From the Craig 2014 Campaign:
Havre de Grace – Harford County Executive David R. Craig announced his bid for Governor today emphasizing an inclusive message with wide appeal to Marylanders that goes beyond party affiliation. Following the morning announcement, the campaign will make stops later today in Baltimore and Hagerstown. On Tuesday, it’s on to Silver Spring, Prince Frederick and Annapolis. The three-day tour concludes Wednesday in Salisbury and Easton.
“Let’s make Maryland work for you” is expected to be a recurring theme throughout the campaign and marks a sharp departure from the policies of the last several years. As a gubernatorial candidate, Craig will champion policies that advance economic prosperity in Maryland with which to balance budgets and reduce taxes while realigning state government priorities to address personal rights, freedoms and fiscal responsibility.
“If we have learned one thing in the history of human events it is this: a government that promises too much to others is one that is failing you,” Craig said.
Rejecting a national political strategy that has come into vogue over the last several years, and one virtually adopted in its entirety in Maryland, Craig said political leaders have lost focus and government initiatives have devolved into appeasing various groups with which to attempt to splice together numerical advantages at the polls.
“We have lost focus,” he said.”Politicians of late seem to be more like rock stars and celebrities. The best leaders do not seek fame on a stage, they advance ideas that fit the times in which we live. At this very moment, our government spends more and it takes more from you. It creates more and more programs and divides us into groups.”
The county executive highlighted areas where years of political monopoly has created inertia to the point where state government essentially now “works for itself ,” at the expense of everyday Marylanders. With over 30 years of experience in local and state elected office, Craig said counties and cities are getting left behind as well. Punishing tax increases, foundational cracks in the state’s much-vaunted public education system and removal of funds intended for local roads are conspiring to create conditions that are driving generations of Marylanders to other states, according to the county executive.
A widely publicized study of Internal Revenue Service data shows over 30,000 Marylanders moved away since 2007, the highest net-exodus rate among surrounding states.
Craig is a tenth-generation Marylander who is married with three children and eight grandchildren. He will be seeking the Republican nomination for Governor leading up to the June 2014 primary. Currently the Harford county executive, Craig’s experience include teaching and administrative positions in the public school system and serving as city councilman and mayor of Havre de Grace and as state delegate and senator.
Craig said he looks forward to giving Marylanders a real choice and a true debate on the issues.
Surprise, surprise.
Well, he’s done such a fine job with harco.
Oh, wait.
AAA bond rating. Lowered taxes. Cut government 10% workforce while maintaining services. Lower overall unemployment rate than surrounding counties.
Yeah, things in Harford County are just awful aren’t they?
Your school system sucks. Just thought I’d remind you of that.
We can thank Mr. Craig for that. Things will get worse for the school system before they get better – after Mr. Craig is gone from office.
Your school system sucks. Just thought I’d remind you of that.
Thanks!
I certainly have not heard that on the dagger in at least the last 5 minutes.
And the outstanding leadership he showed handling the Walmart move into Bel Air
If this is the best that the Republican party can offer for a candidate then the state can cancel the general election and just declare the Democratic primary winner the Governor.
Democrats have the advantage because they can buy the votes of low-information, dependency-class, mooch-to-opportunity parasites.
Not like the Republicans can’t count on you with your highly informed views on how pouring asphalt spontaneously produces cars.
Instead of trashing Mr. Craig, why don’t we get together and support him in his uphill climb to straighten out this left winged State. It is true that he is not the perfect candidate, but I certainly would rather have him in Annapolis than Anthony Brown or any other Spendocrat like O’Malley. You liberals, keep on voting for the Democrats and higher taxes, fees, and other big brother tactics that make us consider moving to another citizen friendly state.
Alot of people can not and will not support him because he is incompetent!
But still quite an improvement over Mr. O’Malley.
But not good enough.
My dog would be an improvement over O’Malley. That doesn’t mean I’ll vote for him.
I’ll vote for your dog if he’ll keep his snout out of my wallet.
Your wallet is probably safe. No promises about your crotch or butt, though.
six of one, half dozen of the other
Stop obsessing over O’Malley. If that is your standard….well!!!!!
I’m willing to support a Republican candidate as soon as the state Republican Party puts up a candidate willing to take the fight across Maryland, rather than trying to win by only campaigning on the Eastern Shore and Western Maryland. A winning Republican will have to peel off some independent and Democratic votes to get a victory in this left leaning state. As long as the local Republican Party plays the game of trying to be more conservative than other conservatives, it will doom itself to being irrelevant. Don’t blame the liberals for Republican ineptitude, as they have enough faults of their own.
There are better Republican candidates.
I would happily vote for a republican/ conservative candidate . But having dealt with Mr. Craig as CE I can say there is nothing that would make me cast a vote for him, ever.
Please proceed to that other citizen friendly state. I’ll help you pack.
Because you must be reminded David Porter is a foolish myopic non-thinking liberal.
