Quid Est Veritas

Praeteritio Prologue

By Patrick Weadon

The upcoming special session of the Maryland General Assembly is a reminder of the old adage that the “past is prologue.” On some level this latest gathering of our state’s elected representatives appears to be pretty much a routine exercise. After all, things change, people move around and because the electorate does not remain static, periodically it becomes necessary to “redraw” legislative districts.

This year’s reconfiguring of the maps, however, comes at a time when the citizens of our nation, and in many respects our state, have never been so bitterly divided. In addition, there are rumors and hints that the session will not only be concerned with redistricting but will also possibly focus on ways to acquire additional revenue to close the state’s budget gap. Thus, it is likely that the session could be anything but routine. Even so, the details of the upcoming session are such that one could be prompted to ask, is this really necessary?

To my mind, most of the requirements and challenges that the legislature will be seeking to meet can, in many respects be laid at the feet of Parris Glendening, former governor of Maryland. Many of my friends believe all politicians are opportunistic and exceedingly self-absorbed. I don’t agree with that, but, assuming it’s true, the poster boy for that premise would be Glendening.

The rigging of legislative voting districts or gerrymandering did not begin with the former governor. However, during his time in office, Glendening refused to inject some level of fairness into the process and instead, as the Baltimore Sun recently noted, made “cold political calculations… calculations made to reward friends, punish enemies and, overall, get more Democrats into elected office.

In the end, Glendening’s efforts were so partisan that in 2002, the district maps were ultimately thrown out by the Court of Appeals. Even worse, his obstinacy on the issue laid the ground work for where we find ourselves today.

The good news is we don’t have to go on like this. No less a man than the former Governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger has a solution. Long before he was caught in flagrante delicto with his maid, Schwarnegger developed a system that this author believes should be adopted by all 50 states. It has been endorsed by New York’s Mayor Bloomberg and other prominent pundits.

The plan would create a 14-person Citizens Redistricting Commission consisting of equal numbers of Democratic and Republican members to vote on redistricting plans. The “Governator” noted that his plan would reduce gerrymandering and make elections more competitive. Bloomberg noted that the proposal would bring about a “fair nonpolitical way of districting for elected officials.”

Would it totally reduce political partisanship in the way districts are drawn? The answer is no, but it would be a huge step forward and Governor O’Malley would only add to his legacy by taking action to implement the process.

On the other issue of the session implementing possible new tax increases, those of you who read this column know where I stand.

People in our state don’t talk about it much because they take it for granted, but we have an exceedingly high quality of life in Maryland. Huge challenges remain, but overall we live in a very special place.

With this in mind, it’s time to stop using “fees” as a backdoor way to keep our state solvent. Glendening’s tax cuts put us in a hole that we have yet to climb out of. For once, unlike so many other delusional people in our nation, let’s come to agreement on what we need to create a viable society and then, have the courage to invest in those things that are indelible to maintaining it. It is true that in the end, you get what you pay for.

See you in the Fall.