In The News
Russia said Wednesday that separating Syrian rebels from ‘terrorists’ is a “key task” to ensure that the Russia-U.S.-brokered cease-fire continues to hold in Syria, where a relative calm has prevailed since the truce went into effect two days ago…. Russian Lt. Gen. Victor Poznikhir said rebels had violated the truce 60 times since it came into force sunset Monday. For their part, opposition forces said they had recorded some 28 various violations by government troops on Tuesday…. The cease-fire deal was reached over the weekend after marathon negotiations between U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Underscoring the complexity of the new arrangement, the deal was not made public in its entirety even as it came into effect.
Sarbanes’ legislation has 160 co-sponsors. But don’t expect the measure to move any time soon. Only one co-sponsor is a Republican: North Carolina Congressman Walter Jones, who, like Sarbanes, is the son of a member of Congress – and often finds himself out of step with the GOP establishment…. But Sarbanes does not despair – and now in his 10th year on Capitol Hill, he’s taking the long view. He believes that secretly – maybe even not so secretly – many members of Congress support this kind of campaign finance reform, especially younger and newer members who are disgusted with the amount of time they have to devote to fundraising…. And while Sarbanes fights the fight in Congress, he cites examples of successful public financing systems in states and big cities, including New York City, Seattle, Maine and Connecticut. In Maryland, he’s watching closely to see how Montgomery County’s new public financing system will work, and he’s heartened by the amount of funding the county has provided for the program. Sarbanes is also campaigning for a ballot measure in Howard County this fall that would create public financing there.Sarbanes’ legislation has 160 co-sponsors. But don’t expect the measure to move any time soon. Only one co-sponsor is a Republican: North Carolina Congressman Walter Jones, who, like Sarbanes, is the son of a member of Congress – and often finds himself out of step with the GOP establishment…. But Sarbanes does not despair – and now in his 10th year on Capitol Hill, he’s taking the long view. He believes that secretly – maybe even not so secretly – many members of Congress support this kind of campaign finance reform, especially younger and newer members who are disgusted with the amount of time they have to devote to fundraising…. And while Sarbanes fights the fight in Congress, he cites examples of successful public financing systems in states and big cities, including New York City, Seattle, Maine and Connecticut. In Maryland, he’s watching closely to see how Montgomery County’s new public financing system will work, and he’s heartened by the amount of funding the county has provided for the program. Sarbanes is also campaigning for a ballot measure in Howard County this fall that would create public financing there.
City, state and federal leaders gathered on Wednesday, designated as International Overdose Day, to highlight the ongoing overdose crisis around Maryland…. The Baltimore City Department of Health offered overdose education and Naxalone training in more than a dozen locations across the city. City Health Commissioner Leana Wen, along with Sen. Ben Cardin, Rep. John Sarbanes and Police Commissioner Kevin Davis appeared together at a conference at City Hall.
“For the last three years as garrison commander, Colonel Brian P. Foley has had a transformative impact on Fort Meade, helping to upgrade transportation infrastructure and modernize facilities across the installation, and importantly, helping to bolster the garrison's leadership in cyber defense,” Sarbanes said after the event. “His vision and his leadership will be greatly missed.”
Sarbanes said he is confident that Rickard is “up to the task” as garrison commander.
“Colonel Rickard is a distinguished Army commander who brings a wealth of management and leadership experience to his new position. I look forward to seeing continued growth and prosperity at Fort Meade under his command.”
Democrats plan to push hard to fully fund the bill’s provisions later this year when spending measures are finalized. Rep. John Sarbanes, D-Md., sponsor of a bill that the naloxone provision was based on, thinks that the final package will help raise the drug’s profile.
“It will be productive just to keep raising the public’s awareness, educating about it, trying to get more collaboration from all of the different groups, organizations and constituencies that need to be part of the solutions,” he told CQ. But he added: “We should be ready to commit the resources.”
The Annapolis Fire Department has received a $1.9 million federal grant. The grant was announced Friday by U.S. Sens. Barbara Mikulski and Ben Cardin along with U.S. Rep. John Sarbanes. The money will go toward hiring 12 full time firefighter positions for two years, including training and full benefits.
Foster was among the officials and lawmakers, including Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and Reps. Elijah E. Cummings and John Sarbanes, who announced plans for the program outside a Belair-Edison home selected to receive solar panels as part of another city initiative to install solar panels in low-income areas.
The money will support the Maryland Coastal Zone Management Program, which "improves collaboration between federal, state and local stakeholders and makes long-term investments in strengthening the resiliency of coastal habitats and ecosystems," Sarbanes' office said.
"The effects of climate change are worsening at an alarming rate, and communities in Maryland and around the country will need to accelerate mitigation efforts," Sarbanes said in a statement. "This grant funding will play an important role in improving the resiliency of Maryland's coasts and helping to protect the vitality of the Chesapeake Bay."
At a time when presidential candidates are turning away from public financing for their own campaigns because they don’t want to abide by limits on their spending and Congress has cut off public funding for political conventions, Sarbanes is insisting that “small donor-driven public financing” of campaigns is an idea whose time has come.
“Guns don’t die, people die,” said Rep. John Sarbanes, who attended the event with fellow Maryland Democrats Chris Van Hollen and Dutch Ruppersberger.