u s senate

Gov. Larry Hogan’s legislation to expand the number of schools participating in the state’s technology education program died in a Senate committee — sparking harsh criticism from the governor’s office.

Physician-assisted suicide sends a message to the elderly that they are a burden to society.

The National Popular Vote compact will make every vote equal, compel candidates to campaign nationwide, and guarantee the presidency to the candidate receiving the most popular votes in all 50 states and D.C. Md. Senate Bill 582 does not deliver any of these three benefits.

Md. senator: I recently introduced legislation in the Maryland General Assembly that commits our state to awarding its Electoral College votes to the winner of the national popular vote, contingent on a state with a similar number of electoral votes that voted for Trump in 2016 doing the same.

Universal background check for all gun sales - the bipartisan gun violence legislation that is embarrassingly overdue.

House Speaker Michael Busch has withdrawn the amendment from consideration this year, but plans to introduce it again next year.

Maryland House of Delegates Speaker Michael Busch is withdrawing his legislation to enshrine abortion rights in the state’s constitution, his chief of staff said Saturday.

Since Congress is unlikely to roll back the tax cut with a Republican-controlled Senate, the only solution is to raise the federal gasoline tax to build up the Highway Trust Fund to address our country's decaying infrastructure.

Senate President Mike Miller has ideas for settling a long-running lawsuit over how Maryland treats its historically black colleges and universities. For instance, Miller wants to state money to open a law school at Bowie State University and funding for Morgan State University to buy land.

The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to review a federal court's decision that struck down a unique Maryland law to curb price gouging for generic prescription drugs. The General Assembly passed the law in 2017 at the urging of state Attorney General Brian Frosh and health care advocates.

After being changed significantly in a Maryland senate committee, Sen. Justin Ready’s bill seeking to hold those convicted of animal cruelty accountable unanimously passed the senate Thursday.

A review of the bills introduced by Democratic legislators in Annapolis this Session suggests that their party is not out to spread love and affection, but are on a mission of revenge. It is evident that the Democrats are looking for retribution for not only losing the Presidential race in 2016 ..

State Sen. Justin Ready, R-District 5 (Carroll County), on Friday introduced Senate bill 951, which would reduce Maryland income taxes by .25 percentage for every taxpayer, according to a news release from his office.

Maryland is faring particularly poorly under the sweeping changes to federal tax code that President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans enacted in 2017. The comptroller’s office reports the state’s average tax return so far has decreased by about 6.1 percent — to $983 — since last year.

Trump's plan to declare a national emergency to build his border wall is patently illegal. Will Republicans let him get away with it?

Hurrah for the Senate for its overwhelming and bipartisan support for expanded wilderness protections.

House Bill 463, sponsored by Anne Arundel County Republican Michael Malone seeks keep redistricting maps simple and counteract gerrymandering by requiring congressional districts to be compact and respect geographic boundaries and local city and county boundaries.

A lesson learned from the latest government shutdown crisis - for all his bluster on a border wall, it's President Trump who can be reined in.

A local delegate has introduced the Parishioner Protection Act of 2019, allowing parishioners to carry firearms in houses of worship to help protect their congregations from a mass shooting. The same bill did not make it past a committee hearing last year.

Debate over the Maryland school calendar has turned bitter. Some Republicans say a Democratic senator appeared to link Gov. Larry Hogan to former Alabama Gov. George Wallace. Sen. Paul Pinsky described someone "armed with an executive order" standing on "the schoolhouse steps" to block students.

Jules Witcover: Where are the GOP giants of yore who put their principles ahead of party loyalty?

Maryland's Senate has approved a measure to update Grace's Law, the state's law against online bullying of children.

Frustrated by Maryland lawmakers' attempts to undo his executive order to start the state's public school year after Labor Day, Gov. Larry Hogan says he'll submit a bill that would make school boards ask voters if they want to start school earlier. Hogan says he's offering "genuine local control."

Md. legislators: Like most Marylanders, we were shocked by the tone deaf decision made by the University System of Maryland’s Board of Regents last fall to place athletics above academics following the tragic death of Jordan McNair at UMD. Our bill should prevent similar mistakes.

