tickets nor went through security, like you did. This will attract more stowaways and ultimately increase your ticket prices. After all, somebody has to pay for their ticket; there is no free lunch.
Now you know why I left the seat belt sign on; and if you think things are bad in the cabin, you should see all the warning lights flashing in the cockpit."
Del. Herb McMillan, an Annapolis Republican, is a captain for a major airline.
Join Us For breakfast At Uno's In Fruitland
Fruitland Recreation Commission
Help us fund Fruitland's Recreational Park
Saturday, April 23, 2011
from 7:00 am - 10:00 am
All-You-Can-Eat
MENU:
Eggs, Sausge, Bacon, SCRAPPLE, Hash Browns, Biscuits, Coffee, Tea, and Juice
Tickets are $6.00 each which can be purchased at the door or in advance at Fruitland City Hall
All proceeds to benefit the Fruitland Recreational Park.
Response To Glenn Beck
This week Glenn Beck has taken to his radio show to attack me as a Progressive, which he has said is the same as a “cancer” and a “Nazi.” What did I do that apparently caused him to link me to a fatal disease and a form of government that murdered millions of innocent Jews? I had the audacity—not of hope—but the audacity to give respect to the efforts of First Lady Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move campaign to address childhood obesity. I’m no fan of her husband’s policies for sure, but I have appreciated her efforts that Beck misrepresented—either out of ignorance or out of a deliberate attempt to distort them to create yet another “boogey man” hiding in the closet that he and only he can see. The First Lady’s approach is about personal responsibility—not the government literally taking candy from a baby’s mouth. He seems to fancy himself a prophet of sorts for his linking so many people and events together to describe a massive global conspiracy for pretty much everything. Sadly, he seems equally inept at recognizing the obvious fact that children are increasingly obese and that we now see clinical evidence of diseases in children that as recent as 20 years ago were found only in adults, such as Type 2 diabetes. The costs to our nation are staggering in increase health care expenses, but it even effects national security with now 75% of young men between the ages of 17 and 24 are unfit for military service primarily due to obesity! His ridiculous claim that John McCain and I collaborated and conspired in the 2008 campaign is especially laughable. Is he not aware that McCain and I were competitors---not cohorts? Beck needs to stick to conspiracies that can’t be so easily de-bunked by facts. Why Beck has decided to aim his overloaded guns on me is beyond me. But he ought to clean his gun and point it more carefully lest it blow up in his face like it did this time.
Will SAPOA Tactics Backfire?
Yesterday’s post regarding Kris Adams, president of the Salisbury Area Property Owners’ Association (SAPOA), her daughter Alex, and newly elected Salisbury councilman Tim Spies should be cause for concern to all Salisbury voters. Are these tactics the actions of a disturbed woman or an organized attempt to intimidate elected officials who are not already firmly in their grasp?
On this question, we shouldn’t even speculate at this time. Only time will confirm whether or not Monday’s call to the Salisbury Police was an isolated and bizarre act or a pattern of behavior. However, we believe that we should all be reminded of past behavior by related parties so that we can be vigilant as to any future action.
- Several years ago I was at a dinner with family and friends. After we had eaten, an acquaintance came to our table for a visit. This person, a fairly prominent businessman in Salisbury, commended me for “taking (then Salisbury mayor) Barrie Tilghman to task” and further remarked that literally having to wade through drug dealers and hookers to get to his office door each morning was having an adverse effect on his business. After thanking him I asked why he and his business colleagues didn’t show up at council meetings and demand that the city do a better job. His reply? Anyone who dares show up to council meetings on a Monday night to complain is met Tuesday morning with a cadre of code compliance officers followed by a stiff fine for offenses real or imagined.
- In 2007, SAPOA members delivered letter to their tenants denouncing council candidates Terry Cohen and Tim Spies. Some went so far as to claim that tenants would lose their abodes if Cohen and Spies were elected.
- In 2009, mayoral candidate Jim Ireton not only had to campaign for office but had to endure multiple anonymous mass mailings containing some of the most vile and hateful garbage I have witnessed in over 35 years of political involvement.
