The Gazette Endorses Rep. Donna Edwards & Rep. Steny Hoyer

Yesterday we reported that The Gazette endorsed all three Democrats running for the Congressional seats representing Montgomery County. Today, the local paper has followed-up with endorsements of the two Democrats representing Prince George's County: Donna Edwards and Steny Hoyer. See a quick excerpt from The Gazette endorsements below:

GAZETTE: Incumbent U.S. Rep. Donna Edwards (D-Dist. 4) has matured in Congress and remains in touch with the needs of the majority of her constituents... Edwards is being challenged by Republican Faith Loudon of Pasadena, who has been active in the Republican Central Committee in Anne Arundel County, and Libertarian Scott Soffen of Ellicott City.

Neither Edwards nor Loudon support local gambling efforts, but they clash on abortion and same-sex marriage. Loudon opposes abortion, regardless of the situation, and believes marriage should be between a man and a woman. Loudon, however, doesn’t have a solid grasp of key issues — and, in some cases, her stance on the issues is similarly uncertain — and is vague on solutions....

The 5th District race for the U.S. House of Representatives features two longtime politicians and elected legislators — House Minority Whip Steny H. Hoyer (D), the incumbent, and Maryland House of Delegates Minority Leader Anthony J. O’Donnell (R). They are joined on the ballot by a Libertarian candidate, Arvin Vohra, and Green Party candidate Bob Auerbach....

Hoyer is the best person to protect the interests of his district, whose economy is as closely tied to federal spending as any in the country....

But Hoyer’s reputation in Congress prior to this current divisive term ... is of someone who not only is willing but eager to work with members of the opposition party to craft legislation that can move forward.

Read the full length Gazette editorials online.

MARYLAND DEBATE SCHEDULE // Attend a Forum on Ballot Questions, Congressional Battles & School Board Races

UPDATE: The Washington Post reports that John Delaney and Rep. Roscoe Bartlett have agreed to a series of six debates. Read the WaPo coverage for times/dates/locations.

Maryland Juice reader Paul Bessel forwarded us a schedule of numerous debates scheduled this month. Below you can see a listing of events featuring candidates for Congress and school board, as well as on the marriage equality and gambling ballot questions. NOTE: The listing below includes events from around the state.

When	What Who	Sponsor Moderator	Where
Monday October 15, 2012 7pm to 9pm	Congressional Districts 3 & 4 Candidates Forum Congressman John Sarbanes (Democrat) Eric Knowles (Republican) Paul Drgos (Libertarian) Congresswoman Donna Edwards (Dem) Faith Louden (Rep) Scott Soffen (Libertarian)	Anne Arundel County League of Women Voters and American Association of University Women and Unitarian Universalist Legislative Ministry of Maryland	Woods Memorial Presbyterian Church 611 Baltimore Annapolis Blvd Severna Park MD
Wednesday October 17, 2012 7pm to 8pm	Congressional District 6 Candidates Forum Congressman Roscoe Bartlett (Rep) John Delaney (Dem) Nicholaus Mueller (Libartarian)	League of Women Voters of Washington, Frederick, and Montgomery Counties	Hagerstown Community College Kepler Auditorium 11400 Robinwood Dr Hagerstown
Friday October 19, 2012 2pm to 4pm	Board of Education Candidates Forum Phil Kauffman Morris Panner Fred Evans Rebecca Smondrowski Chris Barclay Annita Seckinger	Democratic Club of Leisure World Paul M. Bessel	Leisure World Clubhouse 1 Baltimore Room
Saturday October 20, 2012 3pm to 5pm	Ballot Questions 6 & 7 (Same-Sex Marriage & Gambling Expansion)	League of Women Voters of Maryland and Norman and Florence Brody Family Foundation Public Policy Forum	Friendship Heights Village Center 4433 S. Park Ave Chevy Chase
Wednesday October 24, 2012 6:45pm to 9pm	Board of Education Candidates Forum Phil Kauffman Morris Panner Fred Evans Rebecca Smondrowski Chris Barclay Annita Seckinger	Progressive Neighbors State Delegate Bonnie Cullison Sharon Dooley Marva Deskins	Takoma Park Presbyterian Church Assembly Hall 310 Tulip Ave (at Maple St) Takoma Park
Monday October 29, 2012 6:15pm to 7:45pm	Board of Education Candidates Forum Phil Kauffman Morris Panner Fred Evans Rebecca Smondrowski Chris Barclay Annita Seckinger	League of Women Voters of Montgomery County and American Association of University Women	Wheaton Library 11701 Georgia Avenue

