Tag: maryland

These Are The Six States Celebrating America 250 By Raising Your Gas Tax

The final countdown for America’s 250th birthday is on. Families will be planning road trips, parades, vacations, reunions, and cookouts to celebrate the greatest nation in history. But in six states, politicians have a different idea for the party: raise taxes.

Beginning July 1, drivers in California, Washington, Illinois, Maryland, Virginia, and Mississippi are scheduled to see higher state gas taxes. In other words, as the country prepares to celebrate casting aside a tax-heavy king in favor of freedom, these states will use the occasion to fatten government coffers one gallon at a time.

The worst offenders will be no surprise. California, Washington and Illinois  — we’ll call them the Axis of Glut.

Their governors are often the first to fake outrage when gas prices rise. They blame oil companies. They blame “price gouging.” They blame world events. They blame everyone except the politicians who keep piling taxes, mandates, and regulations onto every gallon drivers buy.

Yet these same states already have some of the worst gas prices in the nation, some of the highest gas taxes in America, and now they are getting ready to raise those taxes again.

California’s gas tax is already the highest in the country and is scheduled to climb again on July 1, from 61.2 cents to 63.4 cents per gallon, under the state’s annual inflation adjustment. The same report noted California’s average price for regular gasoline was nearly $6 per gallon in early June.

Illinois is no better. The state says its motor fuel tax will rise on July 1 because the law requires an annual inflation adjustment. Washington joined the club with a gas tax increase last year and then baked in automatic increases going forward. Starting July 1, 2026, the state’s fuel tax rises by 2% every year unless lawmakers change the law.

This is the dirty hustle behind inflation-indexed taxes. Politicians get to raise taxes without holding a press conference to admitting it. They pass the law once, then every year drivers get mugged by a formula.

As of June 8, the national average for regular gas was $4.164, down 38.2 cents in a single month. That is welcome relief for families, workers, small businesses and anyone trying to get through summer. But the national average would look even better if it were not being anchored down by tax-heavy states that treat drivers like a rolling ATM.

The problem is not limited to the six July 1 tax-hike states. Seven of the ten most expensive states for gas are run by Democratic governors. That is not a coincidence.

Taxes play a major role in the high-price reputation of many of these states. So do their regulatory regimes, special fuel rules, anti-energy policies and climate mandates that make fuel harder to produce, refine, transport and sell.

The result is predictable.

Families, small businesses, truckers, and farmers all pay more. Then the same politicians who helped drive up the cost pretend they are shocked by the bill.

That is not compassion. That is government gluttony.

Supporters claim the money goes to roads and infrastructure. But that excuse only goes so far. Every tax increase is sold as necessary. Yet somehow the burden always lands in the same place: on the people who drive to work, school, church, the grocery store or a summer vacation.

That is what makes the timing so perfect, and so insulting.

America’s 250th birthday should be a celebration of freedom, independence and the rejection of government overreach. The American Revolution was born from the idea that people should not be treated as endless revenue sources for rulers who never seem to have enough.

Nearly 250 years later, millions of drivers will pull into gas stations in California, Washington, Illinois, Maryland, Virginia, and Mississippi and get a reminder that some politicians still have not learned the lesson.

The country is moving toward a better energy future: lower prices, more production, more reliability and less punishment for the people who keep America moving. But these six states are choosing a different path.

America 250 should remind us why this country was born: because free people eventually get tired of being treated like revenue.

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Maryland Sheriffs Sue State to Stop Amnesty State Law

Seventeen Maryland county sheriffs have joined together to sue the state over a new law that gives sanctuary to illegals that the law officers say will make Maryland a more dangerous place to live.

Sheriff Jeffrey R. Gahler, of Harford County, Maryland, and sixteen other Maryland sheriffs, have joined with the  in a lawsuit filed in a federal court to block the state’s newly passed “Community Trust Act” (SB0791).

“It is an intentional state-mandated obstruction of public safety,” Sheriff Gahler said about the new law. “This law deliberately ties the hands of our dedicated local deputies, police officers and correctional officers. It forbids us from sharing information with federal authorities.”

