O’Malley calls for larger investment in education, infrastructure

[47of74]

Gov. O'Malley was in Iowa today...

CEDAR RAPIDS — A strong middle class is not a luxury American can afford only when the economy is flush, but the cause of economic growth, former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley said at a Democratic fundraiser at a Cedar Rapids union hall Saturday.

O’Malley, who is exploring a bid for the 2016 Democratic nomination for president, is spending the weekend in Iowa where he received enthusiastic welcomes in Davenport where about 300 Democrats gave him multiple standing ovations as he lamented income inequality and the reckless disregard for the nation’s economy exhibited by big Wall Street banks. He drew about 30 people at the Cedar County Democratic off-year caucus Saturday morning before speaking to about 40 people the fundraiser for the Iowa House Truman Fund. The midday gathering attracted 1st district candidates and potential candidates Monica Vernon, Ravi Patel, Swati Dandekar and Gary Kroeger as well as several local Democratic legislators and House Minority Leader Mark Smith, D-Marshalltown, who introduced O’Malley.

Smith who had met with O’Malley when he was campaigning for Iowa Democrats during the midterm election, said he was impressed with his ability to articulate Democratic messages on a broad array of issues.

In his 13-minute stumps speech to about 40 people, O’Malley focused primarily on economic issues..

I hope he does run, if for no other reason than to keep the primary season honest and not a coronation.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

1. I LIKE his ideas a whole lot. n/t

[leftofcool]

2. Sorry O'Malley, I lived in Maryland while you were Governor. No thanks

I am well aware of your high taxes on the middle class.

[Iris]

4. How were the schools? The infrastructure?

What were taxes like for corporations?

[elleng]

6. Schools are great.

But O’Malley’s time in Annapolis is also the story of an unbowed liberal champion, who muscled through a string of policy changes that will endure long after he departs Wednesday. Gay couples in Maryland can now marry; the state no longer executes prisoners; minimum-wage workers are getting pay increases; and undocumented immigrants can qualify for in-state college tuition rates. It is harder to buy a gun.

The state spent record amounts on education and more on roads, despite a recession, and there were steep drops in crime and a dramatic increase in people covered by subsidized health care — improvements made possible, O’Malley boosters say, by the very tax increases that became so reviled.

“I’ve done what I think is the right thing to do for the common good of the people I serve,” O’Malley said in an interview. “If you look objectively at what this administration was able to accomplish .?.?. you’d say it was a very productive and effective eight years.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/md-politics/in-defining-omalleys-legacy-liberal-successes-compete-with-tax-hikes/2015/01/19/5b951d4c-9d81-11e4-a7ee-526210d665b4_story.html

[Iris]

8. What I figured.

Not sure how the other poster thinks those things can happen without people paying taxes.

[elleng]

9. True.

I've seen questions about his tax policy, including from relatives, and would like to get more info on the subject. I will do so, some time.

I live in MD, and as a senior I don't pay much; lots of my income is deductible, I understand. (Check with me in a few weeks to confirm that! ) There's this:

Social Security benefits are free from state income taxes in Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Virginia and Wisconsin. The District of Columbia also waives income tax on Social Security.
Read more at http://www.kiplinger.com/article/retirement/T055-C000-S004-retirees-watch-out-for-the-state-tax-bite.html#2ipI4hIlAsPXU7dk.99

[Iris]

10. I spent more than half of my school years in MD

My dad worked in WV but lived and paid (higher) taxes in MD because the school's were better.

I didn't realize that MD doesn't tax SS.

[elleng]

11. That's NOW;

no idea what it was in the past.

More, on O'Malley + Taxes:

A big test came late in O’Malley’s first year, when he called lawmakers back to Annapolis to resolve a long-standing “structural deficit” in the budget, namely the state’s practice of planning to spend more money than forecasters expected it to collect in revenue.

O’Malley offered a package of tax increases and budget cuts, as well as a plan to raise additional revenue by legalizing slot machines — a poisonous issue for much of Ehrlich’s term.

Legislative leaders cautioned against holding such an ambitious special session — particularly with no guarantee of success. But O’Malley pushed through his entire package, with some bills squeaking by after debates that stretched into the wee hours. He had established himself as a force to be reckoned with, even though some efforts — such as repealing the death penalty — didn’t succeed right away.

In the end, there was no major O’Malley initiative that didn’t make it across the finish line. In some cases, he showed a willingness to compromise that frustrated his allies — like slowing the pace of pay increases in a minimum wage bill.'

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/md-politics/in-defining-omalleys-legacy-liberal-successes-compete-with-tax-hikes/2015/01/19/5b951d4c-9d81-11e4-a7ee-526210d665b4_story.html

[Thinkingabout]

3. now these are the things potential candidates should be bringing up.

The crap talked about is non scandals and issues which does not establish a strong platform and where we need to go. I heard him changing the discussion from the non scandal email to things he is interested in creating a good platform.

[elleng]

5. about O'Malley:

'But O’Malley’s time in Annapolis is also the story of an unbowed liberal champion, who muscled through a string of policy changes that will endure long after he departs Wednesday. Gay couples in Maryland can now marry; the state no longer executes prisoners; minimum-wage workers are getting pay increases; and undocumented immigrants can qualify for in-state college tuition rates. It is harder to buy a gun.

The state spent record amounts on education and more on roads, despite a recession, and there were steep drops in crime and a dramatic increase in people covered by subsidized health care — improvements made possible, O’Malley boosters say, by the very tax increases that became so reviled.

