An Interview |
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Q. What is your background?
Q. Mrs. Rehrmann, you’ve been in elected office for 19 years. Why have you chosen to take on this challenge? A. Maryland’s citizens have lost confidence in the Governor. Our state needs a leader they can count on to solve the tough problems that the Glendening administration is not addressing. Q. Specifically, which "tough problems" do you mean? A. The state has serious problems that directly affect our quality of life: improving the public education system, congested roads, non-responsive HMOs, increasing fears about public safety, and an unfair tax burden. Q. Are you saying the Glendening administration is not aware of these problems? A. Parris Glendening’s approach is to address only the popular issue of the week, the headline of the day, the political opportunity of the moment. His attention lasts only as long as the TV cameras are rolling. Q. Can you give me an example? A. Yes, back in February 1997, Glendening gathered school children around him for a
flashy press conference, and proclaimed how destructive smoking was for kids. His said
that he would raise the cigarette tax by 36 cents, and "do everything in my power to
fight back on your behalf." Glendening never introduced the legislation he promised.
Some legislators introduced a similar bill but the Governor never lent his support and it
soon crumbled to the tobacco lobbyists. Q. You’ve been around the state, talked to a number of groups - what kind of response are you getting? A. The response has been great! As more and more people learn about my experience and what I stand for, they become excited about our campaign. I’ve had thousands of responses from citizens all across Maryland who want to work together to find shared solutions to our problems, to move the state forward. They want a governor they can count on… a governor they can be proud of. Q. Can you do anything about these problems without creating a financial crisis in Maryland? A. Certainly, just take a close look at my record. In Harford County, we reduced expenses and made our operations more efficient all without raising the piggyback or local property tax rates. As a result of careful planning, Harford County is considered by many to be the best managed county in Maryland. Q. What did you do to improve education in Harford County? A. I redirected dollars into education, into the classroom, for teachers, for textbooks, for technology. I fought to find out where the education dollars were going and how they were being spent. As a result, Harford County became the state’s leader in developing an education accountability system. Harford County has one of the top performing school systems in the state. It is very clear that people are concerned about the education of our children. We must develop comprehensive approaches to improving our educational system. These approaches must start providing quality and affordable education from the earliest ages through final preparation for the job market. Solutions must be developed for all of Maryland’s children. Q. What have been your other priorities as Harford County Executive? A. We also put more officers on the streets and worked with our neighborhoods for safer communities. Our communities came together and established a zero tolerance for underage drug, alcohol and tobacco use. We are working day in and day out to make it a reality. Q. How would you describe your attitude towards business? A. I am pro-business! From my very first day in office as Harford County Executive, I focused on creating jobs in the private sector that would pay better and that would include benefits. Day in and day out I work to bring jobs to my county, keep them here and encourage them to expand. As a result, Harford County is in the national spotlight as a top location for economic development. Q. How would you respond to those people who say you are ‘one tough lady?’ A. I make tough decisions every day. Problems are addressed, not ignored. Not everyone has agreed with all the decisions, but they know they were made in the best interests of the citizens. They know they can count on me. Q. Do you think you can carry these skills over to the governor’s office? A. Absolutely. Q. What are people telling you about health care? A. I have heard so many nightmare stories about HMOs. There is real concern about clerks in HMOs making medical decisions, not doctors. People are not only fearful over the adequacy of coverage, but they are increasingly frustrated by the complex nature of receiving the health care they need. Q. Can this problem be solved? A. Obviously part of the solution must come at the national level, but I am convinced that Maryland can and must develop a consumer bill of rights so that our system delivers quality health care and is easy to access. We must provide the best health care for all of our citizens. Q. Let’s talk about the state property tax proposal you’ve made. A. The state property tax should effectively be eliminated. Maryland is one of only 9 states with a state property tax. Maryland’s state property tax was created to help secure the sale of bonds for many of our projects. It really serves as a back-up guarantee to the people who purchase those bonds that the payments will be made. The State Constitution says that the state property tax "shall not be collected" if there are other sources of revenue to pay the bonds. Adequate revenue sources have been and are available to handle the bonds. This is a tax that we don’t need to collect. It is a tax set and controlled by the Board of Public Works, the Governor, the Comptroller and Treasurer. They can act to roll back the tax without the requirement of legislative approval. We did this in 1984 when we rolled back the personal property tax. It’s time to finish the job. Q. Why cut this particular tax? A. This tax is regressive. It is not based on a person’s ability to pay and hits citizens on fixed income especially hard. Even when their income is at a level that they have to pay little or no income tax, they are still saddled with Maryland’s property tax. This is a tax that should be rolled back, and rolled back now! If Governor won’t lead the way, I can assure you that this will be one of my first acts when I take office as Governor of Maryland.
