Caucus

WASHINGTON -- Members of the Congressional Black Caucus pressed President Bush on post-Hurricane Katrina reconstruction aid, the war in Iraq and social programs during an hourlong meeting at the White House yesterday. The Democratic House members said afterward that they would take Bush at his word that he would consider their concerns about the slow pace of reconstruction in New Orleans and his proposal to make budget cuts in federal health care programs. Several lawmakers said their expectations were low heading into the session -- which some, including Rep. Maxine Waters of California, chose to skip.

WASHINGTON -- Moving closer to a showdown over funding the war in Iraq, President Bush and congressional Democratic leaders emerged from a much-anticipated White House meeting yesterday without progress toward ending an impasse over an emergency spending bill. Despite Bush's veto threat, the Democrats continued to press ahead with legislation that would force the administration to begin withdrawing U.S. forces from Iraq. "We cannot give the president a blank check," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said after the meeting, which included House and Senate Republican leaders.

ClarificationAn article in yesterday's editions of The Sun reported that Sgt. Stephen R. Pagotto was the only city police officer convicted of a fatal shooting in the line of duty. The article did not note that Pagotto's conviction was overturned by the Court of Special Appeals, the state's second-highest court. The state is appealing that ruling to the Court of Appeals, which has not heard arguments.Maryland's black legislative caucus demanded yesterday that State's Attorney Patricia C. Jessamy quickly conclude her investigation into the death of Larry Hubbard Jr. and then send the case to a grand jury for a possible criminal indictment.

The nation's largest gathering of African-American state legislators closed last night in Baltimore after four days that featured political pitches from Democratic presidential candidates and an appeal from Maryland students to reconsider prayer in schools."

DES MOINES -- When Bill Bradley arrived here the other day, he reminded everyone that it was his 26th visit to Iowa in the year since he became a de facto Democratic presidential candidate.And, if you listen to those around him, he plans to step up the pace in the six weeks left until the precinct caucuses here begin the process of choosing delegates for his party's convention.This increased attention to Iowa -- and it is a change -- is noteworthy because the precinct caucus campaign here is one in which Mr. Bradley was considered to be at a significant disadvantage to Vice President Al Gore.

DEMOCRATS in the House saw disaster looming for their 1984 presidential nominee. But even more than the grim vision of their party's standard-bearer being buried in a second-term Reagan landslide was their fear of losing their own seats.They reasoned that a disastrously weak candidate at the head of the ticket would cost them their modest 1982 gains, which seemed to mark their recovery from Jimmy Carter's defeat.To avert this catastrophe, they decided to become kingmakers and influence the choice of nominees.

SAN FRANCISCO -- The wages of Hispanic workers in California lag far behind those of other ethnic groups, and a corresponding lack of education is the main culprit, according to a report done for state legislators.With a median income of $14,560 per year, Hispanics make about $8,000 less than the next-lowest-wage group, blacks, the report said.Increasing the wages of Hispanics, who will make up the state's largest group of workers by 2025, will mean big dividends for California, said state Senate Majority Leader Richard G. Polanco, a Democrat from Los Angeles, who requested the study.

The Legislative Black Caucus decided yesterday not to take a position on the Senate's decision to expel Sen. Larry Young last month.Del. Clarence M. Mitchell IV said his motion to draft a resolution to look into whether the Senate denied Young due process failed on a tie vote, 8-8. Fewer than half of the 35 members of the House-Senate caucus voted. Most black senators stayed away.The vote was taken behind closed doors after members decided to go into executive session to discuss what they called "personnel matters."

WASHINGTON -- Members of the Congressional Black Caucus expressed doubt yesterday about whether the investigation of sexual misconduct at Aberdeen Proving Ground is being handled properly and whether black sergeants are being treated fairly."

75 years agoThe United States has now been subject of constitutional prohibition for nearly three years. During that time there has been more drunkenness, more deaths from alcoholism, more theft, more robbery, more murders and other heinous crimes than ever in the history of the United States during a similar period prior to the enactment of the 18th Amendment. During the apple season of 1922, one small cider mill in the "barrens," has manufactured nearly 1,000 barrels of cider. Do the Barrenite pickles and souse need this much vinegar?