“This issue, ladies and gentlemen, is not about politics. It’s about public safety. And, we believe this law directly hampers our ability to effectively safeguard the boundaries of our respective counties,” Worcester County Sheriff Matt Crisafulli added.

The new law passed in the House of Delegates 92-37 and in the state Senate 32-15 this week and became law without Democrat Gov. Wes Moore’s signature.

The Community Trust Act bans local cooperation with federal immigration officials and maintains that a felony conviction or a judicial warrant must be presented by immigration officers before local law enforcement can communicate with ICE about a suspect’s immigration status.

The lawsuit filed by the group of county sheriffs says that the state’s new law violates federal authority to implement legal immigration policy and is a violation of the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution. It also forces state law enforcement to break federal law by harboring illegal migrants.

In its press release on the lawsuit, FAIR says that “Maryland’s sanctuary law thereby makes it impossible to obey both federal law and state law, it presents a textbook case of conflict preemption.”

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Maryland Gov. Wes Moore Signs Glock Ban Into Law

Governor Wes Moore (D) signed legislation Tuesday banning the sale Glocks and Glock-clones into law, making Maryland the second state to enact such a ban.

On April 9, 2026, Breitbart News reported that Maryland’s House followed the state Senate’s lead and passed a ban on Glocks and other handguns Democrats describe as “machine gun convertible.”

California led the way with such a ban, and as the Golden State did this, Breitbart News pointed out that the Democrat-sponsored legislation was fashioned as a response to the use of “Glock Switches,” which are already illegal. “Glock switches” are federally prohibited plastic pieces that can be affixed to the rear of a Glock slide to make the pistol shoot full auto.

“Glock switches” are popular with gangs and street criminals, therefore California Democrats banned new sales of one the most popular handguns ever made, the Glock pistol.

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“Preserve All Records”: DOJ Puts Democrat-Run Maryland On Notice In Election Integrity Probe

Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon announced on X last night that she has ordered Maryland’s State Board of Elections to preserve their records concerning the utter debacle of mail-in ballots during the state’s primary election season.

“It’s the wrong time to send voters the wrong ballots. This @TheJusticeDept’s @CivilRights will not let Maryland’s mail-in ballot mistakes go unnoticed!” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon.

This update comes just one week after SBE was forced to admit that its third-party, out-of-state vendor mailed half a million or more ballots to the wrong primary voters. 

President Trump himself called for a federal investigation into this breach of trust with Maryland voters…

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Trump Asks DOJ to Launch Investigation Into Maryland After 500,000 Mail-In Ballots Were Sent Out in “Error”

President Trump on Monday afternoon asked the Justice Department to investigate Maryland officials for sending out “500,000 illegal mail-in ballots.”

Last Friday, Maryland election officials said they will be issuing 500,000 new ballots after a vendor made an error in sending out the first batch of ballots for the state’s gubernatorial primary election.

Statement from the Maryland State Board of Elections:

In order to maintain the highest level of confidence and accuracy in mail-in voting, SBE is working with the vendor to send replacement mail-in ballots. While it is possible only a small number of voters received the wrong ballot, and most voters received the correct ballot, all voters must be issued a replacement ballot. This action of resending ballots maintains the integrity and security of mail-in voting.

This error affects only voters who were mailed a ballot before May 14, 2026. If a voter requested and received their mail-in ballot by web delivery (Print at Home ballot), their ballot will not be affected. All affected voters will be notified.

“We are diligently working to address this error and provide clear instructions to those affected as quickly as possible,” said Maryland State Administrator of Elections, Jared DeMarinis. “The State and Local Boards of Elections remain committed to running an election that is verified, secure and accurate. Mail-in voting is an integral facet of the electoral process. With over
500,000 voters requesting mail-in ballots, we want to eliminate any doubt in its integrity or accuracy that is why I have arranged the sending of replacement ballots.”

On Monday, Maryland election officials insisted the first batch of ballots would be sequestered and voided.

