Partisan Politics

I read with great interest the Sun editorial, "Unbalanced Budgeting" (Mar 13). The sub-headline summed up that the difference between the two parties is so great that compromise seems impossible. Well, isn't that where the president steps in and brokers a compromise? The president, regardless of party affiliation, is the leader of our country and should put partisan politics aside to achieve consensus in Congress. President Barack Obama has proven time and time again that his first and only job is pushing the Democratic doctrine and maligning the Republican Party.

I read with great interest the Sun editorial, "Unbalanced Budgeting" (Mar 13). The sub-headline summed up that the difference between the two parties is so great that compromise seems impossible. Well, isn't that where the president steps in and brokers a compromise? The president, regardless of party affiliation, is the leader of our country and should put partisan politics aside to achieve consensus in Congress. President Barack Obama has proven time and time again that his first and only job is pushing the Democratic doctrine and maligning the Republican Party.

WASHINGTON -- Leading Republican lawmakers clipped on their microphones in television studios around town yesterday to attack President Clinton for formally invoking executive privilege to block grand jury testimony of senior White House aides in the Monica Lewinsky inquiry.White House officials countered that the Republicans were playing partisan politics.Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott called Clinton's decision "a mistake" that would damage his credibility. "It looks like they are hiding something," the Mississippi Republican said on NBC's "Meet the Press."

Dr. Benjamin Carson, the eminent Johns Hopkins pediatric neurosurgeon, has received much attention over the years not only for his skills in the operating room but for what he has achieved beyond it. For many Baltimoreans, his story is a familiar one - born in Detroit, raised in poverty by a single mother, he overcame much to not only become a Medal of Freedom winner but a benefactor to thousands of young people through his scholarship program....

WASHINGTON -- Like a John LeCarre spy story, the unraveling of Anthony Lake is a complicated tale.And yet, an increasingly familiar theme emerged at the end. Lake's nomination to head the CIA was done in, ultimately, by the Democratic fund-raising affair."

Dr. Benjamin Carson, the eminent Johns Hopkins pediatric neurosurgeon, has received much attention over the years not only for his skills in the operating room but for what he has achieved beyond it. For many Baltimoreans, his story is a familiar one - born in Detroit, raised in poverty by a single mother, he overcame much to not only become a Medal of Freedom winner but a benefactor to thousands of young people through his scholarship program....

University of Maryland Baltimore County President Freeman A. Hrabowski is dabbling in partisan politics by rallying support for reduced tuition for illegal immigrants ("Diverse supporters rally behind the Md. Dream Act", July 19). His budget must be flush with cash to advocate cutting his university's tuition fees. In light of Mr. Hrabowski's generosity with Maryland taxpayers' funds, shouldn't we expect the University of Maryland to scale back their appeals for alumni donations and to ask Annapolis for a reduction in the state's subsidy of his school in future budgets?

In voicing support for the Maryland Dream Act, UMBC's president Freeman Hrabowski isn't "dabbling in partisan politics" as letter writer James G. Howes claims ("UMBC has excess cash to subsidize illegal immigrants?" July 22). Mr. Hrabowski is voicing a reasoned opinion based upon decades of experience as a higher-education professional. As we attempt to rebound from a faltering economy, it is shortsighted and irresponsible to allow talent to languish in an attempt to score ideological points or punish the actions of parents who entered the country illegally.

As we continue another year of debate over in-state tuition for undocumented immigrants, complete with the legal and moral issues, I wish to suggest to our representatives in the state legislature a different approach. Why not propose a bill creating a partnership between Maryland and the federal government that would mandate that each non-resident student complete, as part of his or her college or technical school admission, the requirements for U.S. citizenship? Trained naturalization instructors certified by the United States government would educate students in the requirements of gaining citizenship.

Regarding Howard County Executive Ken Ulman's recent criticism of the Board of Education as "dysfunctional," I respectfully disagree. As one often outspoken member of the board, I will be the first to acknowledge that current board members possess varied and often profoundly different opinions on how to best carry out the mandate of our citizens. That said, I view the diversity of opinion on the board as a strength, not a "dysfunction. " The current board has consistently worked within tight budget constraints to address a wide variety of critical issues impacting Howard County's children, the treasures for whom we board members are stewards, and ever mindful of protecting our frequently overlooked but most essential asset: Howard County's public school classroom teachers and support staff.

