Maryland Democrats let Gov. William Donald Schaefer off the hook yesterday, refusing to approve a resolution mildly rebuking him for endorsing Republican George Bush for president.
Since the governor endorsed Mr. Bush four days before Tuesday's election, angry party regulars circulated several resolutions critical of Mr. Schaefer. Yesterday, party leaders worked quietly against their passage, admonishing the rank and file to savor the victories of President-elect Bill Clinton, U.S. Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski and other Democrats, and to focus on the future rather than the past.
"Frankly, I resent the many hours spent, time and energy wasted talking about one disloyal Democrat,"said Baltimore City Councilwoman Vera P. Hall, who was unanimously elected at yesterday's Democratic Central Committee meeting to continue for a full two-year term as party chairwoman.
Former Congressman Michael D. Barnes, elected to continue as the party's vice chairman, talked only about how well the party and Democratic elected officials had done in Maryland, although he briefly noted there was "one very unfortunate and regrettable exception."
But other Democrats from around the state said Mr. Schaefer's transgression should not be allowed to pass unnoticed, calling it an insult to party volunteers who had worked long hours for the Democratic ticket. Several noted that under party by-laws, a Central Committee member who had done what Mr. Schaefer did would lose his party post.
"The governor did it -- that's what the embarrassment was," said Mary Jo Neville, a Central Committee member from Baltimore County.
"We have nothing to be embarrassed about."
Two resolutions were offered. The first, presented by James Hoage of Anne Arundel County, would have "formally censured" Mr. Schaefer and declared him "persona non grata in all Maryland Democratic organizations and activities." But the motion to approve the resolution was never seconded and therefore never discussed. Several party members later said they thought it was too strongly worded.
The other resolution, introduced by Montgomery County party Chairman Michael Gildea, contained 11 paragraphs, 10 of them praising the party's victories in the Clinton and Mikulski races, its success in registering 190,000 new Democrats in the state and commending the efforts of its volunteers and Democratic elected officials, "with one notable exception."
