Political Notes: Trone airs second ad, Republicans pen letter to Baltimore mayor

U.S. Rep. David Trone (D-6th) released his second 60-second video Thursday, with a narrator summarizing the three-term congressman’s background and plan for the U.S. Senate.

Titled “Purpose” the video is part of a seven-figure ad buy scheduled to air throughout the state. It shows pictures of Trone’s family on their Pennsylvania farm, which they later lost to foreclosure.

“You might say it’s where David found his purpose. You struggle, you succeed, and then you make damn sure to help other struggling people succeed,” the narrator tells viewers.

The video showcases Trone’s commitment to helping formerly incarcerated people obtain jobs and education, to reforming a criminal justice system “intent on warehousing entire generations of Black men” and cuts to a sign for the American Civil Liberties Union’s Trone Center for Justice & Equality.

“So now that he’s running for Senate, he’s going to use the next few months to keep right on advocating for these issues,” the narrator says. “Because he figures that while he’s got your attention, he might as well use it.”

But Trone, founder of the national chain Total & Wine More, has competition.

Two high-profile Democrats, Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks and Montgomery County Councilmember Will Jawando, have entered the Senate race and released their own videos.

All three appeared Wednesday at a Maryland Democratic Party event at the New Fortune Restaurant in Gaithersburg.

Trone had several campaign signs placed outside the venue, one in a planter near the front door and others on a table inside.

Alsobrooks already has received dozens of endorsements from current and former elected officials within the party including U.S. Rep. Kweisi Mfume (D-5th), Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski and former state Democratic party leader Susan Turnbull.

Sen. Arthur Ellis (D-Charles) said Alsobrooks has partnered with him to advocate for extending Metrorail into neighboring Charles County.

“She’s been on board for almost five years now…on that project,” he said. “She’s found to be very reliable. She does what she says she’ll do.”

Todd Eberly, political science professor at St. Mary’s College in St. Mary’s County, said Trone and Alsobrooks remain the top two candidates, so far, to replace long-time Sen. Ben Cardin.

Eberly said Jawando “has an issue of getting his name widely known outside of Montgomery County. The jump from councilmember to United States senator is a pretty substantial leap.”

Jawando doesn’t see it that way, especially serving as an at-large member in Maryland’s largest jurisdiction with more than one million people.

“When you think about the way Maryland is organized, we are a county-based state. A lot of people that run statewide [come] from a county,” Jawando, first elected in 2018, said during a brief interview Wednesday. “We need bold, progressive ideas right now. [Democrats] don’t want just another solid Democratic vote. They want someone who’s going to go in and push that body, the Senate, which needs to be pushed.”

Republicans pen letter about Baltimore

Seven Republican legislators have sent a letter to Baltimore City Mayor Brandon Scott (D) and Police Commissioner Michael S. Harrison urging them to do more to decrease auto thefts and carjackings in the city.

None of the lawmakers reside in the city, but three are in neighboring Baltimore County and are members of the House of Delegates: Robin Grammar, Ryan Nawrocki and Kathy Szeliga. The other four Republicans are Dels. Lauren Arikan of Harford, Brian Chisolm of Anne Arundel, Mark Fisher of Calvert and Matt Morgan of St. Mary’s.

“We understand your concerns about auto theft in Baltimore City. Numerous people have told us they fear getting carjacked or having their vehicle stolen, discouraging them from visiting the city,” according to the letter, dated Wednesday. “The victims and taxpayers of Maryland deserve better. These crimes lead to the loss of life and property, drive up insurance costs, and have a negative economic impact when tourists and visitors stay away from the city. Residents and visitors to Baltimore City should be safe, and so should their vehicles.”

The letter comes nearly a week after Scott announced Baltimore would join other cities in a lawsuit against Hyundai and Kia “for failing to equip their vehicles with industry-standard vehicle immobilization technology.”

According to the mayor’s office, approximately 577 Kias and Hyundais have been stolen in Baltimore this year. At that pace stolen Kias and Hyundais could cause the number of vehicles stolen in Baltimore this year to double the number stolen in 2022.

The GOP lawmakers said that the city’s lawsuit against the vehicle manufacturers isn’t enough.

“We believe that more should be done to create awareness, assist people in measures for their protection, and invest in better technology and other strategies to ensure that criminals are caught and prosecuted appropriately,” they wrote. “By adopting a well-publicized and aggressive law and order approach to fighting carjackings and auto theft, Baltimore City can assure citizens and tourists that their safety is the top priority. We stand ready to support any legislation you need in the next legislative session to get more criminals apprehended, prosecuted, and incarcerated when they engage in carjackings and auto theft.”

A representative from the mayor’s office didn’t respond to emails for comment.

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