Democrats in the Maryland General Assembly regularly grouse that Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) steals – and occasionally repackages – their ideas and legislation.
So on Thursday, Hogan’s press office returned the favor, sending legislators a Valentine’s Day bouquet listing the measures they are sponsoring that bear a striking resemblance to bills Hogan is championing – and some that are identical. The Hogan team’s message was packaged with hearts and the headline “Feel the Love: Hogan Administration, General Assembly Agree On Common Sense Legislation.”
The missive also carries the message, “Imitation Is The Sincerest Form Of Flattery.”
With that, the Hogan news release lays out 14 pieces of legislation under consideration in this General Assembly session where it says lawmakers are following the governor’s lead. In some cases – like a Hogan bill promoting expansion of the Pathways in Technology Early College High program and a P-TECH bill from Del. Andrea Fletcher Harrison (D-Prince George’s) – the language is identical. In other cases, the legislation Hogan cites accomplishes similar things, like multiple bills to provide tax breaks for retired first responders.
Hogan’s news release was not meant to be a partisan hit. Many of the bills he cites that mimic his own come from Republicans.
“There is no limit to the amount of good you can do if you don’t care who gets the credit,” the Hogan statement says, quoting President Reagan.
Josh Kurtz
Founding editor
Founding Editor Josh Kurtz is a veteran chronicler of Maryland politics and government. He began covering the State House in 1995 for The Gazette newspapers, and has been writing about state and local politics ever since. He was an editor at Roll Call, the Capitol Hill newspaper, for eight years, and for eight years was the editor of E&E Daily, which covers energy and environmental policy on Capitol Hill. For 6 1/2 years Kurtz wrote a weekly column on state politics for Center Maryland and has written for several other Maryland publications as well. Kurtz regularly gives speeches and appears on TV and radio shows to discuss Maryland politics.
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