President Trump said Maryland sent out illegal ballots.

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Democrat Policies Ruin Everything

When I first moved to Baltimore after college, way back in 2001, I was pretty well stuck in the city and DC, as I lived near the train station in Baltimore and worked near it in DC and had no car. I walked to a small, local grocery store and could, on occasion, borrow a car from a friend for a trip to the suburbs to go to a Target or Best Buy on the weekend. It was like a field trip outside my cage.

One place to go was Towson, north of the city, and the Towson Town Center. It was a mall, but an “upscale” mall with higher-end stores and a classy feel to it and the immediate area. 

Well, times have changed and the Town Center is a shell of what it once was. Local media describe it this way: “Shoppers who once packed Towson Town Center say the mall has changed dramatically in recent years, with crime concerns and a growing number of vacant storefronts reshaping what was long one of the region’s premier shopping destinations.”

Liberal policies ruin everything.

I haven’t been to Towson for more than a decade, so I can’t personally attest to how bad it feels, but reports have the mall with a 26 percent vacancy rate, which will give the impression of a ghost town. There are few things more depressing and eerie than walking through an empty mall and the connected parking garage, so once the downward spiral starts, it is hard to stop.

Then, just a couple of weeks ago, Apple announced it would be closing its location in the mall and the local Democrats began to pay attention. A random clothing store or cell phone or jewelry kiosk closing is one thing, but Apple? That’s news.

Apple stores are very popular, but even a popular store can’t justify continued existence in a dying mall in a city being choked by liberal policies.

The Democrats, both in the U.S. House and Senate, from Maryland, are terrified to be seen (rightly) as the reason the Apple store is closing, so they sprang into action. Rather than addressing the overall state of taxes and crime – it’s amazing how people being robbed make others not want to go to where they are being robbed, and going soft on retail theft only encourages more retail theft and makes staying in business, frankly, stupid. Apple is not stupid.

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SCARY: Maryland Elementary School Vandalized with Graffiti Glorifying Sandy Hook Shooter

Parents, students, and the community in Montgomery County, Maryland, have been left rattled after graffiti honoring the Sandy Hook Elementary School mass shooter, Adam Lanza, was discovered on Bradley Hills Elementary School over the weekend.

The graffiti, which read “RIP Adam Lanza,” was found painted on a fence at the elementary school on Saturday.

In 2012, Lanza shocked and saddened the world when he carried out the Sandy Hook massacre in Newtown, Connecticut, murdering 20 first-grade children and six adults before taking his own life.

Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) immediately notified families in a letter sent to the Bradley Hills Elementary community.

MCPS Chief of Schools Dr. Peter O. Moran wrote:

“Today, graffiti was discovered on a fence at Bradley Hills Elementary School that included the name of the perpetrator of the Sandy Hook Elementary School mass shooting in 2012 in Newtown, Connecticut. To be clear, the use of the name of an individual responsible for such a heinous act, one that involved the loss of life of young school children, can only be interpreted as an act intended to intimidate and cause fear within the Bradley Hills School community, and the broader neighborhood and community, too.”

Dr. Moran added that the “despicable act” would be met with a “substantial and uniform response” from MCPS and the Montgomery County Police Department.

School staff documented the graffiti, and a building services team removed it before the end of Saturday evening.

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War on the Press? Maryland’s Democratic Governor Blasts Newspaper for Reporting on His Past

The Democratic governor of a reliably blue state is officially in a war of words with the local press.

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore has been under a searing microscope of late, largely due to some of the less-than-flattering reporting from The Baltimore Sun.

The outlet has been ramping up the pressure on Moore, looking into inconsistencies in the 47-year-old’s past claims about his military service.

While Moore had previously been relatively mum on the matter, that abruptly changed on Tuesday, when Moore addressed The Baltimore Sun’s reporting directly during an MS Now appearance with former Biden White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki.

And, perhaps unsurprisingly, this is all the fault of President Donald Trump, according to Moore.

