War in Iraq

OXON Hill-Activist and congressional nominee Donna Edwards (D-Fort Washington) told PolitickerMD.com today that the housing and mortgage crisis would be her immediate top priority if she is elected today to represent the people of Maryland's 4th Congressional District.

Edwards, who is expected to easily win the special election, said her potential constituents "deserve someone who will be fighting for them everyday," saying she was ready to get to work "right away."

Speaking with PolitickerMD.com as she greeted voters at various polling locations throughout Prince George's and Montgomery Counties, Edwards said the Congress needs to "send a bill to the president dealing with the housing and mortgage crisis."

SAVAGE--Times have changed for Dr. Mike Hargadon (R-Woodstock).

Dr. MIke HargadonBack in December, the career dentist told PolitickerMD.com that he did not “intend to raise money or make a serious challenge” to Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Baltimore) in Maryland’s 7th Congressional District. Six months later, with a small campaign team behind him, Hargadon is moving forward, and held his first significant fundraiser before a crowd of a few dozen supporters Friday night in Savage.

“This is the first time we’re trying to do something on this scale,” Hargadon told PolitickerMD.com.

Asked about his previous comments, Hargadon said, “At that time I did not have a committee. I didn’t expect that I would be able to raise money.”

U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Baltimore) voted today against a measure that will provide $165 billion in additional funding for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan into next spring, while U.S. Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Baltimore) voted in favor of the resolution, which passed 70-26.

"The American public is looking to Congress to act on behalf of the brave men and women of our U.S. Armed Forces," Cardin said in a statement. "They are not looking for a shift in our Iraq policy - they want us to change course and start bringing our troops home now. After more than five years, 4,000 American lives lost, 30,000 wounded, and $600 billion spent, I believe that our military and the American public deserve a clear signal that their leaders are listening. We failed to do that today."

"The senator voted against the war funding bill because he believes we need a new direction," Sue Walitsky, Cardin's communications director, said to PolitickerMD.com.

Meanwhile, Mikulski's communications director, Melissa Schwartz, told PolitickerMD.com, "Senator Mikulski's vote today is consistent with her position since voting against the war. She will continue to vote for a strategy to bring soldiers home safely and swiftly, but she will not vote against funding for our troops on the battlefield."

Donna Edwards (D-Fort Washington), the presumptive future congresswoman in Maryland’s Fourth Congressional District, joined anti-war activists on a march to the White House in Washington, D.C. yesterday, as protesters marked the five year anniversary of the start of the war in Iraq.

In remarks provided by her communications director, Dan Weber, Edwards called for an end to the war while addressing the crowd.

“This administration and its Congressional allies continue to follow a failed strategy, continue to reject a new approach to Iraq, and continue to openly defy the will of the American people,” Edwards said.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Mechanicsville) issued a statement today on the fifth anniversary of the start of the war in Iraq. He used the occasion to express his gratitude to members of the U.S. Armed Forces and to hammer the Bush administration over their Iraq policies.

“As the war in Iraq enters its sixth year on Wednesday, two things are abundantly clear,” Hoyer said. “First, our brave men and women in uniform have done everything that our nation has asked of them, and they have performed their mission with courage, skill and honor.”

“Nearly 4,000 American soldiers have given the ultimate measure of sacrifice in this war, and 30,000 have been injured,” he continued. “This day and every day, we honor the memory of those who have been lost, and pray for the recovery of those who have been injured, as well as the safe return home of our troops who are still deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan.”