Michigan GOP lawmakers slam taxpayer-funded rent subsidies for migrants with pending asylum applications
Michigan GOP lawmakers are raising the alarm over certain provisions in the state’s “newcomer rental subsidy” program that gives up to $500 to landlords who rent to migrants. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s administration has argued that the program is intended to help newly-arrived migrants find affordable housing and better integrate. The program, which her administration quietly launched back in October without input from the state legislature, provides “refugees and other newcomer population-eligible households with rental assistance up to $500 per month for up to 12 months, with eligibility based on immigration status and household income.” To be eligible, migrants must be refugees, asylees, special immigration visa holders, victims of human trafficking, Cuban and Haitian entrants, Afghan nationals or Ukrainian humanitarian parolees. Migrants who have an asylum claim that is merely pending are also eligible. This means that migrants who illegally crossed the border and claimed asylum to avoid deportation could potentially benefit from the subsidy. WATCH: DASHCAM FOOTAGE SHOWS TEXAS NATIONAL GUARDSMAN’S ARREST FOR ALLEGEDLY SMUGGLING MIGRANT If a migrant cannot provide verification of their income – such as a paycheck or bank statement – the applicant must submit a written explanation of why there is no documentation. One of the options available to them is a “cash payment.” Michigan House Republican Leader Matt Hall has been leading a charge to bring more awareness to the subsidy program, particularly in light of a woman’s murder last month, allegedly by an illegal immigrant in Michigan. “These are the kinds of policies that attract illegals to our state,” Hall told Fox News Digital in an interview. “And you see some of them bringing drugs and some of them committing serious crimes … they’re going to go to places where they’re going to get state benefits, where they’re not going to be asked about their immigration status, where they’re not going to be held in jail or deported.” It remains unclear how many migrants who crossed the border illegally and then claimed asylum as a defense against deportation have received benefits from this program. Hall and Michigan Rep. Joe Aragona-R-Clinton Township, who chairs the Housing Subcommittee, sent a letter to the governor’s office last week seeking a “detailed breakdown of the recipients,” with a particular emphasis on those who made asylum claims only after they were found to be in the U.S. illegally. “Resources are finite and must be allocated judiciously to ensure the program is available to the refugees and others for whom it is intended, and it is crucial that the program aligns with its intended goals and prioritizes those who have gone through the process correctly and are not facing imminent removal from the United States,” the lawmakers wrote. Hall said he had not received a response from the governor’s office answering these questions. Fox News Digital has reached out multiple times to the governor’s office for comment but did not hear back before publication. Fox News Digital’s Andrew Mark Miller contributed to this report.
Weather update: IMD predicts heatwave condition in these places till April 6, check forecast here
The IMD predicts hot and humid weather over Coastal Karnataka, Kerala & Mahe, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry & Karaikal from April 2 to April 6
US prosecutors spar with judge over order in Trump classified document case
United States prosecutors involved in the criminal indictment of Donald Trump in Florida have questioned a judge’s order that they indicate risks tipping the case in the former US president’s favour. Their 24-page filing was issued late on Tuesday, as part of an ongoing case looking into Trump’s handling of classified documents after leaving office. In the filing, Special Counsel Jack Smith and his team of prosecutors rebuked Judge Aileen Cannon for ordering that instructions be provided to an eventual jury suggesting that Trump could have kept the classified documents as part of his “personal” record-keeping. The judge’s order appeared to be a hat tip to the defence’s argument that the Presidential Records Act (PRA) entitled Trump to keep the sensitive government documents, something Smith and his team have disputed. “That legal premise is wrong,” Smith and his colleagues wrote, adding that any jury instruction to that effect would “distort the trial”. The court filing was an unusual display of public discord between the