Thursday, November 8, 2012
A Dec. 31, 2012, deadline looms for Congress on a number of significant financial issues.
- GOVERNMENT
- Ben Gross
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Thursday, November 8, 2012
Now that the election is over, the most prominent problem facing the U.S. government is the “fiscal cliff.” You may have heard or seen the term in recent media coverage, but what, exactly, does “fiscal cliff” mean? If Congress fails to act, on Jan. 1, 2013, a number of financial policies will either expire or initiate, including $7 trillion worth of tax increases and spending cuts over the next 10 years. Some of the agencies and programs affected include: Defense cuts, air travel safety and food inspection cuts, income tax rates, the estate tax, marriage penalty relief, child tax credit, the alternative minimum tax, a drop in Medicare reimbursements, small business tax breaks and more. How do you feel about the country potentially going …
Monday, November 5, 2012
How to have the best voter experience in Montgomery County.
The Montgomery County Board of Elections has two pieces of advice for the nearly half-million residents expected to hit the polls in tomorrow’s momentous presidential election: 1. Bring your sample ballot filled out; 2. Avoid the Election Day rush hour. Nearly 78,000 county residents took advantage of early voting and another 45,000 will be voting via absentee ballot, according to Board of Elections spokeswoman Marjorie Rohrer. But that still leaves more than 400,000 voters to flood the fewer than 250 polling sites—on average, roughly 1,600 voters per poll—between the hours of 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. Tuesday. The 2008 presidential election drew 441,796 Montgomery county residents to the polls—a 72 percent turnout—followed by a 52 percent turnout…
Thursday, November 1, 2012
More than 43,000 have voted early already in Montgomery and Prince George’s Counties.
- ELECTIONS
- Ben Gross
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Thursday, November 1, 2012
Due to the dangers of Hurricane Sandy, early voting locations were closed Monday and Tuesday -- but Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley has now extended the early voting period through Friday for the entire state. During the two days that early voting locations were open, prior to Hurricane Sandy's arrival, 43,629 voters took advantage in Montgomery and Prince George’s Counties. Montgomery County According to data from the Maryland State Board of Elections 23,509 of the 616,016 eligible people voted early on October 27 and 28. Of those voters, 16,183 were registered Democrats, 2,821 Republican, 3,753 unaffiliated and the rest split between the Green, Libertarian and “Other” parties. Females so far are outpacing their male early voter …
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Democratic challenger receives key endorsements ahead of Sixth Congressional District race.
The Washington Post and The Gazette believe in change for Maryland's 6th Congressional District. The two regional publications endorsed political newcomer and Democratic challenger John Delaney over 86-year-old incumbant Republican Congressman Roscoe Bartlett, who is seeking re-election for an 11th term. According to The Washington Post: Mr. Delaney is an excellent candidate — shrewd, smart, hardworking and independent. He would be a standout representative for the 6th District and a marked improvement on Mr. Bartlett. We endorse Mr. Delaney... Mr. Delaney is a newcomer to politics, but he is exceptionally well-versed in domestic issues. Moreover, he has the problem-solving skills to be an unusually effective congressman. Mr. Bartlett, …
Friday, October 5, 2012
Local businesses help gauge the election through food and drink.
While choosing a candidate to vote for in the 2012 presidential campaign may seem daunting to some people, businesses in the area want to make sure that you are well-fed and well-caffeinated (and maybe even help predict the outcome) as you debate your selection. BGR: The Burger Joint Reviving its popular campaign from 2008, BGR began offering menu selections celebrating the candidates’ hometowns. BGR has locations in Bethesda, Potomac, Columbia and Gaithersburg. California Tortilla The popular Mexican restaurant has taken a slightly different tactic, honoring the candidates' personal lives: California Tortilla has locations in Silver Spring, Rockville, Gaithersburg, Bethesda, Olney, Annapolis and Potomac. Click here to read more about …
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
In the Montgomery County Board of Education primary, Morris Panner took the No. 2 spot for the At-Large ballot; Fred Evans and Rebecca Smondrowski took the top spots for District 2.