AFRO News Endorsements: Ben Cardin for U.S. Senate and Representatives Sarbanes, Edwards & Cummings for Re-Election

Maryland Juice just caught the following worthwhile endorsements from The Afro-American. In Tuesday's Democratic Primary, they support Ben Cardin for U.S. Senate and Representatives John Sarbanes (CD3), Donna Edwards (CD4) and Elijah Cummings (CD7) for Re-Election:

CD4: Glenn Ivey Decides Against Democratic Primary Challenge to Rep. Donna Edwards

Miranda Spivack at The Washington Post reports that former Prince George's County State's Attorney Glenn Ivey has dropped out of the 4th District race for Congress:

Glenn F. Ivey, the former Prince George’s County prosecutor who had announced plans to challenge U.S. Rep. Donna Edwards (D-Md.) is quitting the race, his spokesman said Wednesday.

CD4: Senator Barbara Mikulski Endorses Rep. Donna Edwards for Re-Election

Maryland Juice just received the following email press release from Rep. Donna Edwards re-election campaign:

Maryland Senator Barbara Mikulski Endorses Congresswoman Donna Edwards

Congresswoman Donna F. Edwards (D-MD) announced today that Maryland Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) is endorsing her candidacy for re-election in Maryland's 4th Congressional District.

CD4: Glenn Ivey Picks Up Support from State Senator Victor Ramirez & PG Councilmember Will Campos

Maryland Juice is back from an unannounced vacation from the blog, so I decided to check in on Glenn Ivey's campaign in the Fourth Congressional District. Judging by his Facebook page, it appears that he is still in the race. The following photo appears of Mr. Ivey with State Senator Victor Ramirez, along with an interesting caption. It seems that Prince George's Councilmember Will Campos and Mr. Ramirez hosted a fundraiser for Mr. Ivey's congressional campaign this week:

CD4: Howard Dean Endorses Rep. Donna Edwards // CD2: Pundits Rate Sen. Nancy Jacobs v. Dutch Ruppersberger

The Huffington Post reports that former Vermont Governor and 2004 Presidential candidate Howard Dean has endorsed Rep. Donna Edwards for re-election to Maryland's 4th Congressional District:

Former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean (D) and Democracy for America, a progressive PAC, have endorsed Reps. Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Donna Edwards (D-Md.) in their 2012 reelection races.

In an email to DFA members Dean states, "Few Democrats in the House of Representatives have fought harder than Donna and Raul to stop Paul Ryan's plan to end Medicare. They stood strong to defeat attempts to cut Social Security. And they have never backed down in the fight to restore the American Dream for everyone. But now their districts have been redrawn to make them significantly harder for a progressive Democrat to win."

Meanwhile over in the 2nd Congressional District, an anonymous reader has forwarded a Cecil Times analysis of GOP Sen. Nancy Jacobs' chances against Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger. In a guest appearance on WBAL last Monday, Maryland Juice stated he thought it was a longshot. Here's another take:

Anne Arundel Councilmember Jamie Benoit Not Running Against Rep. Donna Edwards // Glenn Ivey Moving Forward

Maryland Juice previously wrote that Anne Arundel Councilmember Jamie Benoit was weighing a challenge to Rep. Donna Edwards. The Baltimore Sun is now reporting that he has decided against a run in the 4th Congressional District Democratic Primary:

“Given the uncertainty and turmoil that currently exists in the county, I know I can best serve Anne Arundel County by remaining on the council," Benoit, a Democrat and Army veteran, said in a statement.

Mr. Benoit's announcement comes as Rep. Edwards has begun rolling out various campaign endorsements. That leaves former Prince George's State's Attorney Glenn Ivey in the April 2012 Primary with the incumbent. For what its worth, he's up with a new website at IveyforCongress.com. Here is his "Why I'm Running" statement:

Daily Kos Endorses Rep. Donna Edwards for Maryland's Fourth Congressional District // National Progressives Circling Wagons?

