Local “democracy” dying in darkness? Where is the correct attribution by CE Elrich to local Democrat mega-donor Mr. Vincent DeMarco?
Browsing on YouTube.com, if the Google goblins are tracking you, you might be greeted by an advertisement that looks like a semi-official Marc Elrich / Montgomery County government proclamation or communication. In fact, it uses the official MoCo government seal and everything, see screen shot below:
But this 31 second video featuring Elrich is actually an ad / issue advocacy (bordering on grassroots lobbying plea) promotion for future legislation in Annapolis, MD that he [Elrich] says will “lower prescription drug costs”. No specifics are given. No specific legislation is named (probably for legal reasons). Being that Elrich is a faux-socialist, this “lower cost” he claims to support will no doubt come through heavy-handed price controls and drug shortage-inducing public policy that won’t work very well for the middle class or working class, but will make a few insider Annapolis lobbyists very wealthy.
Beyond the optics, the subterfuge of using the official MoCo government seal in his issue advocacy to Democrats in the Maryland General Assembly, what I found interesting was that the ad was put on by something called “MD Health Care 4 All”, which sounds pretty innocent.
See screen cap below:
In reality, “MD Health Care for All” is really a state 501c3 non-profit corporation called “Maryland Citizens’ Health Initiative Education Fund, Inc” and it is headed by one Vincent DeMarco, a huge donor to MD Democrats all over the state and a constant pusher of nanny-state, anti-individual freedom policy in Annapolis (always under the guise of public health and saving kids).
Curiously, his anti-smoking and anti-alcohol tax hikes, things he championed during the Martin O’Malley era as “life saving”, and “public health advocacy” don’t seem to extend to the current Wes Moore and Larry Hogan era of massive predatory gambling expansion in the state and now massive marijuana (smoking product sales) in Maryland, just yet. Maybe some vices are better for “public health” then others, according to Mr. DeMarco?
Vincent DeMarco made over $130,000 in salary in 2021 (again, per this non-profit’s tax form 990), and this was paid for about an average of 30 hours worth of work, per week. He was likely well compensated by “The Maryland Citizens’ Health Initiative, Inc.: a “sister organization” of the aforementioned “Education Fund”.
DeMarco is then a prolific donor of cash to various local politicians, including many Democrats in Montgomery County, MD. Is this why Elrich felt compelled to cut this ad for his non-profit corporation?
See some screen caps from OpenSecrets.org on his recent gifts (his list of donations to Democrats in Maryland and MoCo is very long, this is just a recent-year sampling):
Marc Elrich is free to advocate for what he wants as a private citizen, but when he is using the MoCo government seal and trying to sound “official” behind a desk about prospective legislation in the state capital, shouldn’t he be more transparent about who is behind the curtain of the non-profit org he is cutting ads for? “PAID FOR BY A GROUP LED BY VINCENT DEMARCO” seems appropriate, to a degree. Elrich would no doubt demand it of, say, the American Petroleum Institute sponsoring an ad with a County Exec for pending legislation on energy regulation.
Mr. Elrich sure seems to like transparency for others, but not necessarily for him. Some special interests truly are more “privileged” in MoCo, it seems.
More to come.