Spoken like an ignorant troglodyte typical of Harford County. Liberal is not the word, however you are so far right I suspect even Ronald Reagan is a closet liberal to you by now. Do you do anything in moderation or are you just hell bent on being anti everything you can’t understand or refuse to acknowledge that good ideas are not the domain of dittoheads like yourself?
Why don’t you two get a room.
‘You’ asking for moderation from extremists is like Hitler asking Stalin for concessions.
Hang on, I gotta run to wal mart (soon to be bel air) to buy some microwave popcorn for the upcoming entertainment this article is going to provide in the comment section, probably mostly about Harford county public school issues and opinions.
Thanks dagger press, I don’t even need to watch tv anymore. I come here instead.
Pick me up some Mountain Dew and Hotpockets while you’re there.
Craig is the the best chance this state has of not being run into the ground. Too bad, too many people use this site as a negative sounding board to post comments of ABSOLUTELY NO truth about Craig. Instead, maybe they should try actually checking their facts. Then maybe they won’t have such ridiculous things to say, and will find out all the great things he’s done since holding office.
“Craig is the the best chance this state has of not being run into the ground.”
I’m going to **** you into the dirt.
Are you a Craig campaign worker or did he pay you to post this?
Craig wants to be Governor
O’Malley wants to be President
We need to start drug testing our politicians
That should have been started years ago.
Bush and Clinton would have failed.
I will never, ever vote for Craig. After what he has done as CE.
Another Democrat Governor, just what Maryland needs.
At least we agree on something.
He does have the lying and cheating thing down pat.
He’s white and a Republican, Baltimore City and PG county will chew him up and spit him out.
Just about everyone in Md. will chew him up and spit him out, except for a few loyal, but indoctrinated followers (personal friends) who already think they’ll be partying it up with him at the Governor’s Mansion. Seriously, are these people crazy?? The man is a joke of a CE. It’s embarrassing for our county that he even thinks he stands the slightest chance of being the Governor.
I think in a race with a half way decent independent…..he comes in third!
This campaign will be a complete waste of money. I see no record for him to run on, particularly with education.
Agreed. He has about as much chance of winning as I do, and I’m not running. He will not be able to attract democratic voters in Baltimore County the way that Ehrlich did when he took the state. Union-member democrats won’t give Craig the time of day.
He’s a hypocrite and a liar. Perfect for Annapolis…
Please provide an example of one of Craig’s lies for the good of the discussion.
How about the lie that he is trying to tell in getting Hdg High school replaced over much more needy schools such as the two elementary schools near Abingdon or Youth’s Benefit? Or the lie he told about not having enough money to fund education properly yet there was a huge surplus being socked away?
I am a conservative and cannot stomach OWEMALLEY but at least with OWMALLEY you knew where you were getting screwed.
Those are all policy decisions that you don’t agree with, not lies. Regarding the “surplus”, you are confusing rainy day funds with a surplus. The county would be absolutely crazy to fork over rainy day funds to fund expenses that recur and compound every year through maintenance of effort. Responsible budgeting dictates that rainy day funds go toward one-time and/or emergency expenditures — not sustained budget increases.
The problem is Mr. Craig, like his predecessors, construct overly large rainy day funds by constantly under estimating revenue and over budgeting intentionally (remenber the county overbudgeting for health care by 10% a few years ago)in order to avoid increasing operating funds. Thus it gives him more pay-go money to use on pet projects that politically benefit him but are not necessary needed. A good example is when he refused to provide the school system with funds to pay for steps for school employees last year claiming there was no money. Then three months later he miraculously comes up with 4% recurring funds for county employees retro-active raises.
I get it it – he can do it but it doesn’t mean that its right.
Craig….hahahahahaha…OMG…hahahahahah. What idiot would support him?
I’m sure there is a lot of Walmart money in his pocket funding his campaign.
Oh, absolutely! Walmart will be funding a major part of his campaign!
Walmart could care less. Its the attorney handling the sale of the land to Walmart.
Unfortunately any Republican has no chance. Anthony Brown made a brilliant move with his Lt. Gov. selection. Baltimore City, Prince Georges and Montgomery Counties elected O’Malley and will go for Brown. Now Howard County will probably go along so it really doesn’t matter who the Republicans pick, it’s over before it starts.
Same Old; your analysis is actually quite balanced and spot on, unfortunately. Brown is a dim bulb, but he hasn’t stepped on his prong in the last seven years and really knows how to pander. All of us int the “other jurisdictions” can continue to suck eggs.
Actually the socialist house of cards has already begun to slip and whoever wins the election will have the failure as his or her legacy. Remember that anyone smart enough to do the job is also smart enough to stay the hell away from it.
Who is paying for all the County employees that are following Craig around the State?
Who is following him around the state? And what makes you think any that are are not using leave?
Suuuure they are.
is he serious ??, he wont even win harford county, the man has been a embarrassement to our county . thank goodness he cant run again here, lame duck davey time to take all them promises and ride into sunset, we never wanted you here and the state wants nothing to do with you either, and michael steele just made sure you wont even get the nom. good riddens !!!
