delsandy – Page 82 – Sandy Rosenberg

A Prime Minister, the Fallen, and an Entrepreneur

Menachem Begin was the Prime Minister of Israel.

He won the Nobel Prize for signing the peace treaty with Anwar Sadat and Jimmy Carter.

“I want to be remembered, above all, as someone who prevented civil war,” declares Begin in the quote you see at the start of the tour in the Begin Center.

He was referring to the armed dispute between his faction and the new State of Israel, headed by his long-time rival and first Prime Minister, David Ben Gurion, over the shipment of military supplies to Begin’s group.

Begin kept his pledge not to leave his modest apartment in Israel until he was elected Prime Minister.

Nonetheless, he asked to be buried on the Mt. of Olives in Jerusalem, next to two compatriots who committed suicide to avoid being hung by the British during the pre-state Mandate period.

Other PMs are buried on Mt. Herzl in Tel Aviv.

—

Before lunch, I walked in the Jewish Quarter of the Old City.

Instead of turning left to go to the Wall, I went right.

I found a memorial to the 48 Jews who lost their lives defending the City in 1948.

Rabbinical permission was needed for them to be buried there.

The reason: Jewish law prohibits cemeteries within a city.

That prohibition is also relevant at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, which is built on the burial site of Jesus Christ.

On an earlier trip, we came upon archeological evidence that the church was outside the City limits at that time.

—

My tour guidance for the first-time visitors was not what I hoped it would be.

Only Professor Levin and his wife joined me, and we took a taxi, instead of walking my newly found route to the Wall.

Our entrepreneurial cabbie asked us if we also wanted to go to Bethlehem – quite a distance away and a reminder that while some people in Jerusalem may ask me for directions, I’m still a tourist.

But very much at home and moved once I prayed at the Wall.

I have never walked down this street before

I volunteered to be the tour guide/rabbi for our group tomorrow as we walk to the Western Wall to welcome the Sabbath.

So I did a dry run today and wound up taking a new path to the Zion Gate, one of eight entrances to the Old City of Jerusalem.

Instead of walking in, I veered right to explore for the first time the Tomb of David, the Dormition Abbey, and a Christian cemetery.

A trumpet blared as I returned to the City walls.

It was a Bar Mitzvah procession – twin boys (sorry, Rachel), surrounded by trumpet, drums, and shofars; family; and tourists.

Only in Jerusalem.

In the afternoon, I had a private tour of Hebron, site of the tombs of the patriarchs and matriarchs and Arab markets now desolate and off limits to Palestinians for security reasons.

—-

“Did you sleep on the plane?” one friend emailed me.

“Over Western Europe,” I replied.

Better snoring through chemistry.

No trouble staying awake this evening and getting my body on Israeli time.

I went to see “My Fair Lady,” featuring a friend from Baltimore, Chip Manekin, as Alfred P. Doolittle.

As the usher said to Grandma and me when I first saw the show at Ford’s Theatre in Baltimore 50 years ago, “Two wonderful seats for a wonderful show.”

A seat at the table and in the classroom

June 5, 2012 | by delsandy | Sandy's 2012 Legislative Diary | No Comments

Maryland citizens, teachers, and students deserve a seat at the table when the General Assembly decides whether to expand gambling. More gambling must equal more dollars for our schools.

Senator Bill Ferguson and I believe that this additional money should be used for pre-kindegarten classes so that kids come to elementary school ready to learn.

We wrote the following in response to a Baltimore Sun editorial, “Gambling’s most taxing issue.”

Dear Editors:

Public school students would be the big loser if the tax rate is reduced for the owners of slots licenses.

Under current law, the tax rate on slots is 67%. Nearly half of the state’s revenue (48.5%) goes directly to the Education Trust Fund. Those dollars can be used only for education. With five fully operating sites, $513.3 million is projected for the Fund in Fiscal Year 2015.

However, that tax rate would be reduced by a third, to 42.5%, under a proposal by the developers of a sixth site at National Harbor in Price Georges County.

Instead of shrinking the allocation for education, we should expand it.

Academically enriched pre-kindergarten programs set students on a successful path of lifelong learning. Recent studies have highlighted both the short-term and long-term positive impacts that pre-k programs have on students’ academic outcomes and students’ preparedness for a 21st century skills-based economy.