A. Taking on an incumbent is never easy but I’ve never shied away from a challenge. According to public opinion polls, Parris Glendening has the lowest approval rating of any governor in the country. Q. Why do you think that his approval rating is so low? A. In meeting people across the state, there is a strong feeling, almost a consensus, that Parris Glendening is an opportunistic and self-serving politician. From the very beginning of his administration, doubts have been raised as to his credibility and reliability. He said he was leaving Prince George’s County with a surplus, but the real truth is that he left behind a deficit of more than $100 million. When he left Prince George’s he tried to give severance pay and pensions for himself and his top aides going with him, as if they were being involuntarily laid off. Q. I understand, but are people concerned about his conduct since becoming governor? A. Yes, I think this is an area of genuine concern. Perhaps most importantly, his political fundraising methods are beginning to erode confidence in the integrity of state government. As governor, he flew to New York on a private jet to a private fundraiser in the apartment of an individual with a pending multi-million dollar health care state contract. He responded by saying he didn’t know what he was doing. Q. Has Glendening personally disappointed you in any way? A. There is a very troubling aspect about the way this man governs. In his time as governor I have witnessed a growing divisiveness between jurisdictions, citizens, businesses, and other constituents fueled by Parris Glendening’s efforts to manipulate programs and funds to his political advantage. The list of examples is long. Using funding for Montgomery County schools to get support for new football stadiums in Prince George’s County and Baltimore, holding back on elementary school construction projects until the legislative session to use the funding as leverage to secure votes for his agenda, and leveraging our concern for our children’s health to wage a phony anti-tobacco campaign. Parris Glendening views this approach to governing as textbook politics. I believe most Marylanders see this as a very destructive and cynical approach that has led to a fragmented and divided state. Q. How would you govern differently? A. Maryland needs a governor who approaches problems by looking for positive solutions built from consensus. That’s the approach I offer. I mentioned how Glendening uses school construction funds as leverage to gain support for his political agenda. The Governor now holds back an increasing percentage of the school construction budget from final approval until the legislative session is underway so he can use those funds for "leverage" to gain political support. He will often pit one jurisdiction against another, or hold out the prospect of increased funding to secure support for an item on his political agenda. Essentially the Governor subverts the school construction program, once based largely on the greatest need for improved buildings, into a political manipulation. I would return the important decision making to the local governments working with the state’s school construction agency. I pledge to approve a complete school construction budget well in advance of the legislative process, as previous governors did. The quality of our children’s education should not and cannot depend on the number of votes a governor receives from a county. Overwhelmingly I have heard the call for a governor people can trust, someone who exhibits the qualities of honest and reliable leadership. Someone who can and will lead by positive example; a governor with a vision and direction for Maryland other than amassing political contributions. That is the governor I will be for Maryland. |
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Copyright�1998 | Eileen Rehrmann for Governor |
A. I am finishing my second term as Harford County Executive. Before that, I
was eight years in the state legislature on the Budget Committee. I was a town
commissioner and an elementary school teacher. I am also a mother of four grown children
and a grandmother of two.
Q. What chance do you think you have against an
incumbent governor?