Governor

Maryland's flawed method for transferring power from one governor to the next has handicapped Gov. Parris N. Glendening. He's operating under a budget that's not his own, he's shackled with eleventh-hour political appointments by his predecessor and he has to live with controversial pardons signed by outgoing Gov. William Donald Schaefer.Instead of hitting the ground running in his first year, Mr. Glendening is treading water trying to sort out last-minute Schaefer patronage picks and quickly grafting a truncated version of his budget objectives onto the existing Schaefer fiscal plan.

It's not often that a disgraced politician, someone convicted of racketeering and mail fraud, is called upon to do public relations work for others. But thanks to Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr., Maryland's toll-paying drivers are now footing the bill for a $725,000 ad campaign for E-Z Pass that features not only the incumbent governor but also Marvin Mandel, the former governor who spent 19 months in federal prison. Too bad the late Spiro T. Agnew was unavailable. Mr. Mandel was found guilty 29 years ago and his conviction was later overturned - but not because the facts of this sorry episode were ever refuted.

IT WAS a development that made a possible accord between the PLO and Israel look routine.After seven years as governor, William Donald Schaefer put aside personal rancor and major policy differences to visit his successor as mayor, Kurt L. Schmoke.Baltimore -- Mr. Schmoke's home turf. With a happy face. With careful orchestration aimed at gaining maximum TV time for both the governor and the mayor. And with a full complement of top-drawer, showcase advisers -- his state economic fTC development chief (Mark Wasserman)

You expect a little hokum and sleight-of-hand from a circus performer or a street peddler. But not from the governor of Maryland.And yet there is Gov. Parris N. Glendening running around Maryland staging pseudo "bill-signing" events to wow the local media and populace. The problem is that the locals are firmly convinced that the governor is, indeed, signing these bills in front of them.He isn't, though.These bills have already become law. The formal events were held in Annapolis and require the joint signatures of the governor, Senate president and House speaker.

It took Gov. William Donald Schaefer less than 15 minutes to decide that C. Milton Wright High School in Bel Air should get $1.84 million for a 356-student addition and a 6,500-square-foot gym.The governor, who arrived at the school Friday in a large motor coach with his name painted on the side, took a quick peek inside the school and looked over a schematic drawing of the addition. He went outside to look at the site of the future 38,473-square-foot project and spent several minutes talking to about a dozen students.

Gov. Parris N. Glendening yesterday praised Howard County as "one of the engines driving the state's economy," noting that the county serves as headquarters to some of the largest companies in the state, including the Rouse Co. and the Ryland Group."

To be fair, we must consider the possibility that Willia Donald Schaefer was misunderstood. There is a chance, albeit a thin one, that our excitable and eccentric governor did not say what he was quoted as saying last Friday.In case anyone needs reminding, here is what was reported to have happened:As Schaefer walked down the center aisle of the House of Delegates for a swearing-in ceremony, he leaned toward a group of lawmakers and asked, "How's that s---house of an Eastern Shore?"It was a right nasty thing for a governor to say in public.

While the press has been having a good time with the recent ''gag'' order imposed by Gov. William Donald Schaefer, I feel compelled to raise what I consider to be some interesting points.First, I haven't noticed a dearth of state news from the headlines and airwaves of local newspapers, radios and television stations since the gag order supposedly took effect.People are still learning about the state's fiscal crisis, the governor's travels to the Democratic National Convention, and other assorted bits of state news.

The top leaders of the Maryland legislature sent an unusually blunt message to Gov. Parris N. Glendening yesterday: Stop hogging the spotlight.In a two-page letter, the House speaker and Senate president asked Mr. Glendening to stop holding public ceremonies around the state in which he appears to sign bills into law -- without them. Under the Maryland Constitution, the governor, the Senate president and House speaker must sign a bill together before it can become law."We are concerned enough to request that this practice be discontinued immediately, as it is confusing to the public and members of the General Assembly," wrote Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. and House Speaker Casper R. Taylor Jr."

Gov. William Donald Schaefer's pet dog, Willie, a black Labrador, got house and obedience training from a State Police officer and veterinary care at state taxpayers' expense. The total vet bill was about $600, a spokesman for the governor says, adding that he thought it was reasonable for the state to pay bills for Willie.The Evening Sun would like to know what you think. Should the state pay for the care of the governor's pet, which he plans to take with him when he leaves office in early 1995?