prosecutors and the judge, who Trump nominated to the bench. Special Counsel Jack Smith has questioned a judge’s order that appears to lend credence to a Trump defence argument [Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo] Questions over judge Judge Cannon, who serves on the federal court in the Southern District of Florida, has previously faced scrutiny over decisions she has made in the long-running classified document case. In September 2022, for instance, she granted the Trump legal team’s request to have a “special master” appointed to filter through the classified documents retrieved from the former president’s home at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida. Legal experts decried the move as unprecedented, and it delayed the US Department of Justice from having full access to the documents as part of its investigation. An appeals court ultimately ended the special master’s review. In Tuesday’s court filing, meanwhile, Special Counsel Smith and his team argued that Judge Cannon’s order would not only colour a prospective jury’s perception of the facts, but also slow the case down significantly. No trial date has been set in the classified documents case. It was the first federal criminal indictment Trump faced as a result of Smith’s investigations. “Whatever the Court decides, it must resolve these crucial threshold legal questions promptly,” Smith and his colleagues wrote. “The failure to do so would improperly jeopardize the Government’s right to a fair trial.” Judge Aileen Cannon, seen here in a screenshot from her Senate confirmation hearings, has faced scrutiny for her handling of Trump’s legal proceedings [US Senate/AP Photo] Allegations of withholding documents The case began in 2021, shortly after Trump left office that January. According to the indictment, the National Archives and Records Administration attempted to retrieve classified documents it believed remained with the former president. But Trump and his allies allegedly refused to return the documents, instead attempting to conceal them in unsecured locations at his Mar-a-Lago estate, including in a bathroom and shower area. In March 2022, the Federal Bureau of Investigation opened a criminal investigation into the matter, and a grand jury subpoenaed Trump to return all the classified records. Special Counsel Smith, who was appointed by the US Justice Department that November, has accused Trump of obstructing that subpoena and other efforts to recuperate the documents, which contained national security secrets. The government ultimately recovered more than 300 classified documents from the Mar-a-Lago resort, where dozens of public events had taken place. Trump faces 40 felony charges in relation to the classified documents case. His aid Walt Nauta and Mar-a-Lago employee Carlos De Oliveira were also charged. Multiple legal battles The former president, however, has consistently denied wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty. As part of his defence, he argued that he had declassified the documents before leaving office, though audio recordings have since surfaced where he indicates otherwise. “As president, I could have declassified, but now I can’t,” Trump said in a piece of audio from 2021. Trump’s legal team has also raised the question of whether these documents fall in the realm of “personal” records under the Presidential Records Act. But in Tuesday’s court filings, Smith and his fellow prosecutors sought to quash that argument. “Trump has never represented to this Court that he in fact designated the classified documents as personal,” they wrote. “The reason is simple: he never did so.” Smith and his team also asserted that, by invoking the Presidential Records Act, Trump sought to make his actions “impervious” to judicial review. “It would be pure fiction to suggest that highly classified documents created by members of the intelligence community and military and presented to the President of the United States during his term in office were ‘purely private’,” the court filings said in one sharply-worded section. Trump is the subject of four separate criminal indictments, including the classified documents case. He has framed all four, however, as being the product of a politically motivated “witch hunt” designed to derail his re-election efforts in November. The first slated to go to trial is a state-level case in New York, concerning alleged hush-money payments during the 2016 presidential race. It is scheduled to start on April 15. On Wednesday, a New York judge rejected Trump’s attempt to further delay that trial. Adblock test (Why?)
