Martin O'Malley: Governor Martin O'Malley at the Iowa Jefferson Jackson Dinner

Source:Martin O'Malley- The Progressive With Results.

Source:The New Democrat

I think Martin O’Malley is finally getting it as a presidential campaigner. “The Progressive with results”, to paraphrase Hillary Clinton from the Democratic debate a couple of weeks ago. The difference between Governor O’Malley and Secretary Clinton, has been impact. And a record of accomplishments on the key issues that Liberal and Progressive Democrats care about and a lot of other Americans. But it’s really Senator Clinton, because it’s as Senator Clinton that Hillary Clinton has had the biggest impact in her career on all the issues. Secretary of State, is a huge job, but its a national security job primarily and you’re not that involved in issues outside of foreign policy and national security for the most part. Hillary Clinton, can say she’s fought the good fight and fought hard on these issues when she was in Congress. But Governor O’Malley can say he won those fights in Maryland as Governor. The difference between an executive and a legislature.

Executives, have to govern, they have no choice. Your state doesn’t pass an annual budget, your agencies run out of money and as a result have to suspend business. Because there’s no money coming in and they can’t afford to pile up debt and deficits, because there’s a hard limit to what they can borrow, because they don’t have their own currency. But when you’re a legislature especially in Congress, a Representative, or in Hillary’s case a Senator can say, “we fought the good fight on this issue and almost had the votes to get it passed in this Congress. We’ll come back in the next session, or next Congress and get it done, especially if more of us are elected to Congress.” A governor, doesn’t have that luxury. They have to pass a budget, they have to make sure that roads get built, schools and colleges are funded, law enforcement officers are on the street, well-equipped and so-forth. Governor O’Malley as a record of accomplishing things into law that Democrats say they support.

Of the three remaining Democrats for president, only Martin O’Malley can say he got a same-sex marriage law passed, decriminalized marijuana, had the best public schools in the country for five years, got a minimum wage law passed, passed middle class tax cuts, increased investment in public infrastructure, kept the cost of college down. All of these accomplishments in a very high cost of living state and doing it during the Great Recession and the slow recovery from it. Senator Bernie Sanders, can say he supports all of these causes and I’m sure he does and Hillary, I guess can now say she does to, because her polling is telling her that, (ha, ha) but only the Governor, because Martin was a Governor and a damn good one and was a Progressive with real results. Who just didn’t talk the good game and fought hard, but actually won a lot of those battles and had real victories there.

Perhaps Martin’s campaign theme, should be, “The Progressive Governor With Real Results.” And run on someone who actually broke gridlock. And tell voters that all the issues you’ve cared about he just doesn’t care about them, or has shown up to the dance late on them. But he’s actually come through and won a lot of those battles already. Again, minimum wage, same-sex marriage, marijuana decriminalization, lowered crime and increased put more police on the street. Who thought Baltimore would actually be livable 10-15 years ago and now its a big thriving growing city with all sorts of new white-collar business’s coming there. Including a brand new casino that has kept millions of tax dollars in Baltimore and Maryland, instead of going to Delaware, New Jersey, or West Virginia. All of this progress that true Progressives believe in happened under Martin O’Malley. Not Hillary Clinton, or Bernie Sanders. And that is what the Governor should be telling Democrats. He’s a Democrat whose accomplished progressive goals and brought progress to millions of Americans.