If we authorize table games and target 10% of that revenue to pre-k, we would enable students of all socioeconomic backgrounds to enter schools on a more equitable path to opportunity.

—

I will be blogging from Israel daily, starting Thursday, at delsandy.com.

From Lofty to Local

May 31, 2012 | by delsandy | Sandy's 2012 Legislative Diary | No Comments

I was discussing lofty issues last week.

At my 40^th college reunion, I moderated a panel entitled “From Malcolm to Barack.” How had our activism been shaped by events before, during, and after our four years at Amherst?

When I got home, there was a letter on my desk.

A number of violent crimes, including several murders, have been committed in one block of my district. The community wants the liquor stores and other businesses in that block closed by 10 pm daily.

My response: get the facts. The police commander for the district confirms that there is a host of illegal activity at this location. I’ve asked committee staff in Annapolis, “What laws have been passed to address problems like this in other communities?”

We’re scheduling a meeting among the neighborhood, the police, the City Council member, and the 41^st District delegation, Senator Gladden, Delegates Carter and Oaks, and myself.

“If you work hard on community issues, your constituents will appreciate your hard work when deciding how to vote on controversial issues,” I told my classmates under the reunion tent. “If you take a position they disagree with, they’ll respect you nonetheless.”

Different Church, Same Pew

May 7, 2012 | by delsandy | Sandy's 2012 Legislative Diary | No Comments

“Well, what the hell’s the presidency for?”

That’s Lyndon Johnson, responding to an adviser’s counsel that the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was a lost cause.

Bill Clinton highlighted that quote in his review of the new Johnson biography.

The stakes aren’t as high, but I think the same principle applies when casting a tough vote in Annapolis.

I’ve said before that if your constituents disagree with a vote you made but believe that you cast it after much thought, they will cut you some slack. If they know that you work hard at the job, they’re more likely to respond this way.

The importance of the issue should also be part of that calculation.

Significant constituencies may disagree with my positions on stem cell research, exempting teachers at the KIPP charter school from a provision in the teachers’ union contract, or marriage equality.

Nonetheless, my reputation and my efforts to explain my vote – in print, online, and, most importantly, in person, should shape my constituents’ reaction.

After all, what am I there for if I don’t work hard and vote the right way on the most important and difficult issues?

A conversation that affects a career

April 25, 2012 | by delsandy | Sandy's 2012 Legislative Diary | No Comments

The career paths of five law students may be altered by a conversation I had two years ago.

The late Judge John Prevas was my criminal justice adviser. We discussed the State’s Attorney race between Patricia Jessamy and Gregg Bernstein in the summer of 2010.

John felt that the office should more aggressively seek out the best students at the University of Baltimore and University of Maryland Law Schools.

“I already passed a bill that could help. The Walter Sondheim, Jr. program gives a $3,000 stipend to students who take summer internships working for the government or a non-profit,” I replied.

Then I read the law.

A law student is eligible only if he or she “assists in providing legal services to low-income residents in the State who cannot afford legal services.”

Prosecutors did not qualify. Same for assistant Attorneys General.

So I introduced House Bill 487, which makes interns “providing legal services in a public service position” eligible for this assistance.

The legislation was enacted last year, and the first applications were submitted this spring.

The Shriver Center at UMBC administers this program. They asked me to review the 13 applications for five scholarships and to suggest another person to join that process.

My choice was obvious.

Clint Bamberger created the national Legal Services Corporation alongside Sargent Shriver, as part of Lyndon Johnson’s War on Poverty.

Clint is my adviser on lead poisoning and several other issues.

This week, we selected the five law students who will receive this scholarship.

Their experience this summer could be an important step towards a career in public service.

A Thousand Fathers and Responsible Orphans

April 19, 2012 | by delsandy | Sandy's 2012 Legislative Diary | No Comments

I’m reminded of what President Kennedy said after the Bay of Pigs.

“Victory has a thousand fathers, defeat is an orphan,” the President said, accepting responsibility for the mission’s failure.

In the public’s mind, we are all at fault for our failure to fund the budget during the 90 days of the legislation session. No branch of government or single elected official is the responsible orphan.