Turkey’s election authority reinstates pro-Kurdish mayoral election winner
Election authority reverses ejection of Kurdish winner of mayoral race in city of Van in eastern Turkey. Turkey’s election authority has reinstated a pro-Kurdish mayoral election winner in the eastern city of Van after the annulment of his victory provoked clashes. The Supreme Election Board (YSK) announced on Wednesday that it has overturned a decision by the regional election commission in eastern Turkey to remove Abdullah Zeydan, the candidate of the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM). The reversal is viewed as another boost for the Turkish opposition following Sunday’s local elections, which dealt a blow to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Islamic-oriented Justice and Development Party (AKP), after their wins last year in the presidential and parliamentary elections. Zeydan had garnered more than 55 percent of the vote in the municipal elections on Sunday, but the regional electoral commission claimed he was ineligible to stand due to a previous conviction, and handed the mayoral seat to a candidate from AKP who had won 27 percent of the vote. Zeydan had been arrested and jailed in 2016 after criticising the Turkish army’s air campaign against outlawed Kurdish fighters in the Kurdish-majority southeast. He was released in 2022. The removal provoked violent protests on Tuesday that lasted throughout the night across the province, which lies on Turkey’s eastern border with Iran. The authorities cracked down. Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said 89 people were detained, for joining unauthorised rallies and chanting slogans in praise of a “separatist terror organisation”, referring to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) that has been blacklisted by Turkey, the United States and the European Union. DEM has often been accused by the Turkish authorities of links to the PKK. The movement is the third-largest party in Turkey’s national parliament. However, on Wednesday, DEM said the YSK had decided to reinstate Zeydan as the mayor of Van as “a result of the resistance of the Kurdish people”. Kürt halkının, dostlarımızın ve demokratik kamuoyunun direnişi sonucunda Van Büyükşehir Belediyesi Eş Başkanımız Abdullah Zeydan’a mazbatasının verilmesine karar verilmiştir. Her Bijî Berxwedana Gelê Kurd! pic.twitter.com/EoZTIjrtCD — DEM Parti (@DEMGenelMerkezi) April 3, 2024 The YSK considered an appeal by DEM and ruled to reinstate Zeydan, the state-run Anadolu Agency reported. The decision was taken by a majority of the board’s members, the agency said. Over the years, Erdogan’s government has removed elected pro-Kurdish mayors from office for alleged links to Kurdish fighters and replaced them with state-appointed trustees. Besides the victory in Van, DEM also claimed the mayorships of other large towns in Turkey’s Kurdish-majority southeast, including Diyarbakir, the region’s largest city. Before the election board’s decision to reinstate Zeydan, Istanbul’s re-elected mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, seen as a likely rival to Erdogan, called the events in Van a “total aberration”. “We will be following this meaningless practise of double standards from Van,” Imamoglu, whose party backed the DEM in its battle against the Van ruling, told a crowd of about 500 supporters gathered outside Istanbul’s main court after he was officially given a mandate to serve five more years. Adblock test (Why?)
Gaza ceasefire talks stall as Israel and Hamas dig in
Revived talks on a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas appear to be making little progress, with the two sides showing few signs that they are ready to compromise on their demands. Israeli objections to the return of displaced residents to their homes in Gaza is a key issue holding up the negotiations, Qatari officials said on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Hamas said that it will not budge on its conditions to release captives it holds in the besieged and bombarded territory. Alongside the United States and Egypt, Qatar has been running behind-the-scenes talks in a bid to secure a truce and the release of Israeli captives in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails after nearly six months of war. “The return of the IDPs [internally displaced people] to their homes, which the Israelis didn’t agree to yet … is the main point we are stuck on,” Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani told a news conference in Doha. Another outstanding issue is the number of Palestinian prisoners to be released by Israel in exchange for each hostage freed by Hamas, Sheikh Mohammed said, noting however that he believed this “can be bridged”. However, Hamas’s senior political leader Ismail Haniyeh said on Wednesday that his movement will stick to its conditions for a ceasefire in Gaza. The Palestinian group insists that an Israeli military withdrawal must happen before it releases the remaining captives taken in its assault on southern Israel on October 7. “We are committed to our demands: the permanent ceasefire, comprehensive and complete withdrawal of the enemy out of the Gaza Strip, the return of all displaced people to their homes, allowing all aid needed for our people in Gaza, rebuilding the Strip, lifting the blockade and achieving an honourable prisoner exchange deal,” Haniyeh said in a televised speech marking al-Quds (Jerusalem) Day. Israel has said it is interested only in a temporary truce to free the captives, while Hamas has said it will let them go only as part of a deal to permanently end the war. Sticking points Sheikh