By Adam Pagnucco.
Reset.
This is the word I heard over and over after a contentious Democratic primary in which County Executive Marc Elrich overcame millions of dollars in negative ads to win reelection by 32 votes. Elrich’s defenders and political optimists predicted that the executive would reset an often acrimonious relationship with the legislative branch. After all, two of Elrich’s biggest enemies – Council Member Hans Riemer and Planning Board Chair Casey Anderson – would be headed out the door and the council’s freshman majority had no history of combat with him. Even the Washington Post bought into it.
So what has happened since the fall?
October: The council passes the Thrive 2050 development plan, which was fiercely opposed by Elrich.
December: Elrich supports two bills by Senator Ben Kramer which would transfer some functions of Park and Planning, a body within the council’s purview, to the executive.
January: Elrich slashes $89 million in transportation projects in his capital budget, with the meat ax cutting particularly deep in parts of the county that voted for David Blair in the primary. Council members representing those areas took notice.
Early March: Elrich and two council members introduce a strict, Takoma Park-style rent control bill. A majority of the council introduces a weak rent control bill as a substitute.
Mid-March: Elrich recommends a 10% property tax hike, kicking off a difficult budget cycle at the council fueled by a pressure campaign from MCPS unions.
Late March: Elrich vetoes a council planning board appointee using harshly personal language in his veto statement. Both the veto and the accompanying rhetoric no doubt annoy the eight council members who supported the nominee. The council unanimously overrides his veto.
Late May: Elrich blasts the council for cutting the size of his tax hike and not passing all of his spending. No county executive gets everything he wants in the budget but few if any have reacted like this. I don’t remember any comparable display by Elrich’s predecessor, Ike Leggett.
This is no reset. This is Elrich being Elrich.
Look folks, one thing I respect about Marc Elrich is that he knows who he is. He is at heart an unrepentant 1960s socialist who wants to protect the weak and vulnerable from the greedy acolytes of capitalism. Tax hikes, rent control, restraint on development, opposition to Lexus lanes – they are all ways to help little people resist corporate domination. I get the appeal. Who among us – at least those of us who did not grow up rich – has not at some point wanted to stick it to the man? The kid in me who came out of the Catskills, a place where few people had any real money, digs this about Elrich.
Now here is the corollary. Elrich’s actions are not affected by what his opponents say about him. Most politicians try to avoid making enemies. But for Elrich, people who disagree with him are stupid, misguided and/or are on developer payrolls. In any event, they are not worth his time.
All of this plus his confidence that he is the smartest person in every room he enters makes Elrich unusually resistant to pressure. His admirers see this as adherence to principle. His detractors see this as stubbornness. Love him or hate him, recognize that this is who he is. He does not fear or avoid conflict.
That’s why it’s so strange to witness his partnership with former state senator and current chief administrative officer Rich Madaleno, an amiable fellow who understands the importance of relationships. Rich will be an adroit and adaptable county executive should he one day hold the office.
From his point of view, why should Elrich change? He has held elected office for more than 35 consecutive years. When he was first elected to the Takoma Park City Council, three current county council members were in elementary school and three more were in diapers. Elrich is old enough to be the father (at least) of nine of the eleven council members. He is a tested and durable politician with many years of success at the ballot box.
He is never, ever going to change.
And so what this means is that no single politician in the county has the combination of vision, relationship building, transactional savvy and raw power to set the county’s direction and get other politicians to follow. The county executive will go his own way. The council has its own internal issues. The result will be alternating drift, conflict, temporary alliances and tactical maneuvers to set up electoral bids. Meanwhile, the rest of the region will continue to advance.
What does this mean for the future?