Although the Republican presidential primary bolstered Maryland into national headlines Tuesday, locally Montgomery County voters also narrowed the field for the Board of Education’s general election in November. The unofficial results show that Phil Kauffman and Morris Panner beat out the two other candidates on the ballot to advance to the general election for the at-large seat. Kauffman received 60.3 percent of the vote, and Panner received 17 percent of the vote. The next runner-up, Lou August, received 11.9 percent of the vote. "I am really honored to have received the support I did," Panner, a resident of the Town of Somerset in Chevy Chase, told Chevy Chase Patch. "It is such an important time in our [c]ounty's history and a …
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Mayor to present a search process proposal to the City Council on Monday.
Two days after Rockville City Manager Scott Ullery’s announcement that he plans to retire on Dec. 2, the wheels of city government are already turning on the task of hiring Ullery’s successor. Mayor Phyllis Marcuccio said that she spent Tuesday afternoon with the city’s human resources office reviewing a calendar and a process for selecting a new city manager. Marcuccio will present the plan to the City Council on Monday, she said. “We started working on it immediately with the thought that we should have some candidates in the pipeline in November, probably interviewing in January, with the hope that we can hire in March,” she said. Marcuccio said that city staff would call for the city to issue a request for proposals for “headhunter” …
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Stigile: Before 'a rush to judgement,' the city should conduct a 'no-fault investigation' of the fountain incident at the mayor's announcement.
We should all agree that having the fountains come on during the mayor’s campaign event was unfortunate. She and her supporters deserved to enjoy the moment. Once a decision was made to turn off the fountains, steps should have been taken to ensure that the event went forward without mishap. We should also acknowledge that the incident raises important questions about the use of city facilities for campaign purposes. Prudent people should want to get answers to many questions and not rush to judgment. Unfortunately, instead of waiting for a full airing of the facts, Mr. Jordan pounced on the city manager. The words and tone of his posting last week on Rockville Patch were impolite and accusatory. He characterized the city manager's actions…
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Jordan: Fountain going on during mayor's speech is "one of the most bizarre and arrogant abuses of authority I have experienced."
On Friday evening, June 10, I joined other Rockville residents in Town Center to hear Mayor Phyllis Marcuccio announce her decision to seek reelection. Among those in attendance were Gaithersburg Mayor Sidney Katz, Sen. Jennie Forehand, and former Rockville Mayor Steve VanGrack. Seats were set up in the pavilion area in front of the stage. Many senior citizens took advantage of the seating while other people stood or sat near the sides of the stage. After several short speeches, Mayor Marcuccio began her remarks. Several minutes into the speech, the mayor and all those who turned out to hear her speak became victims of the one of the most bizarre and arrogant abuses of authority I have experienced. Dozens of people were sitting in chairs …
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Mayor says she is “not sure what [Gajewski] means about her difficulties in working with the city manager."
Mayor Phyllis Marcuccio said Wednesday that she intends on running for re-election and welcomes Councilman Piotr Gajewski to the race, should he choose to run. “I’m delighted to see newcomers to the mayoral race,” Marcuccio said. “Any time someone wants to serve the city in that way, I think it’s terrific.” Asked if she would stand for re-election, Marcuccio said: “Sure I’m running,” adding that she had yet to talk to people who worked on her 2009 campaign about when to make an official announcement. “You can’t finish anything in two years,” she said. “I want a little more time to do that.” “That” includes getting city government to work more collaboratively with other government agencies, such as the school system, the mayor said. With …
Corbin Dallas Multipass
4:43 pm on Friday, November 9, 2012
"Just like the governor's idiocy. A few commuters got to keep their jobs while many thousands more lost the opportunity. Sheesh. Talk about ingrained stupidity." What? The jobs are moved from LA and weren't available here. How did commuters keep jobs that didn't exist? more ›