Looks like Mr. Steel and Mr. Brown stole a bit of Mr. Craig’s thunder yesterday with announcements of their own. I saw nothing of Mr. Craig’s own announcement on the Baltimore television stations. This will probably be the norm during the campaign as Mr. Craig will not be seen as a viable candidate by those outside of his narrow base in Harford County. When Mr. Gansler and Mr. Ruppersberger decide to enter the race you will hear even less about Mr. Craig. In the end I believe it will be Mr. Young from Frederick Co. as the Republican nominee.
My guess is that Craig and his pink mafia won’t make it out of the county, and Aaron Tomarchio will have a lot of soul-searching to do on 6/24/2014–that is if Craig even makes it that far. Incidentally, I seem to remember a highly-controversial op-ed from a successful female Realtor exposing a pre-ordained succession of rulers in Harco politics. Man, that piece really riled the establishment three years ago, didn’t it? Meh, I guess it’s just a coincidence that Craig is running for governor and Glassman for County Executive in 2014. Yeah. That’s gotta be it.
My crystal ball says David Craig will get his cushy retirement job at Maryland Environmental Services sooner than he thinks…Will Barry “The Post Turtle” Glassman be next. Stay Tuned!
It’s a hell of a thing, electing a governor. He’ll take away all you’ve got and all your ever gonna have.
I read that Craig has run 20 elections and only lost 1…1998 to Jim Harkins, but he has since gained that seat and is the longest serving CE in Harford history. I’m pretty sure he has thought out this entire governors race before he entered and I believe he has the best chance of any republican that will enter the race. But to all people who post on the Dagger consider this….Harford County was Erhlich country…..during the last 7 years of O’Malley he has seldom stepped foot in Harford and we are treated like a red headed step child by Annapolis….all but an after thought. If Carig is elected it would be good for our county. Is your personal hatred for Craig so deep that you would be willing to vote against the prosperity of your own county?
It doesn’t matter that Harford Co. went for Erhlich the Democrat still won and the result will likely be the same next time. Think beyond your own county and what would be better for the state. Mr. Young from Frederick Co. is the better Republican candidate.
Craig is a medium size fish in a small pond (Harford County) He has no name recognition outside the county and has minimal support here. His non-leadership and hints of a quid pro quo in the Walmart issue is my primary reason for not voting for him. He’ll barely carry Harford and that will be through voter apathy
Craig thought in August that the Walmart at Plum Tree was a bad idea..like the rest of us. Why has he been so quiet since then?
http://www.baltimoresun.com/explore/harford/ph-ag-walmart-reaction-0803-20120801,0,6190210.story
What power does a County Executive have to prevent the Walmart anyway? I am not aware of any.
The County Executive wields tremendous power, both official and unofficial. He and the County Council have sway over the building code, as well as the zoning code. Additionally, he works closely with the State Highway Administration to make sure that the infrastructure can handle the development. The latter tends to follow the wishes of the former in these matters as a matter of good governance, as one is elected and the other is not. Moreover, since Craig has never really worked or lived outside of the County, he’s had the time to develop enough personal contacts to influence such large matters, if he so chooses.
Craig has done some things right and other things not so right. His relationships with developers has resulted in nearly out of control growth and congestion.
I will take Pat McDonough any day over Craig for Gov.
I wonder if the CE is reading these posts…this is an interesting sampling of public opinion about him. Not looking good…..
As an independent I shoot down the middle and look for someone with qualities who actually comes across as someone who wants to cut the crap of partisan BS. I voted for Obama twice, I support Chris Christie in Jersey and hope he runs for president. I would have love to voted for McCain but Palin killed it and anyone who say she didn’t is living in denial. Rommney was an embarrassment and I thought Huntsman was the only one on the GOP list with any credible background and a good head on his shoulders and he would have had my vote. When you run an election you must accept to compromise with part opponents to get anything done. I’t not the Dems fault, it’s not the GOPs fault it’s both. Candidates aren’t looking for party votes, they are looking for my vote. The voter in the middle of the spectrum. Craig has a chance because if he sticks to what he said during his announcement he can win the middle. Like POTUS, it is wrong to blame an executive wholly based on the fact the political gridlock happens in the legislation, not the executive. What the GOP needs to do to get back to their real roots is drop the Tea party like a bad habit. We are not a Christian nation. Show were in the Constitution it says we are theocracy and Christianity is our official religion it’s not. Also, the rhetoric just needs to end. The Democrats need to learn to let things go. Issues like Gun control need to be evaluated by facts and statistics not emotion an BS, no more crusades on things at the end of the day you cannot predict or control. Honestly, I don’t trust the NRA anymore, they care more about the money gun-makers make then the responsible everyday gun owner. The Dems need to come back to showing there love for the flag and let the nation know they want to be here.
You’re living in a dream world. Craig is the same as electing another Democrat.
I’m sure in retrospect you feel Eisenhower and Lincoln were unworthy of the Republican Mantle
I am with Craig. We cant afford another DNC lemming in office.
GO DAGGER !!