Mohammed said the major sticking points remained the same as those that stymied a deal during negotiations in Paris in February. Talks were set to resume in Cairo last Sunday, Egyptian TV channel Al-Qahera reported, two days after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave approval for fresh negotiations. Israel and Hamas have traded blame for the failure in achieving a deal. In recorded comments shown at a Hezbollah meeting on Wednesday, Haniyeh said Israel “continues to procrastinate stubbornly, and does not respond to our fair demands for an end to the war and aggression”. The day before, Netanyahu’s office claimed, after an Israeli negotiating team had returned from another round of discussions in Cairo, that Hamas has hardened its stance. “In the framework of the talks, under useful Egyptian mediation, the mediators formulated an updated proposal for Hamas,” the premier’s office said. However, senior Hamas official Basem Naim said on Tuesday that the group had not been sent any new proposals. No effect The US said on Wednesday that it did not expect the Israeli strike that killed seven World Central Kitchen workers in Gaza to affect ceasefire talks. “The ceasefire and hostage negotiations are ongoing,” White House national security spokesman John Kirby told reporters in a briefing. “I wouldn’t anticipate any particular impact on those discussions as a result of the strike yesterday.” He said the incident was not a standalone in the conflict, in which too many aid workers have been killed. “It’s not the first time that this has happened and so yes, we’re frustrated by this,” Kirby said. United Nations spokesperson Stephane Dujarric on Wednesday said the intergovernmental organisation had suspended movements at night in Gaza for at least 48 hours to evaluate security issues following the incident. The UN’s World Food Programme is continuing operations during the day, including daily efforts to send convoys to the north of Gaza “where people are dying,” Dujarric said. “As famine closes in we need humanitarian staff and supplies to be able to move freely and safely across the Gaza Strip,” he told reporters. Adblock test (Why?)
WATCH: Dashcam footage shows Texas National Guardsman’s arrest for allegedly smuggling migrant
A Texas National Guardsman was arrested on Sunday for allegedly smuggling an illegal immigrant across the southern border, with dashcam footage obtained by Fox News showing the moment he was arrested — just as Gov. Greg Abbott’s office said the man is a “traitor and criminal” if the charges are true. The Texas Department of Public Safety confirmed to Fox News that it arrested Savion Johnson in Brackettville, Texas, on charges of evading arrest, smuggling of persons and unlawful carry of a weapon, while stressing that it was an ongoing investigation. Kinney County Sheriff Brad Coe confirmed that the individual being arrested is a Texas National Guard soldier. A source with the Texas National Guard also confirmed that he is a Texas guardsman, and also confirmed he was smuggling the migrant in a government vehicle. The arrest was first reported by NewsNation. TEXAS, BIDEN ADMIN SQUARE OFF IN CIRCUIT COURT OVER BLOCKED ANTI-ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION LAW Fox News obtained Kinney County Sheriff’s Office dashcam footage of the moment Johnson was arrested, which shows him being dragged out of the vehicle by Texas DPS law enforcement. The migrant bailed from the car during the pursuit prior to the arrest. Abbott’s office didn’t hold back in its criticism of Johnson’s alleged actions if the charges are substantiated. CLICK HERE FOR MORE IMMIGRATION COVERAGE “If the allegations are true, the accused is a traitor and criminal,” Abbott Press Secretary Andrew Mahaleris said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “We have zero tolerance for Texans who violate laws that directly contradict the mission we are seeking to achieve. The accused’s illegal smuggling may subject him to a mandatory minimum prison sentence of at least 10 years,” he said. “He deserves more.” BIDEN, TEXAS FEUD OVER ANTI-ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION LAW AS MIGRANTS RUSH BORDER: WHAT TO KNOW Abbott has increased resources and law enforcement on the southern border as part of Operation Lone Star, an effort to secure the border in what the state says is an absence of leadership from the federal government. The emergence of the footage came on the same day as Texas squared off against the Department of Justice in oral arguments before a panel of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals over its controversial anti-illegal immigration law. The law, which was signed in December and allows for local police to arrest illegal immigrants, has been blocked after a lawsuit from the Biden administration. Texas argued that the law is needed given the record numbers of migrants coming to the border. “There’s always been people who cross the border,” Solicitor General Aaron Nielson said in court. “But before, we talked about hundreds of thousands. Now, we talk about millions. Before, we talked about tens of thousands of unaccompanied minors. Now, we talk about hundreds of thousands. Before, we talked about a few countries. Now, we talk about essentially all countries.” The administration claims Texas’ efforts, which include building razor wire and putting buoys in the Rio Grande, hinder federal enforcement of immigration law. The Supreme Court briefly allowed the Texas law to go ahead, before it was blocked hours later by the appeals court arguments on the merits of the case. Fox News Digital’s Jasmine Baehr contributed to this report.
