103 NORTH MAIN STREET ° BEL AIR, MARYLAND
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NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 29, 1998
CONTACT: George F. Harrison
410.838.9340/410.803.2780
Rehrmann Faults Glendening for Brady's Departure
The resignation of Maryland's Economic Development Secretary James Brady is yet another example of Governor Parris Glendening's failure to keep his commitments, Democratic Gubernatorial candidate Eileen Rehrmann charged today.
"The timing of Secretary Brady's departure couldn't be worse," Rehrmann said, noting that it comes less than two weeks before Maryland hosts the International Development Research Council's (IDRC) World Congress in Baltimore. "Here we have the opportunity to showcase Maryland in front of 2,000 corporate real estate executives, and the Department of Economic Development will be without its chief ambassador "
"This sends a very poor signal to the international business community from Maryland," Rehrmann said.
Rehrmann pointed out that Brady's resignation follows by only a couple of months the departure of Britt Kirwin as President of the University of Maryland, who left to head Ohio State University. Kirwin had expressed disappointment with Glendening's failure to follow through on commitments to raise the University's standing among its peer institutions.
"In the space of just three months Maryland has lost the leaders of two institutions which are critically important to our citizens: Higher education and the retention and expansion of our job base, " Rehrmann said. "Who will be the next to go?"
Rehrmann said she is disappointed to learn of Brady's resignation, "but not terribly surprised. It was generally known for some time that he was unhappy with the lack of support from the Governor on issues of importance to the state's business community."
She pointed to the Governor's recent reversal of his support for the long-planned Inter County Connector in Washington's Maryland suburbs. "After having stated that the ICC was a top priority of his administration, the Governor surprised Brady and everyone else by declaring the road 'could not be built, should not be built.' This was a direct slap to the Economic Development Secretary, who had only weeks before cited the ICC's importance to the economic viability of the Washington suburbs."
Rehrmann also noted the Governor's lack of support for legislation requested by Baltimore Gas and Electric Co. to establish a holding company for non-energy-related services. "Brady knew that failure to move that legislation forward could result in BGE moving some or all of its non-energy activities--and jobs--into Delaware."
Rehrmann said, "all of this, plus Glendening's repeated attempts to use the
State's Sunny Day fund for political rewards, certainly took a toll on Secretary Brady.