- During the same campaign, Ireton and councilwoman Debbie Campbell were the victims of gross misrepresentations by Kris Adams’ daughter Alex. Ironically, the younger Ms. Adams did so while (falsely) claiming to be a spokesperson for the Salisbury University student government. When made aware of this, the SU student government had to step in and denounce Ms. Adams’ actions.
- SAPOA members have publicly attacked supporters of Mayor Ireton’s “Safe Streets” package (a measure that SbyNEWS does not fully support) and compared them to Nazis.
These are just a few examples of past behavior that can be traced to SAPOA members and their political allies.
While this site, and this writer, have been accused of “intimidating” public officials and of causing good candidates to not run for public office, we find it amusing that I have always signed my work and stood by any charge I have leveled. Yet, we see a demonstrable pattern of SAPOA members and their allies anonymously attacking candidates and hurling slurs at people whose greatest crimes are exercising their God-given rights to speak their mind and freely assemble.
The most ironic charge thrown at SAPOA’s political opponents (enemies, in SAPOA’s eyes) is that they somehow “hate renters”. IF Mayor Ireton’s “Tenant Bill of Rights” actually becomes law this year, we wonder how SAPOA and its allies will attempt to manage the spin.
For the present Salisbury citizens should simply be vigilant. As the prospectus says – “Past performance is no guarantee of future results.” We know from experience that Salisbury voters are decreasingly willing to believe the hateful, ridiculous, and anonymous charges thrown out by SAPOA members and their allies. Simply look at the last three city elections. We can only hope that this past week’s incident is a foolish act by an individual. If a pattern emerges, recent history indicates that these tactics will backfire and SAPOA’s own actions could be the cause of its worst nightmares.
City Of Salisbury Budget Session Press Release
CITY COUNCIL
BUDGET SESSION
CONFERENCE ROOM 306
APRIL 26, 2011
(times shown are estimates only)
1:00 – 2:00 p.m.
Presentations:
Fire Department
Police Department
Public Works – General Fund
Building, Permitting and Inspections
Neighborhood Services and Code Compliance
Internal Services – Finance
Information Technology
2:00 – 4:30 p.m.
Group discussion with Council – Q & A
4:30 – 6:00 p.m.
Presentations and Council discussion:
Community Development
Planning and Zoning
Municipal Buildings – Poplar Hill Mansion
City Council
City Clerk
Elections
Mayor’s Office
Community Promotions
City Attorney
BUDGET SESSION
CONFERENCE ROOM 306
APRIL 26, 2011
(times shown are estimates only)
1:00 – 2:00 p.m.
Presentations:
Fire Department
Police Department
Public Works – General Fund
Building, Permitting and Inspections
Neighborhood Services and Code Compliance
Internal Services – Finance
Information Technology
2:00 – 4:30 p.m.
Group discussion with Council – Q & A
4:30 – 6:00 p.m.
Presentations and Council discussion:
Community Development
Planning and Zoning
Municipal Buildings – Poplar Hill Mansion
City Council
City Clerk
Elections
Mayor’s Office
Community Promotions
City Attorney
GOVERNOR MARTIN O’MALLEY TO CELEBRATE EARTH DAY BY ANNOUNCING INSTALLATION OF ELECTRIC VEHICLE CHARGING STATIONS AT BWI THURGOOD MARSHALL AIRPORT
ANNAPOLIS, MD –TODAY, Governor Martin O’Malley will celebrate Earth Day by officially announcing the installation of eight Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Stations at BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport as part of Maryland’s Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Program, which will install sixty-five EV Charging Stations throughout the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area by June 2011.
This past session, the O’Malley-Brown Administration successfully fought for legislation to provide tax credits and incentives for the purchase of electric vehicle charging equipment, and create a pilot program for electric vehicle owners to recharge during off-peak hours. The Governor will test out the new equipment at BWI by charging an electric vehicle.
GOVERNOR O’MALLEY TO CELEBRATE EARTH DAY WITH STUDENTS
Governor and Students to Plant Tree at Community Center
ANNAPOLIS, MD – Governor Martin O’Malley will join students from Upper Marlboro Rivers Adventure Camp for a tree planting in celebration of Earth Day today. The Governor will also recognize the Marylanders Plant Trees Program.
