Councilman Sam Moxley said Tuesday he is getting closer to a decision about his political future.
“I’m seriously considering running for clerk of the court,” Moxley said after a council work session.
Moxley has expressed an interest in the position before. Last June he said he was considering running for the office that has been held by Suzanne Mensh since 1986. (more…)
When the County Council meets tonight, the first order of business will be to select a new chairman.
Democratic Councilman Joseph Bartenfelder served his fourth, and by his account final, year as chairman in December. Three Democrats, including Vince Gardina, Ken Oliver and John Olszewski Sr., have expressed an interest in the job that pays $60,000 annually — about $6,000 more than the salary for a councilman who is not chairman.
Odds are that the councilman who is sometimes known as Johnny O will be elected to serve for the third time in as many terms, according to council observers.
Four councilmen have controlled the position since 1996 — Bartenfelder, Olszewski, Kevin Kamenetz and Sam Moxley.
“It’s worked out ahead of time,” said Republican former Councilman Wayne Skinner, who served on the council from 1998 to 2002. “Those four decided.”
Those who have served previously as chairman have denied there is a deal in place or that Olszewski is a lock for the position.
There’s been no shortage of interesting political stories this year, from state delegates and their marriage proposals to anger over speed cameras and a rising tide of voter discontent, the likes of which hasn’t been seen in these parts for nearly 20 years.
But not every story is created equal. Let’s face it, some are more important than others.
As I thought about a top five local political stories in Baltimore County, I made my selections based on both power of the story for the year and the effect these stories might have over the next 12 months. A lot of these stories have legs like Tina Turner. (more…)
Councilmen Kevin Kamenetz and Sam Moxley abstained from voting on a batch five of contracts and other fiscal matters during Monday night’s County Council voting session.
At issue was a five-year lease totaling $196,951 with St. John Properties. The county Health Department will use the unidentified 3,000 square-foot space to store emergency preparedness supplies as part of the Cities Readiness Initiative grant program. (more…)
Growing up in Baltimore, you learn that when people ask you where you went to school they’re not asking you about where you went to college. In Small-timore, it’s all about your high school.
Even on the County Council, where five of the seven members graduated from local private schools, members occasionally participate in some playful inter-school rivalry banter. (more…)
Joseph “Prince of Darkness” Steffen has added his voice to the chatter related to the recent driving under the influence arrest of County Councilman Sam Moxley.
Steffen, a former staffer for Gov. Robert Ehrlich, reports in his blog Darkness Rising that there is “a movement afoot to draft Bob Ehrlich to run against Moxley.”
No, not the former governor. The former governor’s father, Robert Ehrlich Sr. (more…)
Earlier today I wrote about Caroline Cash, executive director of Mothers Against Drunk Driving Maryland, and the organization’s explanation on why the group has remained silent on the arrest of Councilman Sam Moxley on charges of Driving under the influence. (You can read the full previous post here.)
Well, the Internet is a marvelous thing. That post generated sharp criticism from Jeanne Pruett, president of Responsibility in DUI Laws, a Canton, Mich.-based organization.
“If you believe that cock-n-bull excuse that you got from Caroline Cash you are extremely naive,” Pruett wrote in an e-mail to me today after seeing the blog post. (more…)
Much has been made over the past week about why Mothers Against Drunk Driving has kept silent about Baltimore County Councilman Sam Moxley’s recent arrest for driving under the influence in Baltimore City.
Caroline Cash, executive director of MADD Maryland, said the organization does not take positions on or publicly criticize public officials who are arrested for DUI.
Cash said the organization does not comment on such instances because of prohibitions placed on political activities of nonprofits. MADD is a 501c3 organization. (more…)
Frustration boiled over during Thursday’s council budget hearing on the school system budget, as councilmen attempted to find out if air conditioning was ever planned for the recently renovated Ridgely Middle School. (more…)
It’s a rare event for a county agency to escape the budget ax when it comes before the County Council during annual budget hearings. Most departments can expect to see some type of recommendation ranging from a nick to a full-blown cut. (more…)