The post-session finger pointing is to set the political stage for the agenda at a special session.

Will slots legislation be considered when we reconvene or put off until next January?

—

I love the legislative process, but even I need a reminder about the impact of the bills we pass upon people’s lives.

Matt Gonter testified for my bill imposing a 25% penalty on people who improperly obtained a homestead property tax credit.

Matt is a private citizen who has been working to identify people who have wrongly taken this benefit.

I invited him to the bill signing.

“I can’t wait to attend,” he responded on Facebook.

I wrote in return, “Your enthusiasm about the bill signing and what we were able to accomplish is a great reminder to a 30-year veteran such as myself that the decisions we make in Annapolis can affect people’s lives in a very positive way.”

Matt suggested that I invite a friend of his who has also worked on this issue.

I did, but this person declined, saying that others had contributed much more than he.

In my response, I wrote, “Victory has a thousand fathers, defeat is an orphan.”

A Gaping Hole at the Midnight Hour

April 10, 2012 | by delsandy | Sandy's 2012 Legislative Diary | No Comments

We didn’t get our job done last night.

When midnight struck, we had passed the budget, but it has a gaping hole

A revenue bill, which raised $240 million to prevent cuts in K-12 education and Medicaid, did not pass.

The reason why – a 6^th slots site in Prince Georges County.

This was the highest priority of the Senate President.

The Speaker of the House was a reluctant supporter of more slots. He wanted the budget and revenue bills to be passed before the slots legislation was debated.

Each house was waiting for the other to take action on its most important issue.

That didn’t happen. The slots and the revenue bills failed.

Governing is about making tough decisions – weighing competing interests and balancing opposing views.

It’s not about gloating.

“Great ending. Session falls apart no income tax increase. Spending increase cut in half,” tweeted of my Republican colleagues.

We will pass the tax increase at a special session and avoid those cuts in services.

But we should have done so last night.

—

Personally, I had a very good session. I’ll be sending you my annual summary in a few days.

Prepared for Opening Day

April 5, 2012 | by delsandy | Sandy's 2012 Legislative Diary | No Comments

“I don’t think that bill is moving,” another delegate answered when I asked if she supported my proposed amendment.

“Best to be prepared,” I responded.

We agreed to act like Boy Scouts.

Not everyone is, unfortunately.

A bill I thought was uncontroversial is still sitting in committee.

I learned which committee member was the likely culprit. Then I asked the lobbyist for the affected Cabinet department to find out why the bill is being held.

No word yet.

—-

We expect the House will be in session until late tomorrow afternoon.

That means I won’t be going to the Orioles game.

However, I will again be offering the opening prayer for the House of Delegates on the Opening Day of the baseball season.

On Opening Day in 1947, the rookie first baseman for the Brooklyn Dodgers went hitless. By season’s end, Jackie Robinson hit .297 and led the National League in stolen bases and sacrifice hits. He was named Rookie of the Year.

Robinson told the crowd at the 1972 World Series, “I’d like to live to see a black manager, I’d like to live to see the day when there’s a black man coaching at third base.” Nine days later, he died of a heart attack. Three seasons later, Frank Robinson broke a different color barrier as manager of the Cleveland Indians.

Perhaps a future Hall of Famer is making his major league debut this afternoon. Or an obscure utility player may get the big hit or make the play in the field that wins the game. A parent may take a child to their first game together.

It will all begin when the umpire says, “Play ball!”

None is dead

April 4, 2012 | by delsandy | Sandy's 2012 Legislative Diary | No Comments

Of the 14 bills or issues I’m working on that have passed the House of Delegates, none is dead.

My bond bills have been funded.

Budget bill language about involving absent fathers with their child and the mother has been agreed to.

The House and Senate bills creating the Grasmick teacher scholarship have each passed one house.

Two of my bills have gotten favorable committee action in the Senate. Approval by the full body should be routine.

No distress signals that I’m aware of for any of my other bills that are in the upper house.

Ten days ago, I had five bills waiting for House action so that they could cross over to the Senate.

None made it. They’ll be wandering in the desert for the next nine months.

Until next year.

My Key Issues:

Author: delsandy