“I’ve done what I think is the right thing to do for the common good of the people I serve,” O’Malley said in an interview. “If you look objectively at what this administration was able to accomplish .?.?. you’d say it was a very productive and effective eight years.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/md-politics/in-defining-omalleys-legacy-liberal-successes-compete-with-tax-hikes/2015/01/19/5b951d4c-9d81-11e4-a7ee-526210d665b4_story.html'

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/01/us/politics/martin-omalley-in-veiled-jab-at-hillary-clinton-derides-politics-of-triangulation.html

O'Malley placed regulations in place before leaving office to limit the amount of phosphorous from chicken manure that could be used.

http://www.fredericknewspost.com/opinion/editorial/hogan-shelves-chicken-manure-rules/article_e1158828-cc00-5eb6-9b95-ff9ab74fd924.html

The University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science presented Gov. Martin O’Malley (D) with the Reginald V. Truitt Environmental Award for his environmental leadership in Maryland. He received the award Sept. 30 at a special ceremony with invited guests at the Institute of Marine and Environmental Technology at Baltimore’s Inner Harbor.

“From record farmland acres planted with cover crops to thousands of citizens growing oysters off their piers, to preserving hundreds of thousands of acres of open space, farm and forest lands, we’ve created common, publicly-available platforms and leveraged state resources to restore the streams and rivers we’ve inherited,” said O’Malley in a press release. “I’m honored to accept this award on behalf of all Marylanders — it is through their tireless dedication and commitment that will continue to establish a healthier Chesapeake Bay, and create a more sustainable future for the next generation.”

The University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science’s Reginald V. Truitt Environmental Award honors a Marylander whose dedication, efforts and achievements in the fields of public service, communication and management have resulted in the better understanding and stewardship of Maryland’s environment, the release states. Past recipients of the award include former Maryland Sen. C. Bernard Fowler, U.S. Sen. Charles M. Mathias, Gov. Harry R. Hughes, Gov. Parris N. Glendening and U.S. Sen. Paul S. Sarbanes. Three of the five past recipients were in attendance. O’Malley is the sixth person to be honored with the Reginald V. Truitt Environmental Award.

“Governor O’Malley has listened to science in striving for Chesapeake Bay restoration and sustainable growth in Maryland. His leadership in responding to climate change through energy conservation and transformation has set a national standard,” said Donald Boesch, president of the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science, in the release. “We as citizens of Maryland have been fortunate to have a governor with such vision, intelligence and commitment to our environmental future.”

O’Malley has served the people of Maryland as governor since 2007 and led the region in protecting the Chesapeake Bay, according to the release. During his administration, O’Malley has been the nation’s leading governor on the environment, the release states. He has pushed for stronger environmental regulations and has led the restoration of the bay. Maryland is the only state that has consistently met its two-year milestones, ensuring that short-term progress leads to long-term restoration.

Under his leadership, Maryland has worked with its partners to adopt management strategies to rebuild the blue crab population, and has made significant progress in restoring the oyster population and expanding the aquaculture industry, the release continues. He led the creation of BayStat, a data-driven performance management tool, to steadily reduce nitrogen and phosphorus polluting the bay. He has also led the state’s efforts to adopt, and become an active member in, the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, the nation’s first market-based regulatory program in the United States to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

During his administration, Maryland has added more renewable energy to its grid than any time since the Conowingo Dam was built 80 years ago, according to the release. In 2009, he led the state’s efforts to pass the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act that will reduce greenhouse gases 25 percent by the year 2020.

read more: http://www.somdnews.com/article/20150123/NEWS/150129622/1059/o-x2019-malley-receives-truitt-award-for-environmental-leadership&template=southernMaryland

For people unaware of O'Malley, here's his resume:

http://msa.maryland.gov/msa/mdmanual/08conoff/gov/former/html/msa13090.html

The bottom quarter is good reading on O'Malley's positions and what he accomplished in Maryland.
A former Governing Magazine “Public Official of the Year,” Governor O’Malley was re-elected in 2010. His 2013 legislative successes were described in a Baltimore Sun editorial as “without many parallels in recent Maryland history.”

With a balanced approach of spending cuts, regulatory reform, and modern investment in education, innovation, and infrastructure, Governor O’Malley and his Administration are making better choices that are delivering better results, including:

Fastest rate of job growth in the region.
#1 ranking for best public schools in America for an unprecedented five years in a row (Education Week).
#1 ranking for holding down the cost of college tuition (College Board).
#1 ranking for innovation and entrepreneurship for two years running (U.S. Chamber of Commerce).

Under the Governor’s leadership, Maryland also ranks:

#1 nationally in median income,
#1 in Ph.D. scientists and researchers per capita,
#1 in Research and Development, and
#1 in businesses owned by women.


Called “arguably the best manager in government” by Washington Monthly magazine, Governor O’Malley has cut State spending more than any previous governor in Maryland’s history, balancing these record cuts with targeted, modern investments in priorities like public education. He has reduced the size of government to its smallest size since 1973 (on a per capita basis) and reformed how it is managed, so that it works more efficiently and accountably. His actions to save Maryland’s State pension system have made it sustainable over the long term. His fiscal stewardship has nearly eliminated Maryland’s structural deficit. His efforts to streamline, consolidate and digitize processes like business licensing are making Maryland a better place to do business.


PS, part of a public informational archive and not bound by copyright.

[BlueStreak]

7. Remember at this time in the 2008 cycle

Hillary was declared the unbeatable, inevitable candidate.

While she certainly has some assets, her email thing was unbelievably stupid. I don't think Bernie could win the primaries and certainly could not get elected, but O'Malley might be a different story.

[47of74]

12. Hillary is head and shoulders above any of the Dumb Fs running for the GOP.

Ten miles above them and I would vote for her if need be.

That said, I would rather have a hard, pipe hittin liberal running. O'Malley to me seems a bit closer to my ideal candidate.