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Baltimore Creates $35 Million Reparations Fund But None of the Money Has Been Paid Out Because Everyone is Fighting For Control Of It

When the state of Maryland legalized the sale of marijuana a few years ago, they decided that they would set aside a few dollars from each sale to go into a reparations fund which would pay for all sorts of social programs.

Now the fund has $35 million in it but almost none of the money has been paid out because pretty much everyone involved is fighting for control of the fund. Who could have predicted that such a thing would happen?

It’s probably safe to assume that lots of people are going to be very disappointed when this is all finally sorted out and decided.

The Baltimore Beat reports:

Baltimore has received more than $35 million in cannabis reparations money, but none of it has reached residents

In the three years since Maryland legalized recreational cannabis, Baltimore has received more than $35 million in tax revenue to reinvest in communities devastated by the War on Drugs. To date, not a single dollar has reached the people it was meant to help, and the first round of funding may still be a year away.

At the center of the delay is an escalating dispute over who controls the money: City Hall or the Baltimore Community Reinvestment and Reparations Commission, the 17-member body established in November 2024 to oversee how the funds are distributed. City Hall says the mayor has final say, while commissioners maintain the body was created to independently manage the funds.

That holdup means that while Maryland’s legalization of cannabis in 2023 led to over $1.1 billion in sales over the following year alone, even as Black communities continue to be targeted by the drug war, none of it has helped repair that damage…

State Senator Mary Washington, who sponsored SB0894, told the Beat that the law was not intended to give local elected officials control over how the money is spent, and argued Baltimore City’s interpretation is out of step with how the law has been understood elsewhere in Maryland.

“The money was never intended to be a slush fund for a county executive or mayor,” she said. Instead, she said, it was meant to reinvest in communities impacted by the War on Drugs and mass incarceration, which continue to face disparities in homeownership, wealth-building, and life expectancy.

This has disaster written all over it.

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He didn’t want to cuff people in crisis. Anne Arundel police made him a mall cop.

Lt. Steven Thomas, who led the Anne Arundel County Police Department’s Crisis Intervention Team to international renown, has been reassigned to mall security after being disciplined for giving his officers the discretion not to handcuff people with mental illness or addiction.

His apparent ouster from the unit he’s helmed for a decade sent shock waves through the county’s criminal justice and substance abuse and mental health treatment circles.

Melissa Owens, a longtime Anne Arundel County Public Schools high school teacher who has bipolar disorder, credits Thomas’ unit with saving her life on several occasions when she was in crisis. She said Thomas’ reassignment, and the apparent reasoning, “raises questions.”

“Why have an entire program where you train first responders in how to use this discretion, all the tools they have in action, and then tell them you can’t use them?” said Owens, who now helps train officers on responding to people in mental crisis. “That’s pointless to me.”

Thomas is now assigned to the Bureau of Community Services, Police Department spokesperson Justin Mulcahy said. He declined to answer other questions, including about what prompted the change. Mulcahy said an acting lieutenant was in charge of the crisis unit.

A 30-year police veteran, Thomas now works out of the department’s post at Arundel Mills Mall, said O’Brien Atkinson, president of the union that represents Anne Arundel police officers. Atkinson said he couldn’t discuss the reassignment but lauded Thomas’ leadership of the Crisis Intervention Team.

“Our CIT program has been recognized as one of the best in the nation and world, really,” Atkinson said. “I think he certainly was a big part of that.”

Under Thomas’ leadership, the police crisis team was declared the best in the world in 2020 by CIT International. His unit also received that organization’s first regional platinum certification in 2024. These accolades drew praise from elected officials and contributed to Anne Arundel County’s status as the gold standard for crisis response in Maryland.

Officers in Thomas’ unit wear light-blue collared shirts and complete specialized training on how to help people in crisis. They connect people with mental illness or addiction to treatment. They sometimes transport people deemed to be dangerous because of mental illness to hospitals for emergency evaluations. When there’s a terrible tragedy, like a homicide, CIT officers respond to the emotional needs of people affected by it.

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