WASHINGTON - When Sen. Joe Lieberman broke from his longtime Democratic allegiance to back Republican John McCain for president, some rank-and-file Democrats were angry. And after Lieberman spoke at the Republican National Convention and criticized Barack Obama, they were practically apoplectic. Once Obama won and Democrats cemented their grip on Congress, the talk quickly turned to punishing the senator from Connecticut, who just eight years ago was the Democratic nominee for vice president.

The Maryland Senate Republican Caucus voted unanimously yesterday to elect Sen. Allan H. Kittleman as minority leader and Sen. Nancy Jacobs as the minority whip, elevating a moderate and a social conservative to the leadership posts. Kittleman, who represents Howard County, has quickly risen through the party's ranks and had served as minority whip with fellow moderate Sen. David R. Brinkley of Frederick County. He and Jacobs ran uncontested after Brinkley decided not to run again for minority leader, citing personal reasons.

The Legislative Black Caucus and civil rights activists criticized yesterday Gov. Martin O'Malley's plan for implementing a new program for collecting DNA samples from crime suspects, accusing the administration of turning its back on hard-fought compromises for safeguards and oversight. O'Malley made the DNA bill one of his priorities this year and worked hard to win passage of the legislation in the Maryland General Assembly - but only after significant changes during lengthy negotiations, particularly with the Black Caucus.

Maryland state Sen. David R. Brinkley, the minority leader, said yesterday that he would not seek a leadership post in the Republican Party caucus next year, partly because he said he needs to focus on his home life and business. Brinkley, a financial adviser from Frederick County who has been in the General Assembly since 1995, was involved in a domestic dispute with his wife to which sheriff's deputies responded in May. No charges were filed in the incident. The Senate Republican caucus is planning a meeting for September during which it will chose leaders.

Despite last-minute objections from Baltimore State's Attorney Patricia C. Jessamy, legislation to expand collection of DNA samples from suspects charged with violent crimes moved a step closer to final passage yesterday, as a House committee made only minor changes to the version of the bill that passed the Senate last week. The Judiciary Committee voted 18-3 to approve the DNA bill, a top crime-fighting priority of Gov. Martin O'Malley, after defeating a series of amendments that would have delayed or limited the initiative.

Maryland's seafood processing industry is once again in the crossfire of the battle over national immigration policy, and the economic pain could be severe. Nearly 70,000 foreign workers who have received temporary visas in past years to work as crab-pickers and food processors in Eastern Shore plants will be locked out this year unless Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski and other members of the state's delegation can dismantle a congressional roadblock standing in the way of legislation that would provide their visas.

The House of Delegates gave preliminary approval yesterday to a bill that would allow police to collect DNA samples from criminal suspects, though the O'Malley administration plan was amended to ease black lawmakers' concerns about how the biological fingerprints might be used. House members approved the bill on a voice vote, ending three days of intense negotiations that at one point prompted African-American delegates to walk out of a Democratic caucus meeting in protest. The Senate is scheduled to take up the bill Monday.

Gov. Martin O'Malley's bid to expand collection of DNA samples from criminal suspects is sparking intense debate in Annapolis, with black lawmakers so upset they walked out of a Democratic caucus meeting in protest. With objections from both ends of the political spectrum, the House of Delegates postponed debate on the bill until tomorrow. "This issue is very emotional with many people," said House Majority Leader Kumar P. Barve, a Montgomery County Democrat. He declined to discuss what took place at the closed-door caucus, but added: "There's hardly anything more personal than your genetic information."

Here's a selection of emails that recently landed on the desk of The Sun's public editor that proves that people do find time to read their newspapers during the holiday and frequently have strong opinions about what they read: On taxes Readers generally liked the coverage of John Fritze and others of the continuing fallout from the array of tax increases approved by Maryland legislators in last fall's special session. One note praised Fritze's Jan. 3 front-page story, "Bid to cut tax rate could still boost bill."

MANCHESTER, N.H. -- Change and conviction trounced money and experience in the Iowa caucuses as Barack Obama and Mike Huckabee grabbed the leading roles in the 2008 presidential contest. Hillary Rodham Clinton's hopes of becoming the nation's first female president suffered a significant blow, and her days as the Democrats' national front-runner are over for now after her third-place finish. The New York senator faces a rough slog in coming weeks unless she manages to bounce back Tuesday in the New Hampshire primary, in which she could be an underdog.