UPDATE: Here is one more piece of evidence that some national progressives may be circling the wagons around Rep. Donna Edwards. Maryland Juice just received an email from former Think Progress blogger Lee Fang with a link to an article carrying the following headline: "Oops: Corporate Lobbyist Challenging Congresswoman Donna Edwards Messes Up On Day One." Hmm.

Today the popular national netroots blog Daily Kos endorsed Rep. Donna Edwards for re-election in Maryland's 4th Congressional District. Their article noted in part:

Over the last couple of weeks, we've announced our first two House endorsements of 2012....

Today we add another incredible congresswoman, two-term Rep. Donna Edwards of Maryland, to our Orange to Blue fundraising list.

Edwards was the first African American woman from Maryland in the U.S. congress. She was vice-chair of the progressive caucus last term, while this cycle she's at the forefront of the battle to retake the House as co-chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's Red to Blue program (along with Jared Polis).

She's also someone who doesn't just vote the right way on virtually everything, but can be counted on to be a vocal leader and spokesperson for progressive values. I can't emphasize how important that is, and how rare it is within our Democratic caucus. It's so much easier to lay low and play the comity game.

League of Conservation Voters Endorses Rep. Donna Edwards // President Obama Provides Senator Ben Cardin Early Support

The League of Conservation Voters Action Fund announced today an endorsement for Rep. Donna Edwards in her re-election bid for Maryland's Fourth Congressional District. The group's press release announcing the support for Ms. Edwards stated:

The League of Conservation Voters (LCV) Action Fund, which works to elect candidates who will implement sound environmental policies, today announced its endorsement of Donna Edwards (MD-4) for re-election to the U.S. House of Representatives. Rep. Edwards has an impressive 96% LCV lifetime environmental score....

LCV was among the first organizations to endorse Edwards in the February Democratic primary election in 2008. Prior to serving in Congress, Rep. Edwards served on the Boards of the League of Conservation Voters and the Maryland League of Conservation Voters.

Rep. Edwards is also featured on LCVAF’s GiveGreen website, www.givegreen.com, the only bundling website devoted exclusively to raising money for environmental champions and candidates.

Meanwhile, Afro Briefs news reports that President Obama is providing an early endorsement to Maryland Senator Ben Cardin:

Political Juice Blender: GOP Money Troubles & Updates on Maryland's Congressional Races // CD6 & CD4 Horserace Chatter

Here's a random blend of political tidbits from recent news, starting with an ironic reader-submitted photo of GOP Chair Alex Mooney's budget management successes (captions provided by Juice):

6TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT: Maryland GOP Chair Alex Mooney isn't the only person having trouble fundraising. The Gazette reports that embattled Rep. Roscoe Bartlett from the 6th Congressional District is not raising any money but has new primary challengers emerging every day:

Former Prince George's State's Attorney Glenn Ivey Launching Exploratory Effort for Congress // Rep. Donna Edwards With 2 Primary Challengers

Last night a Maryland Juice reader indicated that a new candidate was emerging for the Democratic Congressional Primary in Maryland's 4th District. Earlier today, Anne Arundel Councilmember Jamie Benoit announced his intentions to explore a challenge to Rep. Donna Edwards.

But the rumor, it turns out, was really about former Prince George's State's Attorney Glenn Ivey. A few moments ago, a Maryland Juice Twitter follower made mention of the rumored candidacy, so I decided to ask Mr. Ivey himself. Mr. Ivey directed me to his newly hired media specialist, Ramon Korionof, who provided Maryland Juice with the breaking news:

Anne Arundel Councilman Jamie Benoit Explores Challenge to Rep. Donna Edwards // Army Vet to Seek Democratic Nod

Rep. Donna Edwards' new district appears to already be drawing the interest of challengers. See the press release below. Maryland Juice does not know much about Mr. Benoit, but on a side note, we noticed that his website does not appear to carry the "Democrat" label. This may have to do with his district demography:

In any case, see the press release below:


Anne Arundel County Councilman, Army Veteran Jamie Benoit Announces 

Congressional Exploratory Committee for Maryland’s 4th District

Benoit: “The Country Needs Serious people to address this once-in-a-generation fiscal crisis.”