Despite clear warnings from the Democratic president of the Maryland Senate, Bill Ferguson, Gov. Wes Moore is charging ahead with an extreme partisan plan to redraw Maryland’s congressional districts. President Ferguson described the move as fraught with risks both judicially and politically. These warnings did not deter Moore from appointing his own hyper-partisan commission to redraw the map, and now the gears are in motion for eliminating the one Republican U.S. House seat in the state of Maryland.
Gov. Moore’s motives for appointing this commission are brazen. He is aggressively working to establish national credibility as a leader in an ailing Democratic Party that is suffering from historically low approval ratings. President Donald Trump infamously pressured Texas to redraw its maps to be more favorable to Republicans, and Democrats across the nation vowed to match an eye for an eye. Moore has not been subtle about his broader national ambitions, appearing on national media platforms and engaging in high-visibility national campaign efforts. The appointment of this commission serves to enhance his résumé as a dutiful Democrat committed to advancing national Democratic priorities in Maryland.
The merits of a national redistricting debate notwithstanding, there is nothing bipartisan or fair about this commission, despite the governor’s absurd claims of pushing for “fair maps.” The governor sprang this redistricting commission on Marylanders, with practically no warning. He heavily weighted it with Democrats. Chairing this commission is Democratic U.S. Senator Angela Alsobrooks, joined by former Democratic Attorney General Brian Frosh, Senate President Bill Ferguson, House Speaker Adrienne Jones and Ray Morriss, an obscure politician from Cumberland. The extremely partisan makeup of the commission is a far cry from former Gov. Larry Hogan’s bipartisan commission that laboriously worked to correct the offensively gerrymandered districts that preceded our current maps.
Maryland residents do not want partisan redistricting. Polling has consistently reflected the public disdain for extremely partisan maps. In fact, when the overwhelmingly popular Governor Hogan revealed the maps presented as a result of his independent commission to redraw the maps, Maryland Democrats immediately attempted to gerrymander them. Maryland courts intervened on behalf of Maryland residents, declaring, “The 2021 Congressional Plan is unconstitutional, and subverts that will of those governed,” and striking it down in a unanimous ruling. This paved the way for the adoption of much more reasonable maps.
Wes Moore is embarking on a path of illegal and unconstitutional conduct. His brazen efforts to bully Maryland independents and conservatives into submission are destined to fail. Given the clear precedents set by Maryland courts, any maps that emerge from this extreme partisan commission will ultimately be struck down in court, but not before hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars are wasted in litigation. Residents in Maryland are already buckling under the crushing weight of reckless fiscal policies. Such a tone-deaf effort by the governor only serves his personal political ambitions and leaves Marylanders less confident in his commitment to lead our state than ever.
The most shocking thing about this move is that the governor has yet to outline how such a move benefits our state. There is no polling or data to suggest that Maryland residents feel an urgent need to redraw our maps. No public outcry at the state of our representation exists. The only motive we can discern is that Gov. Moore gets to bolster his résumé, and Maryland residents will foot the bill. The energy and effort going into spitefully trying to unseat a duly elected member of Congress would be better spent on the litany of other challenges facing Maryland.
Maryland is straining to sustain the financial and social costs of a mass exodus from the state, as outlined by state Comptroller Brooke Lierman. The governor may better use his energy to reverse this trend and push organic revenue streams into the positive. State-level agencies are in perpetual damage control over scathing legislative audits, such as sex predators living in homes with vulnerable foster children or violent criminals with access to at-risk youth. Maryland’s Department of Transportation is struggling to account for millions in unauthorized spending.
Wes Moore’s national ambitions pose an existential threat to the well-being of Maryland. His lack of focus and management has left state agencies vulnerable to exploitation. Our vulnerable children pay the price for his tunnel vision for a national platform. Amid all the crises facing Maryland, the governor is prepared to drag Maryland down a costly and unpopular redistricting fight. This is unfair to the taxpayers of Maryland and completely unbecoming of the governor of our state.
Torrey Snow is a columnist and editorial board contributor at The Baltimore Sun; he can be reached at tsnow@baltsun.com.