After surpassing its goal for citizens to plant and register 50,000 trees across the State, the Marylanders Plant Trees Program has a new goal of planting an additional 50,000 trees by the end of 2012.
FEMALE BODY FOUND IN SUSQUEHANNA RIVER IDENTIFIED AS TEEN MISSING FROM BALTIMORE
(BALTIMORE, MD) – The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner has confirmed that the identity of the female body found yesterday morning in the Susquehanna River at the Conowingo Dam is Phylicia Barnes, the 16-year-old who has been missing from Baltimore since December 28, 2010.
Officials from the Maryland State Police and the Baltimore Police Department will hold a briefing on the investigation tonight at State Police Headquarters. No further information is able to be provided until that time.
Officials from the Maryland State Police and the Baltimore Police Department will hold a briefing on the investigation tonight at State Police Headquarters. No further information is able to be provided until that time.
"Working Together For Children" Teacher Of The Year Special Debuts Friday, April 22 On PAC 14
The 2011 Wicomico Teacher of the Year special edition of "Working Together for Children" will debut at 12:33 p.m. Friday, April 22 on PAC 14 (Comcast Channel 14). The show will also air at noon Saturday, April 23 and 10:47 a.m. Monday, April 25. It will continue to air throughout the next month.
The 50-minute show features the 2011-12 Wicomico Teacher of the Year, Chad Pavlekovich of Salisbury Middle School, as he is named Wicomico’s top teacher, celebrates with his school the next morning, and is interviewed by Working Together host Aaron Deal, himself a former Wicomico and Maryland teacher of the year.
The show celebrates all 27 semifinalists for 2011-12 Teacher of the Year, giving insight into what they love about teaching and taking viewers into their classrooms. Viewers will also learn about this year's Friend of Education Award winner, PAC 14.
"Working Together for Children" airs regularly at 6:30 p.m. Thursdays and noon Saturdays; check the Programming grid at www.pac14.org or the listings in The Daily Times for additional showtimes. PAC 14 also streams its programming live on its web site at www.pac14.org, so viewers can visit the web site to "tune in" on line when the show is on the air. Please call 410-677-4529 or e-mail fwilson@wcboe.org for information.
The 50-minute show features the 2011-12 Wicomico Teacher of the Year, Chad Pavlekovich of Salisbury Middle School, as he is named Wicomico’s top teacher, celebrates with his school the next morning, and is interviewed by Working Together host Aaron Deal, himself a former Wicomico and Maryland teacher of the year.
The show celebrates all 27 semifinalists for 2011-12 Teacher of the Year, giving insight into what they love about teaching and taking viewers into their classrooms. Viewers will also learn about this year's Friend of Education Award winner, PAC 14.
"Working Together for Children" airs regularly at 6:30 p.m. Thursdays and noon Saturdays; check the Programming grid at www.pac14.org or the listings in The Daily Times for additional showtimes. PAC 14 also streams its programming live on its web site at www.pac14.org, so viewers can visit the web site to "tune in" on line when the show is on the air. Please call 410-677-4529 or e-mail fwilson@wcboe.org for information.
Spring Has Sprung At Pemberton Historical Park!
(Salisbury, MD) Pemberton Historical Park is hosting a variety of upcoming events. Come out and enjoy the weather we have all been waiting for by attending one or all of the fun filled activities. As always, Pemberton Historical Park invites the whole family to join in.
On Sunday, May 1 from 1:00 P.M.-3:00 P.M., Pemberton Historical Park will be holding an Open House for its Summer Nature Camp. All are welcome to come experience a day at camp with crafts, fishing at the pond and a close look at our collection of amphibians and reptiles. All who wish to register on site will receive 10% off their total registration.
Celebrate the beginning of warmer weather and get moving! On Saturday, May 7, Pemberton Historical Park will be hosting its 2nd Annual Spring into Spring 5K Run/Walk. Participants will run or walk through the park’s blooming cross country nature trails of Eastern Shore wetlands, forests and meadows. Awards and gift certificates will be given out in several age categories. Participants will receive refreshments after the race. All proceeds will benefit the Park’s Environmental Education Programs. Early registration ends 5/5/11. All participants must register at the Park after that date. To register, visit www.wicomicorecandparks.org.