ND lawmakers anticipate spending $1M for legal defense of congressional age limit measure
North Dakota lawmakers are expecting a legal challenge to a proposed congressional age limit, and estimate $1 million to defend the measure up to the U.S. Supreme Court, in what some observers see as a likely test case. A top legislative panel on Wednesday unanimously approved a $1 million cost estimate for the state to defend the age limit proposed in a constitutional initiative approved for the June 11 ballot. Some legal scholars and political observers have said a state age limit for members of Congress would be unconstitutional. They cite a 1995 U.S. Supreme Court ruling on term limits that states cannot set congressional qualifications beyond those in the U.S. Constitution. “I think I see clear intent, whether it’s through media and their own spokesman, that the intent here is litigation, and they’re using the initiated measure process to push that litigation,” Republican Sen. Janne Myrdal said. DEMOCRAT DROPS LONGSHOT BID TO REPLACE BURGUM AS NORTH DAKOTA’S GOVERNOR Republican Sen. Brad Bekkedahl said he “absolutely” foresees an age limit challenge being appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. The measure would prevent people from running for Congress if they could turn 81 during their House or Senate term. The $1 million fiscal impact will be listed on the ballot. Measure chairman Jared Hendrix called the number “quite inflated,” and said age limits are popular. “Over 40,000 people signed our petition to place this measure on the ballot. It should be expected that the state defends something that the people clearly want. It’s literally the job of our attorney general to defend our constitution and laws. If someone doesn’t want to do that job of defending, they should not be in those positions,” Hendrix said in an email. It’s unclear who would challenge the age limit, if passed. Someone could challenge the age limit as unconstitutional on its face, or an affected candidate could sue, according to Deputy Attorney General Claire Ness. The measure would require North Dakota’s attorney general to “zealously defend” the age limit, and would give any voter legal standing to enforce the age limit. Ness said it’s unclear what role, if any, the attorney general’s office would have as to the latter scenario. The state would likely have to hire a special assistant attorney general, costs of which can vary, depending on the legal issues raised by the other side, the attorney’s hourly rate and whether the case goes to appeal, Ness said. Costs could easily be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, she told lawmakers. “I don’t think that $1 million is unreasonable as a high number. It could go beyond that,” Ness said. The measure wouldn’t stop any incumbents from running again. The oldest member of North Dakota’s three-person congressional delegation is Republican Sen. John Hoeven, at 67. North Dakota has had octogenarian senators in the past, including Democrat Quentin Burdick, who died in office in 1992 at age 84. While the initiative applies only to congressional seats, this election year will also feature President Joe Biden, 81, and former President Donald Trump, 77, competing in an election rematch that has drawn scrutiny of their ages and fitness. The measure reads: “No person may be elected or appointed to serve a term or a portion of a term in the U.S. Senate or the U.S. House of Representatives if that person could attain 81 years of age by December 31st of the year immediately preceding the end of the term.” The measure’s push emerged last summer amid age- and health-related scrutiny of members of Congress. Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein died last year at age 90 after health struggles. Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, 82, froze twice in front of reporters last year.
