Last night’s meeting, held at the Legacy restaurant (formerly Chef Fred’s), was a winner. The featured speaker, G.A. Harrison, gave a comprehensive analysis of the death of Wicomico County’s tax revenue cap by recent state legislation that allows Annapolis to direct payment of the County’s income tax revenue to the Board of Education in a county that does not meet stare-mandated “maintenance of effort” funding of its Board of Ed. He gave due credit for that measure to Delegates Conway and Cane – the only ones from the Shore who supported the bill (Senate Bill 848), which authorizes the County Council to break the tax cap if the excess revenue goes to fund education. He also discussed Rick Pollitt’s scam in this year’s county budget “based on a fiction” that the State is not going to screw Wicomico County because the special session of the General Assembly will somehow save us and the tax increases proposed by Pollitt will be enough.
Mr. Harrison is much more that your average citizen when it comes to governmental chicanery. Among the disturbing facts he mentioned: Rick Pollitt has, once again, failed to make his detailed (“line-item”) budget available for convenient public access on the County’s website. Maybe the County Council – several members were in the audience – will take prompt and appropriate action to right that wrong.
If anyone was bored by Mr. Harrison’s detailed analysis, Delegate McDermott provided the antidote with his emotional, spell-binding critique of cause of the Maryland malaise – the O’Malley dictatorship, to which most of the state’s liberal legislative mafia (including the dynamic duo named above) pay homage. At the risk of overlooking other bombshells in his commentary, do you know that funding for a new library at Salisbury Univ. -- $135 Million, which he opposed – was added to the state budget at the last minute and without normal discussion? It will probably become a reality even though the State can’t provide funding for roads, etc., and the existing library is certainly adequate. Is there any wonder why O’Malley and his acolytes are increasing taxes again?
If Mike wants to have another career, he could be a great full-time motivational speaker for the conservative cause. But we are better off if he stays in the General Assembly. He urged those who were present to actively participate by standing up to the elected officials, even if just to say “I’m mad as hell and won’t take more taxes” (my words, not his). That was also part of Mr. Harrison’s presentation.
Greg Belcher ran the meeting while encouraging audience participation, and the food was quite good at Legacy (try it if you haven’t). Nobody who attended regretted having done so.
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14 comments:
That $135 million will fund hundreds of construction jobs right here in Salisbury. Focus your fire somewhere else. There are many of us looking forward to working on that project!
I'd like to see Mike bump Mathias next time and have James go into his House seat.
Conway is a dead duck, and maybe Cane too.
How about Greg Belcher for County Exec?
Is James electable? Two times and couldn't make it already.
9:54-
Whatcha smoking -- that library will go to a big gen. contractor from elsewhere that will use mostly subs from elsewhere.
The point is that we can't afford that kind of expense now.
Hey 9:54:
Do you work for Baltimore Contractors, Inc.?
I'll second Greg Belcher as Pollitt's successor -- the sooner the better.
That was a good meeting -- I was there. Mike McDermott got a big round of applause.
I enjoyed hearing him on WICO, but they have stopped having interviews during their morning show.
You can't possibly think SU's library is adequate?!! When was the last time you tried to research anything there?
This is the same library that has been there for at least 40 years while the student population has grown. I'm sure GA enjoyed the food.
SU's library is a disgrace. It has been since the 90's. It really isn't adequate to today's learning. But $135 million is way too much to just thrown on the taxpayers at the last minute. That's a joke. There has to be a better way to get a better building there without being shady about it and spending that much money....Also Michael James isn't electable. He is good in his tourism roles in Ocean City. Mathias has done a good job as Senator. He isn't too liberal. I have grown to like Mcdermott too. I really hope Franchot runs for Governor, he is a more Moderate/Conservative Democrat that is more like Donald Schaefer and less like O'malley.
Final results for the 2010 district 38 senate-
Mathias 50.66%
James 49.28%
Mathias won by 640 votes. Total votes cast- 46,478.
With those numbers in mind James is very electable.
@ 9:54
It would only take approx. $55 million to finish Rt 113 and save coutless lives - and probably employ local people as well. But no.....we get to throw $135 million to SU because that's where the votes are.
9:54 you are no more a construction worker than the man on the moon. Quit trying to toot the horn for your political party - the dems - who have placed us in this political turmoil with their tax and spend ways.
The construction of the library at OVER $500 PER SQUARE foot will be forced to go to contractors from out of this area and as a direct result of the strings and compliance requirements the State imposes, the jobs, many of them, will go out of State. In addition the further compliance costs add 20% to the real cost if it were competitivly priced. The State does not know how to build
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