Visit Pemberton Historical Park on Saturday, May 14 from 12:00 P.M. – 2:00 P.M. and experience a Civil War Encampment. The Union 7th Maryland Company A will be providing a living history demonstration with displays of period weapons, troop movement and maneuvers. Donations will be accepted to support the Park’s Environmental Education Programs.
On Thursday, May 17 at 9:00 P.M., join a Park Naturalist for a Full Moon Hike. Experience the Park when it’s lit up by the light of a full moon while searching for the Park’s nocturnal inhabitants. On Saturday, April 21, join a Naturalist from 11:00 A.M. - 12:00 P.M. for a discussion on Animal Adaptations. Get up close and personal with our collection of live reptiles and amphibians. Can turtles leave their shells? What’s the difference between a frog and a toad? Find out here! Stay for our Survival Skills program from 1:00 P.M. – 3:00 P.M. The natural world is abundant with useful tools, whether it is food, shelter or means of navigation. Hike around the park to discover what the environment has to offer. We’ll discuss edible plants, making a shelter and how to find your way without a compass. A great program for scouts! These three programs are $6 per person or $18 for a family of four and are free to members of the Park.
Environment Maryland Helps Homeowners Plug Into Clean Energy For Earth Day
Baltimore—On the Eve of Earth Day 2011, Environment Maryland released a new guide to help Marylanders improve the energy performance of their homes and workplaces. The renewable energy and energy-saving measures proposed by Environment Maryland’s Plug into Clean Energy Guide promise to lower energy bills and reduce pollution from power plants across the state.
“Marylanders are concerned about the environmental impacts of our nation’s energy use and are looking for ways to make a difference,” said Tommy Landers, Policy Advocate for Environment Maryland. “This guide will provide Marylanders with ways to improve the energy performance of their homes by adopting energy saving measures and tapping into clean, renewable energy sources like the sun and wind.”
America’s buildings consume more than 40 percent of our total energy, which amounts to almost 10 percent of all the energy used in the world. Much of this energy is wasted due to inadequate insulation, inefficient heating and cooling systems, and poor construction techniques. But off-the-shelf technologies can reduce that energy waste dramatically, lowering energy bills by as much as two-thirds.
“That’s the best part about making energy efficiency improvements,” said Landers. “They pay for themselves as consumers enjoy lower energy bills and a cleaner environment year after year. This guide is designed to help families cut through the clutter of information and pick the improvements that are right for them.”
Environment Maryland’s Plug into Clean Energy resource center will help citizens with a simple, step-by-step approach to improve energy use in buildings, from lowering the thermostat in the winter all the way to installing rooftop solar panels. The resource center also provides information on the most energy-efficient household appliance choices and links to Maryland programs that can help residents invest in energy conservation and clean energy systems.
“From tax credits and rebates to free energy use assessments, there are myriad resources available to help home and business owners tackle the upfront cost of these improvements,” said Landers. “These are great programs; we want to make sure everyone knows about them.”
“We face big energy and environmental challenges because of the risky and dirty sources of our energy,” said Landers. “Maryland leaders and national officials must take action to shift America to clean energy. But, we can also get started right here at home, saving energy, saving money and reducing global warming pollution by improving our buildings.”
GOVERNOR O'MALLEY TO LEAD BUSINESS EXECUTIVES AND EDUCATORS ON ASIAN TRADE MISSION
10-day mission to include stops in China, Korea and Vietnam
ANNAPOLIS, MD – In an effort to strengthen ties and increase trade and investment with one of the world’s fastest growing economic regions, Governor Martin O’Malley today announced that he will lead a 10-day economic development mission to Asia departing in late May. The Governor, who has previously led international missions to Israel, Ireland and Sweden, will join business leaders and educators for stops in China, Korea and Vietnam, all top or emerging export markets for Maryland. The State has long maintained a strong presence in Asia, opening the Maryland China Center in 1996 and becoming the first U.S. state to open a trade and investment office in China. The State also has trade offices in South Korea; Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi in Vietnam; as well as Taiwan and India. The Governor announced the trade mission during the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with City of Seoul, South Korea’s Mayor Oh Se-hoon, which seeks to increase trade and investment opportunities, particularly in science and technology, between Maryland and Seoul.