The Catholic hierarchy is, sad to say, shamefully deficient in the theology of their own church. During the recent election campaign, some bishops embarrassed themselves by their loathsome meddling in partisan politics. They presented their opinions as the "teaching of the church," in opposition to both a growing consensus among theologians and the developing belief of the faithful. Unremembered, apparently, are the failures of their predecessors who spoke out against the women's suffrage amendment using the same fantastic arguments of danger to children's welfare and peril to family structure and harmony.

It's amazing that the Gov. Martin O'Malley would make such an asinine assessment of a referendum process that was approved by the people both at its inception and during the 2012 election cycle ("A referendum on referendums," Nov. 13). First, the online process created by Del. Neil Parrott, MDPetitions.com, is in no way different from that of the physical forms presented by citizens at community meetings, events and grocery markets across the state. The online petition process serves only as a conduit for those who believe the legislature has gone too far. It allows them to print a physical form that is then signed and returned either to the state Board of Elections or to the group promoting the ballot referendum.

U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin is not slick. You won't find him on the Sunday morning network talk shows very often. He isn't a partisan quote-machine. He doesn't give an especially stirring stump speech. But what Mr. Cardin does have is more valuable than that. He is a man of substance and integrity who understands complicated issues and the art of compromise. More than ever, the U.S. Senate needs such leaders, and that's why we proudly endorse him for a second term. Senator Cardin is a familiar presence on the Maryland political scene.

In voicing support for the Maryland Dream Act, UMBC's president Freeman Hrabowski isn't "dabbling in partisan politics" as letter writer James G. Howes claims ("UMBC has excess cash to subsidize illegal immigrants?" July 22). Mr. Hrabowski is voicing a reasoned opinion based upon decades of experience as a higher-education professional. As we attempt to rebound from a faltering economy, it is shortsighted and irresponsible to allow talent to languish in an attempt to score ideological points or punish the actions of parents who entered the country illegally.

University of Maryland Baltimore County President Freeman A. Hrabowski is dabbling in partisan politics by rallying support for reduced tuition for illegal immigrants ("Diverse supporters rally behind the Md. Dream Act", July 19). His budget must be flush with cash to advocate cutting his university's tuition fees. In light of Mr. Hrabowski's generosity with Maryland taxpayers' funds, shouldn't we expect the University of Maryland to scale back their appeals for alumni donations and to ask Annapolis for a reduction in the state's subsidy of his school in future budgets?

I wish to thank you for the article, "Reform moves ahead" (June 29). I believe the article did an excellent job portraying the facts regarding the Supreme Court decision. It is refreshing to hear a non-partisan synopsis of such a politically polarizing issue. It is on this note that I wanted to write to highlight the irony of the partisan politics surrounding the bill. The ACA is truly a politically neutral piece of legislation, drawing from ideas promulgated by both parties. In order to pass the law in the first place, compromises were made on both sides of the political spectrum.

What you have described is a bad case of partisan politics, not the participatory political zone where citizens live and breathe ("The $47 million deal," Oct. 27). Politics is where ever citizens get together, talk together, disagree together. Open and transparent free speech and peaceable assembly. Not the behind the doors push and pull of lobbyists and seasoned arm twisters. That you would bring this to the attention of your readers, I applaud. That you condone it and in fact suggest that the new test for your approval is whether it serves the common good of some who may or may not need the swag is what's shocking to me. I would like to know how you draw the conclusion that nothing "would happen in a legislative body that abstains from politics," by which you evidently mean partisan politics.

I'm beginning to wonder if there is a connection between the Super Bowl and heightened feminist frenzy. Last year, it was the Tebows' commercial celebrating life and the gift of children that had feminists all in a lather. This year it revolves around the Susan B. Komen Foundation's decision (and then the retraction of that decision) to stop funding Planned Parenthood. My wife and I are contributors to the Komen Foundation, and our decision to continue or discontinue contributing will depend on whether the foundation remains true to its mission.

What you have described is a bad case of partisan politics, not the participatory political zone where citizens live and breathe ("The $47 million deal," Oct. 27). Politics is where ever citizens get together, talk together, disagree together. Open and transparent free speech and peaceable assembly. Not the behind the doors push and pull of lobbyists and seasoned arm twisters. That you would bring this to the attention of your readers, I applaud. That you condone it and in fact suggest that the new test for your approval is whether it serves the common good of some who may or may not need the swag is what's shocking to me. I would like to know how you draw the conclusion that nothing "would happen in a legislative body that abstains from politics," by which you evidently mean partisan politics.