General Assembly Dems did it to you again
It’s safe to come out now. The General Assembly has gone home. As always, the end of the session gives us the opportunity to see what damage legislators have done to our state.
The session started and ended in much the same way; with the Democrats ignoring the will of the people by overriding Gov. Larry Hogan’s vetoes.
Early on, Democrats overrode vetoes on the Kirwan Commission recommendations, which will require historic and unsustainable increases in state and county spending that will surely bring higher income and sales taxes. They also overrode the so-called Netflix tax, raising taxes on the digital services that have sustained us all during the pandemic.
Remember: Democrats think your bank account exists so they can vacuum all the money out of it to pay for their pet projects.
They ended by overriding Hogan’s vetoes on a package of hastily crafted police reform bills. Of that package, the only bills that will make Maryland safer are ones that mandate the use of body cameras, limit the use of no-knock warrants, and new limits on surplus military gear for police.
The other components will make Maryland a more dangerous place to live. It creates disincentives against hiring and retaining good, hard-working police officers. What officer is going to want to work in an environment where their split-second decisions regarding the use of force are mandated by legislators?
Almost as bad is full public access to the disciplinary records of individual officers. The idea works in principle, but the law botches the execution because investigations found to be unfounded are unwarranted will still be subject to public release.
Meanwhile, the Violent Firearms Offender Act, which Republicans have been pushing for years, was again not adopted. That bill would mandate someone who uses a gun in the commission of a violent crime is guilty of a felony.
It’s quite typical of Maryland Democrats. Democrats make it harder for law-abiding citizens to purchase and own firearms. Democrats make it harder for police officers to do their jobs in trying to protect public safety. But these same Democrats refuse to make sure that Maryland’s most violent offenders are charged with crimes commensurate with their actions.
This is what happens when Democrats prioritize keeping their radicalized leftwing base happy instead of working to protect the interests of all Marylanders.
At least the General Assembly got a few things right this year. On the last day, legislation passed that paves the way for sports betting, hopefully by the start of football season. I’m glad legislative leaders took my advice to not micromanage the process and instead will allow more licenses to be issued than almost any state in the country.
They also followed my advice by making the sale of alcoholic beverages for delivery and off-site consumption permanent. This was an emergency change made during the start of the pandemic last year and was one of many regulations that we learned we could live without.
We made it, and when we next see the General Assembly, they will return to the circus-like atmosphere of an election year. You’ve been warned.