“I look forward to leading this economic development mission not only to strengthen our long-standing relationships in China, Korea and Vietnam, but to ensure that we help Maryland-based companies tap into the tremendous economic expansion that is sweeping across Asia,” said Governor O’Malley. “With economists predicting that Asia could have 50 percent of global GDP by 2050, it is critical that we move forward now to explore new opportunities for trade and investment, particularly in our shared strengths on science and technology.”
The mission’s delegation will include Maryland Secretary of State John McDonough, Secretary of Business and Economic Development Christian S. Johansson, and Director of Ethnic Commissions David Lee, as well as more than a dozen private sector and academic leaders, including University of Maryland, College President Wallace Loh and the Governor’s International Advisory Board Chair and Chairman Emeritus of RTKL Harold Adams.
As part of the mission, the Governor and his delegation will meet with potential investment and trade partners and government leaders, including a visit to the City of Seoul. The Governor will address the 13th Shanghai Bio-Forum, one of China’s largest biopharmaceutical events, which attracts leaders from China’s top drug companies, and will visit the Johns Hopkins University-Nanjing University Center for Chinese and American Studies. The delegation will also participate in the Maryland in China Banquet, which will bring together Maryland companies in Shanghai as well as Chinese firms to discuss trade and investment in Maryland.
Last year, the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development’s Office of International Trade and Investment engaged more than 250 Asian companies, helping to attract six new foreign firms from China and Korea to Maryland. In addition, the Office assisted 75 Maryland companies export their products to Asia, helping to generate $65 million in sales.
Maryland’s growing minority community accounts for all of the State’s population growth in the past 10 years. The State’s Asian population has grown by more than 50 percent since 2000, with Asian residents numbering more than 300,000.
The O’Malley-Brown Administration has taken significant steps to ramp up the State’s international outreach, including opening a number of number of foreign offices in targeted countries, convening the Governor’s International Advisory Council to provide strategic direction and develop a plan to enhance Maryland’s global profile, expanding the capacity of the Port of Baltimore with a new 50-foot berth, and opening the State’s first International Incubator in 2009 at the University of Maryland, College Park to help foreign-owned companies launch U.S. operations.
The efforts have produced significant results. Since 2007, Maryland has attracted more than 40 foreign-owned companies from high-growth countries, including China, Brazil, Korea, Russia, India, Sweden and the United Kingdom, with about one-quarter of these companies locating in the International Incubator. Companies range from Ellickson Software, an Ireland-based supplier of software and hardware to the hospitality industry which has an American location in Baltimore City, to Daewoong Pharmaceutical, the largest prescription drug supplier in Korea which has its U.S. operations in Montgomery County.
Over the past two years, the State has opened foreign offices in Russia, India and Colombia to attract foreign-owned companies to Maryland and encourage trade opportunities. The offices, which are opened on a contingency basis with no up-front cost to taxpayers, are part of the State’s network of foreign offices in China (Shanghai), France (Paris), Israel (Haifa), South Korea (Seoul), Taiwan (Taipei), Vietnam (Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City) and the Western Balkans (Montenegro).
Maryland is well-positioned for growth in the global market, with more than 300 foreign-owned companies from 30 countries currently calling Maryland home. Roughly 105,000 Marylanders, or 3.5 percent of the workforce, are employed by foreign-owned firms, with companies headquartered in the Netherlands, United Kingdom and Germany as the top three foreign employers in Maryland.
Maryland’s Office of International Investment and Trade works to stimulate foreign direct investment in the State, offers export assistance for small and mid-sized Maryland companies and coordinates international trade and investment missions and trade show opportunities for Maryland companies. For more information on resources available to business that want to market their products or services globally, visit http://www.choosemaryland.org/