OWINGS MILLS, Md. — Maryland U.S. Senate candidates vied over their differences during a televised debate Thursday. Maryland Public Television (MPT) hosted the debate between Angela Alsobrooks, the Democratic nominee, and Republican Larry Hogan.
A panel of three journalists questioned Hogan, the immediate former Maryland governor and Alsobrooks, the current Prince George’s County executive, on their stances on a variety of subjects during the one-hour debate.
Alsobrooks seized on the idea of keeping control of the Senate out of Republican hands.
“What we know is that no matter what former Gov. Hogan says today, he would empower a caucus of people who would take our country backwards,” said Alsobrooks. “Putting (Sen.) Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) over the Judiciary Committee, putting Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) over the Science Committee … he would empower a caucus that is against our values.”
However, Hogan said he intends to vote without regard for party affiliation nor favor either party when voting on policy, adding Maryland’s voters are aware of his support of gun and abortion legislation from his two terms as governor.
“You’re gonna hear a lot of red versus blue. I care a whole lot more about the red, white and blue,” said Hogan. “What we need are people who are going to be willing to stand up and work with both parties or criticize both parties when they’re wrong … We need mavericks in Washington that aren’t just gonna do exactly what the party boss is telling them to do.”
While Hogan pointed to times he called out controversial victories for the Republican Party — such as when the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022 — Alsobrooks questioned Hogan’s resolve to stand against party lines when necessary.
“I don’t think in this day and age that you can make a difference by being an independent running,” said Hogan. “I’m trying to fix the broken politics and my party’s got some serious problems and I’ve been a leading voice against it. Some people have given up … but I decided not to do that. I decided to stay and fight.”
The candidates differed on several key issues: Supreme Court reform, level of U.S. involvement when supporting allies and whether or not to reform legislative branch procedures — which included lowering the number of senators needed to overcome the filibuster.
Alsobrooks supported reform of both the Supreme Court and the legislative process to ensure a more balanced court and reduce the time it takes to move bills through Congress.
“I think there are ethical problems with this Supreme Court,” said Alsobrooks. “I do support reform for the Supreme Court — one of them would be to have term limits. I also agree with the notion of expanding the Supreme Court.”
Hogan said he opposed changes to the legislative process and did not support either notion of Supreme Court reform. According to him, adjusting pre-existing legislative or judicial standards would allow either party “to jam things through.”
One of Hogan’s touted victories during his tenure as governor was tripling affordable housing. However, according to a Time magazine article released yesterday — Hogan appears to have maintained a questionable relationship with his real estate firm, HOGAN, while serving as Maryland’s governor.
The article alleges that six firms listed as “longstanding” clients of HOGAN received nearly 40% of the competitive affordable housing awards Hogan directly oversaw as the sitting governor and member of the Board of Public Works (BPW). Hogan also voted to issue additional loans or grants to four of those developers on five occasions.
However, there’s no record of the former governor recusing himself in any decisions relating to HOGAN or its clients.
In the TIME article, Danielle Brian, executive director of the Project on Government Oversight said, “It’s wrong on its face … There’s an absolute need for a full investigation, and the report should be made public.”
A Hogan aide denied any wrongdoing.
“Gov. Hogan adhered to a legally-binding Trust Agreement, approved by the independent State Ethics Commission, that prohibited his participation in any matters related to his business,” Michael Ricci, a former state official and Hogan spokesman, told Time.
During the debate, Alsobrooks frequently pointed that Hogan’s choice to run as a Republican candidate instead of Independent one was telling — especially in a Republican-led Senate.
“As the mother of a 19-year-old daughter, she is facing a world in which she has fewer rights than her mother and grandmother,” said Alsobrooks. “The stakes of this election could not be any higher. We are facing an election where the future of the country and our freedoms are at stake.”
Hogan, meanwhile, stressed his intent to remain as independent as possible.
“I think that sometimes one voice standing up can really make a difference and I think we need more partisan politicians who aren’t going to be rubber stamps for their party,” Hogan said. “What we need are people who are going to be willing to stand up and work with both parties or criticize both parties when they’re wrong.”