Venezuelan ‘migrant influencer’ who encouraged squatting under investigation for gun charges: report
The illegal Venezuelan migrant who took to social media to mock America and encourage other migrants crossing the border to squat and take over U.S. citizens’ homes is now facing potential federal firearms charges, the New York Post reported. Internal federal documents reviewed by The Post show the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) has been in contact with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) regarding Leonel Moreno, and is working to bring charges against him. The exact charges are not known at this time, but sources told The Post they would likely be brought under a section of the Gun Control Act which prohibits those on parole from possessing, shipping, transporting or receiving firearms or ammunition. Moreno reportedly crossed into the US illegally in 2022. He received border parole in April 2022 as part of the government’s Alternatives to Detention program, which is supposed to track catch-and-release migrants when there is not enough room to detain them. FREELOADING MIGRANT INFLUENCER MOCKS US TAXPAYERS WHO ‘WORK LIKE SLAVES’ WHILE WAVING CASH IN LATEST VIDEOS Moreno was arrested by authorities on the outskirts of Columbus, Ohio, on March 29 after he failed to appear for required check-ins with officers, according to the outlet. In a series of five short clips, Moreno flaunted a stack of cash, bragged about not having to work and also mocked fellow migrants who come to the U.S. to work cleaning, construction and landscaping jobs. “I didn’t cross the Rio Grande to work like a slave,” Moreno said in Spanish, according to a translation of his videos. “I came to the U.S. to mark my territory.” Moreno’s TikTok account, which had more than 500,000 followers, appeared to have been removed as of Wednesday. In prior videos, he claimed that his family had received $350 a week in government handouts since entering the U.S. illegally and had been raking in up to $1,000 a week on the video platform. ‘MIGRANT INFLUENCER’ URGING ILLEGALS TO SQUAT IN US HOMES ON RUN FROM AUTHORITIES: REPORT In one of the new clips, he shrugged off the loss of his TikTok account, saying he still has Facebook and Instagram and that he expects to continue using them to make money online and from government handouts. “Yes, they closed my TikTok account, but I keep earning on Facebook and on Instagram,” he said. “I won’t earn the same, but I am going to get my TikTok account back. I am going to keep earning money.” John Fabbricatore, a former ICE field office director in Denver, told The Post any possible further charges would “escalate” the case against Moreno and possibly allow authorities to keep him in custody longer. Moreno remains in custody at the Geauga County Jail, where he is being held on behalf of ICE, The Post confirmed. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “This should be a warning to any illegal aliens that possessing a firearm unlawfully will result in criminal charges and hopefully lead to a conviction,” said Fabbricatore, who is running for Congress in Colorado’s Sixth District. Fox News Digital reached out to the ATF for comment. Fox News’ Michael Ruiz contributed to this report.
Utility pole inspection company declines to testify at Texas Panhandle wildfire investigation hearing
The Texas A&M Forest Service concluded that a fallen decayed utility pole caused the Smokehouse Creek fire.
