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Miller Rule: Criticism bad, nepotism good

Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller states that Maryland politicians ought to refrain from mentioning "spouses or children" ("Hogan dismisses Ind. travel ban," April 2). This must be a new rule for Senator Miller.

In 2010, a judicial selection committee rejected Senator Miller's son as unqualified for appointment to the district court bench. What happened next? Gov. Martin O'Malley stacked the committee with yes-votes, the name of the unqualified candidate was resubmitted and the appointment was then made. So the actual, unwritten Miller Rule is this: "An elected official should feel free to mention privately the name of a relative when a job his kin has already been judged not qualified to hold can be rigged on his behalf."

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By the way, Mr. O'Malley's casual attitude toward judicial appointments might become an issue in his run to be president of the United States: Is he going to do favors for the relatives of D.C. politicians by selecting unqualified judicial candidates as he did for Senator Miller in Annapolis?

Richard Cook, Cockeysville

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