Joe Biden

Outgoing U.S. Rep. Wayne Gilchrest (R-Kennedyville) may be leaving Congress, but that doesn't mean he'll necessarily be leaving Washington, D.C. Gilchrest's name is being kicked around as a potential candidate for a position at the Environmental Protection Agency.

"He'd be a great pick," Gene Ransom, a Democratic Queen Anne's County Commissioner, told PolitickerMD.com. "I also think Obama's very serious about brining Republicans in."

ANNAPOLIS -- U.S. Rep. Wayne Gilchrest (R-Kennedyville), who has been notorious for reaching across the aisle in recent months, has done more than just endorse and praise Democratic candidates - he's voted for one.

"I voted for Martin O'Malley," Gilchrest said of Maryland's Democratic governor at an award ceremony at the Westin Hotel on Monday.

According to the Nielson's household ratings, the Baltimore TV market is ranked #1 for viewership of last week's vice presidential debate between U.S. Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.) and Gov. Sarah Palin (R-Alaska). It is estimated that 59.1 percent of households tuned in for the debate.

The Maryland Republican Party says Gov. Sarah Palin schooled Sen. Joe Biden during Thursday's vice-presidential debate.

"Governor Palin clearly showed that she is ready to lead as vice-president of the United States," said MDGOP chair Jim Pelura in a statement.

Pelura argues Palin won the debate by "besting Joe Biden" in a handful of policy arenas.

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GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin has contributed $628 to federal candidates in her lifetime: a June 2004 check to the Alaska Republican Party for $328, and a July 2004 contribution of $300 to Mike Miller's U.S. Senate campaign in Alaska. Miller, a State Senator, won 23% of the vote against incumbent Lisa Murkowski in the 2004 Republican primary.  Murkowski is the daughter of Frank Murkowsi, who appointed his daughter to the U.S. Senate seat he gave up to run for Governor in 2002.  Palin beat Frank Murkowski in the GOP primary four years later. 

A new poll conducted by Rasmussen Reports shows Barack Obama with a 23-point lead over John McCain in the Free State.

The poll found 60 percent of those surveyed in support of the Democratic presidential nominee, and 37 percent backing McCain. Three percent of those polled were undecided.

Attorney General Doug Gansler, co-chairman Barack Obama's campaign in Maryland, will be attending a fundraiser at a private home in Montgomery County on Monday with Obama's vice presidential pick, U.S. Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.).

According to the Obama campaign, Gansler will also attend an event the same day in Boston at the K & L Gates law firm with Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley (D) and Biden's son, Joseph "Beau" Biden, who is Delaware's attorney general.

The Maryland Republican Party says Republican Wayne Gilchrest's kind words about the Democratic presidential ticket were most definitely an endorsement, despite the fact that the congressman, defeated in the GOP primary earlier in the year, says otherwise.

"By endorsing the Obama/Kratovil Team, the team of higher taxes, more wasteful spending, and bigger government, Gilchrest shows once again that he supports and encourages the type of policies that 1st District voters will reject," Jim Pelura, chairman of the state GOP, said in a statement.

John McCain spent the weekend in the Free State. 

On Saturday, the Republican presidential nominee made his way to the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis for his 50th academy reunion. 

The senator from Arizona then made a Sunday appearance at the National Guard Association of the United States conference. 

McCain claimed his Democratic opponent, Barak Obama, had "declined" to put forth a plan for the nation's so-called economic crisis.