Trump’s proposed Chesapeake Bay cleanup cuts draw fire

Members of Congress, state lawmakers and environmental groups are rallying against President Donald Trump’s 91% funding cut for Chesapeake Bay cleanup.

Washington Bullpen podcast: “I had to stand up” – Politics and sports in the nation’s capital

GAITHERSBURG, Maryland — Ray Schoenke remembers driving through the night from Cleveland to Maryland to make it in time for the practice for Washington’s NFL team in the morning. It was 1966, and he had just been cut from the…

Election Guide: Meet field of 32 candidates seeking Rep. Elijah Cummings’ seat

WASHINGTON — Nearly two months after Rep. Elijah Cummings’ death, 32 candidates — including his widow, a former staffer, and several state lawmakers — are competing in the packed race to fill his seat.   The longtime Baltimore congressman died Oct.…

Steny Hoyer sees experience as his advantage

GREENBELT, Maryland – House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Mechanicsville, doesn’t seem especially concerned about his reelection next year. “My strategy for reelection is to continue to do a job everyday that people will see and appreciate,” he told Capital News…

Van Hollen, Beyer propose surtax on millionaires

WASHINGTON – The richest 1% of Americans control more wealth than the entire middle class combined, according to the Brookings Institution – a striking sign of income inequality that has accelerated since the Great Recession. A bill introduced last week…

Briana Urbina’s pitch to Maryland’s 5th Congressional District: go younger

BOWIE, Maryland – Briana Urbina and her campaign staff marched through rows of two-story homes with red brick and vinyl siding exteriors as the sun inched closer to the horizon on an evening earlier this month. Red and brown leaves…

45 years ago, another presidential impeachment involved another Sarbanes

WASHINGTON – On July 26, 1974, Maryland Rep. Paul Sarbanes introduced the first article of impeachment against President Richard Nixon during the House Judiciary Committee’s deliberations over the Watergate scandal.  The article was unanimously supported by all 21 Democrats on…

High court to weigh Trump’s ending of program for young, undocumented immigrants

WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court is due to hear arguments next week over the constitutionality of President Donald Trump’s decision to terminate a program that protects young, undocumented immigrants from deportation.  Both Democratic and Republican lawmakers, 165 educational institutions (including…

At Brookings talk, Van Hollen calls for “quiet diplomacy,” strategic partnerships

WASHINGTON – Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Maryland, criticized what he called the Trump administration’s isolationist foreign policy and called for greater collaboration with American allies in a discussion on defense and international affairs at the Brookings Institution Thursday. Van Hollen…

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau holds stance against added payday borrower protections

WASHINGTON – The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has not budged on its June decision cutting additional protections.  “There was insufficient evidence and legal support for these requirements,” CFPB Director Kathleen Kraninger wrote in a Sep. 23 letter to Rep. Maxine…