Maryland state Sen. Will Smith, an officer in the U.S. Navy Reserve, will deploy to Afghanistan before the end of the General Assembly session. Smith has received orders to deploy in support of Operation Resolute Support, in which U.S. troops are providing assistance for Afghan security forces.

The bill would enable the Howard County council to place a fee on plastic bags which is blamed for contributing to climate change. In Annapolis, the state delegation voted to advance the bill. Sen. Guy Guzzone was in support of the bill but said he is in favor of a ban.

Cal Thomas: President Trump made building a wall his 2016 campaign centerpiece, he must find a way to do it.

People are pushing for Gov. Larry Hogan to run for president, but he should really throw his hat in the ring for Senate.

A federal judge has dismissed Maryland's attempt to protect the Affordable Care Act, known as "Obamacare," from any Trump administration efforts to dismantle it. The office of Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh had sought a declaration that the national health care act is constitutional.

President Trump seems poised to repeat a pattern of self-inflicted political damage, says Jules Witcover.

Harford County leaders were glad to hear Gov. Larry Hogan strike a bipartisan message in his State of the State speech for 2019, but some have concerns about the economic impact of his calls for tax cuts.

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Charles Grassley of Iowa and House Oversight and Reform Committee Chairman Elijah Cummings of Maryland are taking aim at the drug industry. So is President Donald Trump.

Making Maryland "foam free" and curbing the cost of prescriptions are among the priorities Democrats in the General Assembly say they've agreed in principle to push for this session. Under their proposals, Maryland could become the first state to ban polytyrene packaging, better known as Styrofoam.

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer showed poor sportsmanship in declaring victory in border wall fight.

Dan Rodricks in his column on the border wall was biased in blaming President Donald J. Trump on the breakdown in negotiations.

Jonah Goldberg: Why are the Republicans are getting off scot-free in the shutdown blame game?

After so many years of Republican obstructionism, how can they complain now about Democrats being unwilling to capitulate to their demands to build a wall?

What President Trump offered to end the government shutdown was a disgrace that Democrats rightfully rejected.

Paul Anderson once said that “A fanatic is a man who, when he's lost sight of his purpose, redoubles his efforts." President Donald Trump is such a fanatic.

Sources familiar with U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris' plans tell The Baltimore Sun that if she runs for president, she'll put her campaign headquarters in Baltimore. The California Democrat is expected to announce her 2020 plans soon. Harris' Senate office declined to discuss her plans.

News reports of a counterintelligence probe suggest deeper trouble for President Trump, says Jules Witcover.

Dels. Lauren Arikan and Steve Johnson, and Sen. Jason Gallion, all freshmen legislators representing Harford County, have completed their first week in the Maryland General Assembly. They shared their thoughts on Gov. Larry Hogan's inauguration, the atmosphere in Annapolis and proposed legislation.

A student once tweeted about an extra credit activity in my psychology course, igniting a discussion about the “tragedy of the commons” — the idea that when masses of people engage in excessive consumption, it can have catastrophic environmental consequences. A bill in Congress revisits the idea.

William Barr emerges as the unlikeliest of Trump choices - someone committed to the rule of law and a supporter of the Mueller inquiry.

The only way to resolve the government shutdown is for President Trump to withdraw his $5.7 billion demand.

If you're worried abut the security of the United States after President Trump's disgraceful dismissal of Gen. James Mattis as Secretary of Defense, you also need to look inside the U.S. government to examine the Trump hangers-on who are downgrading the professionalism of key government agencies.

Deadlock between White House and House of Representatives can be broken by a Senate willing to act responsibly.

The U.S. House of Representatives has overwhelmingly approved legislation to guarantee back pay for federal employees affected by a partial government shutdown. The measure has already cleared the U.S. Senate, where it was sponsored by Maryland Democrats Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen.

Over the past two years, Republicans have focused on spreading opportunity, and it has paid dividends: From the creation of opportunity zones in some of our

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate minority leader Charles Schumer left empty-handed from their White House meeting with President Donald Trump on