Maryland Dems worry planned tax hike carries dire consequence: Sen. Larry Hogan
A push in Maryland’s legislature for hundreds of millions of dollars in taxes and fees has some Democrats concerned that the package may bolster former Republican Gov. Larry Hogan’s campaign for U.S. Senate and cost their party its already-narrow majority. It’s a worry that is being amplified by the need for federal support to rebuild Baltimore’s collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge. While a Republican hasn’t won a Senate race in Maryland since 1980, Hogan is widely believed to be the GOP’s best chance in decades. Hogan’s political ascendency resulted in large part from his criticism of tax increases that resonated with a tax-weary electorate in his upset victory in 2014. GOP SENATE CANDIDATE LARRY HOGAN LAUNCHES MARYLAND BUS TOUR AS DEM CANDIDATES FACE OFF “If you go back to 2014 and 2018, I think it’s not brain science to see what happened and how the former governor was successful in the state of Maryland, and so that context is very real, and we have to be honest about it,” Maryland Senate President Bill Ferguson, a Baltimore Democrat, said Tuesday in an interview with The Associated Press. Hogan, who began building his popularity early in his first term by lowering tolls statewide in 2015, has been quick to condemn the revenue package that has led to a budget showdown between the chambers. On Wednesday, he noted the initial proposal in the Maryland House of Delegates was for $1.3 billion, which “would cost us jobs and hurt Maryland families already squeezed by historic inflation.” “Enough is enough,” Hogan posted on X. “Let’s reject these tax hikes and send a message that it’s time to end politics-as-usual.” Democrats hold a tenuous 51-49 majority in the U.S. Senate. And Hogan, who was originally elected governor by railing against tax increases endorsed by the General Assembly, has already made the Maryland race unusually competitive in the heavily Democratic state. A Washington Post-University of Maryland poll late last month showed Hogan remains an overwhelmingly popular political figure in Maryland, underscoring his potential to turn a usually solid blue state into a competitive one for Republicans. But while his potential opponents remain relatively unknown, the poll also shows that Maryland voters remain much more likely to prefer a Democratic U.S. Senate. Del. Ben Barnes, a Democrat who chairs the Maryland House Appropriations Committee, said the state’s transportation funding problems can’t wait a year, and he questions why the legislature with strong Democratic majorities in both chambers should wait. “I’m not afraid of Larry Hogan,” Barnes said. “I don’t think any of us should be afraid of Larry Hogan. I think voters are going to vote in this U.S. Senate race based on national issues. I do think Marylanders expect us to solve this problem, particularly this transportation issue, largely created by Larry Hogan, and his neglect of the Transportation Trust Fund for eight years caused the shortfall.” Nevertheless, some Democrats question whether now is the time for a package of tax and fee increases proposed by the state’s House of Delegates to pay for transportation and K-12 education, when lawmakers could wait a year and defer potential political blowback. “It is something that is a factor in the decision-making process for the next year,” Ferguson said. “The makeup of the U.S. Senate will matter for the long-term investment future for Maryland.” With strong majorities in both the the state House and Senate, and a 2-1 advantage in statewide voter registration, Maryland Democrats typically don’t have to worry much about the GOP in the state capital. But Hogan is a rare Maryland Republican who has won two statewide races. That’s something neither of his likely Democratic opponents, including U.S. Rep. David Trone and Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks, has done. Gov. Wes Moore, a Democrat, submitted a balanced $63 billion budget for the next fiscal year in January without tax increases, and he has said raising taxes would face “a very, very high bar” this year. The Maryland Senate this month largely kept his budget plan intact, despite a drop in revenue estimates announced after the governor submitted his plan. But the House has changed budget legislation to include new revenues, relying on a variety of transportation-related user fees and corporate tax reform for much of it. The Senate has been mostly unreceptive to the House plan, with Ferguson ruling out the corporate tax component. He’s also ruled out legalizing internet gambling this year, another part of the House plan. Senators negotiating with House members have expressed willingness to raise about $250 million in revenues, but the House negotiators have said that’s not enough. With differences still unresolved and less than a week left in the session, Moore issued an executive order Monday night to extend the session by 10 days, if needed beyond Monday’s scheduled adjournment at midnight. In December, the state’s transportation secretary proposed roughly $3.3 billion in cuts for Maryland’s six-year transportation spending plan, as inflationary pressures add to the problem as well as the fact that traditional revenue sources haven’t kept up with costs. Ferguson said the budget plan approved in the Senate invests in the state’s priorities without tax increases, with ample reserves still in the rainy day fund to avoid a hurried approach to revenues. He also noted that the bridge collapse has only underscored the need to keep a Democratic majority in the Senate. “This is about the long-term future of the state, and that is the political reality that we have to operate within,” Ferguson said.