politics and government

Ex-felons could regain their votings rights while on parole or probation under a bill passed Monday night by the Maryland Senate.

Vice President Joe Biden visited a Maryland State Police laboratory on Monday in Pikesville to call attention to new federal funding intended to help reduce the backlog in rape kit testing.

Senate budget chief says his panel's largely on same page as House

Human trafficking legislation deserves to move forward despite its restrictions on abortion

Despite some dust-ups of partisan rhetoric, the Republican governor and Democratic legislature show they can work together on the budget.

The American Civil Liberties Union announced a lawsuit against the National Security Agency on Tuesday, alleging what it calls "mass Internet spying" on Americans international emails, communications and other online activity.

Baltimore's metro area has dominated statewide politics in Maryland for more than a century, but the 2016 race for retiring Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski's seat is getting under way after decades of demographic forces have shifted the political center away from the state's largest city and toward Montgomery and Prince George's counties.

Senate Republicans' letter to Iran makes us the laughingstock of the world.

Republicans have good reason not to trust Obama's negotiations with Iran

The pace picks up in Annapolis this week, as House members begin debating substantial revisions to Gov. Larry Hogan's proposed budget and committees scramble to advance or kill legislation before a deadline to get them to the Senate.

Don't blame Republicans for doing what Obama has done 10 times already.

The 47 GOP senators do a disservice to the nation and the Constitution they claim to uphold.

Gov. Larry Hogan announced late Friday evening that he has appointed April Rose to replace Sen. Justin Ready in the House.

Obviously, Jeb Bush has his strengths. He is a smart and capable man who is more than merely his last name. He may have skills and strategies (and certainly the money to augment them) that can compensate for his liabilities. But it seems obvious to me that the GOP needs a plausible "change" candidate, and so far, he's not it.

State bills that call for significant Public Information Act reform, including a limit on fees charged for PIA requests and the creation of a compliance board have gathered the support of the Maryland-Delaware-District of Columbia Press Association and various nonprofit organizations.

Bills that will ease the accessibility of public records and require all governing bodies that follow open meetings law to provide agendas are examples of legislation that have been introduced in the General Assembly to create transparency and openness in the political process.

WASHINGTON -- Del. Joseline A. Peña-Melnyk, a Prince George¿s County Democrat who is chair of the state¿s Latino legislative caucus, will announce on Tuesday she will seek the House seat being left open by Rep. Donna F. Edwards, a source with knowledge of her plans said Saturday.

Baltimore attorney Susan L. Burke, who rose to prominence battling the Department of Defense and its contractors in court, said in an email to supporters Saturday that she will not run for Sen. Barbara Mikulski's seat.

The GOP's treasonous note to Iran

Iran can't be trusted

Hillary Clinton's word regarding her emails is not nearly enough given Clinton history, says Cal Thomas.

U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, a Republican presidential hopeful, drew ovations during his one-hour speech on Friday at Bowie State University, but one idea drew big applause. The Kentucky lawmaker proposed giving Baltimore $900 million in tax cuts over ten years.

House lawmakers crafted a plan Friday to reverse many of Gov. Larry Hogan's budget cuts and restore spending in areas they thought he shortchanged — education, Medicaid and a pay raise for state employees.

Gov. Larry Hogan appointed three new Republican delegates to the General Assembly Friday, filling vacant House seats representing Anne Arundel, Carroll and Washington counties.

Not content with farm rules proposed by Gov. Larry Hogan, a Senate committee approved a bill Friday that would give Eastern Shore farmers a firm deadline to stop over-fertilizing their fields with chicken manure.

The agency is once again battling charges of incompetence and a culture that fails to hold misbehaving officers accountable for their behavior

The Republican senators had good reason to send their letter to Iran.

Maryland's senators have a chance to stand up to those who want war with Iran.

A bid to end elections for trial court judges in Maryland is being put on hold until next year, Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller said Friday

The Maryland Senate confirmed R. Michael Gill Friday as Gov. Larry Hogan's secretary of business and economic development.

The plot of "Scandal" often moves at breakneck speed, which is why episodes like "The Testimony of Diego Munoz" feel like they are allowing the writers to tie up loose ends in order to get us to next, coveted OMG moment.

Are career politicians like Mikulski what the Founding Fathers had in mind?

Heed the president's advice at Selma: keep talking racial injustice and engage more in the political process.

With pundits still chattering about why his last campaign ended in a stunning defeat, former Lt. Gov. Anthony G. Brown announced Thursday he was running for Congress.

Health advocates, led by the Sugar Free Kids Maryland coalition, wanted bottled water, low-fat milk and 100 percent fruit juice offered in kids meals in lieu of sugary sodas.

The chief of the Drug Enforcement Administration highlighted Maryland's heroin problem during a Senate committee hearing Thursday.

Consumer products such as toothpaste and cosmetic scrubs containing tiny plastic "microbeads" could be banned from store shelves in Maryland after 2018 under a bill unanimously approved Thursday by the state Senate.

Former lieutenant governor Anthony G. Brown will announce he is running for the House seat that will be left open by Rep. Donna F. Edwards' run for Senate, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the Democrat's plans.

Several bills have been introduced in the General Assembly that would take away the responsibility of central committees in Maryland of recommending someone to fill a legislative vacancy.

WASHINGTON — Glenn F. Ivey, a former Prince George's County state's attorney, said Wednesday that he will run for the House seat being left open by Rep. Donna F. Edwards — the latest shuffle to result from Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski's retirement.

Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz is threatening to eliminate school construction projects if state lawmakers grant a small tax break to homeowners who live near a county landfill.

Glenn F. Ivey, the former Prince George's County State's Attorney who is seeking the House seat being left open by Rep. Donna F. Edwards, said Friday his name recognition after two countywide campaigns and his background on Capitol Hill will allow him to "hit the ground running" in what may be one of the state's mostly closely watched primaries next year.

A decision by Gov. Larry Hogan to scuttle the Red Line or Purple Line, the long-planned light rail projects in Baltimore and the Washington suburbs that his administration is now reviewing, would be extremely unusual.

Maryland's long-standing policy to require a year-long wait for most divorces would evaporate under a bill approved by a Senate panel Tuesday afternoon.

Republicans show no respect for the presidency with their letter to Iran.