Heather Curtis
WASHINGTON – It’s a done deal. Maryland’s Attorney General no longer needs permission from the governor to sue the federal government. A joint resolution created by Democrats concerned about the president’s executive orders passed the Maryland House of Delegates Wednesday 89 to 50 along party lines. The Senate approved it last week with a vote of 29 to 17.
This joint resolution will allow Democratic Attorney General Brian Frosh to be able to fight the president’s actions without needing to get the go ahead from Republican Gov. Larry Hogan. Hogan won’t have the opportunity to veto it because it’s a joint resolution, not a bill.
The resolution was so controversial that some senators walked out during debate last week. They said they didn’t get enough time to discuss and amend the joint resolution and believed Democrats tried to push it through too quickly.
Friday, Sen. Nancy King, a Democrat representing Gaithersburg and Germantown, said she was concerned about her Muslim constituents who told her the current political environment has them afraid. Ramirez said they have to give the attorney general the ability to advocate to do the right thing for Maryland residents like them.
Sen. Stephen Waugh, a Republican who represents Calvert and St. Mary’s counties, said the joint resolution would give the attorney general too broad of an ability to sue the federal government.
Since this is a joint resolution and not a bill, the governor Hogan will not have the ability to veto it.
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