The Politics Hour
March Madness begins. Virginia lawmakers gird up for a potential government shut down. D.C. politicians play hardball for seats at the Democratic National Convention this summer. And Maryland's General Assembly pivots away from same-sex marriage to other hot-button issues like alcohol sales and pension reform. Join us for our weekly review of the politics, policies, and personalities of the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia.
Guests
Politics Hour Video
A caller who identified as an ANC commissioner from the area near RFK expressed dismay at what may be the city's plans to build a new Redskins training facility in the area known as "Reservation 13." The commissioner said plans have been in the works for a long time to use that area for commercial, residential, and retail purposes. He said no one from the city has been to the neighborhood to discuss the plans publicly with residents. Councilmember Jack Evans said he and the mayor are committed to come to the area within the next few weeks and that the city currently has no solid plan to build a sporting facility there:
Maryland State Senator Jamin Raskin (D - Dist. 20 Montgomery County) answered a caller's question about whether or not a referendum that could overturn the state's new law allowing same-sex marriage would also mean that out-of-state marriages would be rendered invalid. Raskin said the outcome is not certain, but he believes that even if the law is overturned, Maryland would still recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states. "I really believe that we've got a solid pro-marriage majority in the state and I think that Maryland can be the ground zero turning this whole issue around and saying, 'Let's put the culture wars behind us; let's give everybody equal rights in our state and let's move on to deal with the common economic and policy problems that we're dealing with'" Raskin said:
Comments
Please familiarize yourself with our Code of Conduct and Terms of Use before posting your comments.
Why is Jack talking about city-wide issues rather than those that affect the people he represents. Georgetown University has been shown to ignore its own 10-year plans, allowing growth to far exceed it's promises, yet the impact on neighborhoods has been devastating as they refuse to provide housing for undergraduates. Why doesn't Jack address this important issue that critically affects his constiuents?
This is the worst possible year to allow ANY state's voters to weigh in on same sex marriage. Though many deny it, many others like myself are convinced that the multitude of church-going minority voters who came out to support the election of President Obama voted en mass to prohibit same sex marriage in California.
To the Senator - I hope very much to be able to call you on this show after the November election to congratulate you and all of Maryland for extending me and many others the right to marry in your state. I fear, however, that I will be calling in to hear you say that I was probably right.
Good luck,
JCS-NYC
This is late since I was listened to show via podcast. Why no mention of recent 9th Circuit ruling? Obviously only applies to states within 9th Cir. (not MD), but the argument adopted, based on the Supreme Court precedent of Romer v. Evans, could mean that MD voters could not overturn the law through a referendum. Is that something that influenced supporter's decisions to push the effective date back? Seems like an important point.