BMORENEWS ENDORSES BEN BROOKS FOR STATE SENATE, 10TH DISTRICT, INCLUDING MUCH OF LIBERTY ROAD CORRIDOR
By Doni Glover, Publisher
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(BALTIMORE – July 6, 2022) – Dear 10th District Family including folks in Randallstown, Catonsville, and Owings Mills:
Early voting starts tomorrow.
For the 10th state legislative district, this means voters will have the opportunity to vote for the next state Senator.
Choices include Stephanie Boston, Delegate Ben Brooks, and Delegate Jay Jalisi.
Most pundits are watching Brooks and Jalisi because both are currently serving as delegates. Boston has run a number of times in the past to represent the 10th district.
In other words, the Super Bowl of Liberty Road politics is about to go down! This state Senate race will determine just how cohesive the 10th district has become.
Who will you vote for?
Before I proceed, let me just say that I love and have always loved my Baltimore County peeps. Don’t forget, I was the first editor of the Northwest Voice newspaper published by Mr. Kenny Brown. In short, this ain’t my first rodeo. Ken Oliver, a Baltimore County hero, in my book: I covered his tenure from beginning to end. Ella White Campbell: I brought you interviews with her on this website that no other news outlet had. Campbell was a strong leader in Randallstown and didn’t take mess from anyone. And I covered the tenure of Dr. Joe Hairston, the former County Schools Superintendent. He was the first Black to ever serve in that post.
Again, I love Liberty Road. It is a part of my life. So, here’s the skinny ….
Retiring State Senator Delores G. Kelley, my political science professor at Coppin in the mid-90s, is usually poised, unless of course if she is on the floor of the Senate. This accomplished Maryland legislator very much knows how to command control of a room and, more importantly, she knows how to get a bill passed into law in the General Assembly. That, by the way, is the 90-day session from mid-January to mid-April each year when legislators discuss 2,500 bills in Annapolis.
For the past 30 years, Kelley has maneuvered to get many bills passed on behalf of the people in her district and the people of Maryland. Her integrity is intact after three decades of politics and her impeccable reputation precedes her wherever she goes.
However, if you want to see this mild-mannered but highly-effective Queen of Liberty Road politics go from zero to 80 in point 2 seconds, then go ahead and make the slightest mention of 10th district Delegate Jay Jalisi. I dare you!
As a Black journalist who covers Northwest Baltimore County regularly, it is imperative that the Black community is well-aware of Jalisi’s track record of incompetence in Annapolis. I must also add that I hope Black folks out the Liberty Road corridor are not fooled by his sly and slick ways.
Be warned!
And hey, don’t take my word for it. I simply ask that the residents of Northwest Baltimore County’s 10th district pose a few important questions to Mr. Jalisi:
First question: Name one bill that you have sponsored in the past six years; not co-sponsored, but sponsored – as in the person who completed the research, coordinated the testimonies, made the necessary amendments to make bills more palatable, etc.
The record shows Jalisi has not sponsored a bill in 6 years. Sure, he has co-sponsored a lot of bills. Quite frankly, that says nothing about his political leverage in Annapolis. Everybody co-signs bills. Duh!
The issue with Jalisi serving any district in Annapolis is that he has created for himself, by virtue of his own arrogance and obnoxious design, a terrible track record of not getting along well with others. Other legislators in Annapolis often question why the good people of Randallstown voted for this guy at all. They find it laughable. Sure, he’s assertive, but is that assertiveness productive?
Jalisi’s colleagues in Annapolis simply don’t like him. In fact, as noted previously, he has been censured. Dude, nobody gets censured. You gotta be a royal screw-up for that to happen. That’s like being barred from going to church. I mean, geesh!
His colleagues all know that he treats his staff like crap.
What those colleagues in Annapolis don’t see, however, is Jalisi’s constituent services back in the district and his prompt response to calls. To some voters, sadly, Jalisi’s presence in the community may mean more to them than his ability to effectively sponsor legislation. Voters, however, cannot ignore the top objective of every legislator is introducing and passing bills into law.
Our state Senators and Delegates’ prime responsibility – besides balancing the state’s budget and adequately education our children – is getting bills passed into law. I think we too often forget that, back here in the various districts. And that’s quite unfortunate.
Ladies and gentlemen, the truth is that we cannot afford to be playing checkers while our counterparts are playing poker. We’ll never win progress in Annapolis without being more strategic than that. It is my firm belief that Brooks, and the rest of the 10th District Unity ticket (Del. Adrienne Jones – Speaker of the House, Jennifer White, and well-known Attorney N. Scott Phillips), will best serve the 10th district in Annapolis.
The team has class, integrity, and a long track record of effectiveness. Adrienne Jones has risen to be a statewide star in Annapolis. She is in a most-powerful position to help all Marylanders, including Black folks. This position of Speaker is no light matter. This is huge. Thus, it doesn’t make any sense to send Jalisi because we already know that he doesn’t play well in the sandbox with others.
The Unity Team wants to bump Jalisi badder than the 40th district team headed by Senator Antonio Hayes wants to bump Delegate Frank Conaway. Truth!
When you have a legislator like Jay Jalisi who hasn’t gotten one bill passed into law in 8 years, you really gotta ask yourself why in the world would you send this wildman to Annapolis to represent you and your district. That’s just a common-sense question to me. He’s gone “donut” for 6 years without getting one bill of his own passed? C’mon, man!
Jay Z didn’t get to the top of the game by not selling records. You know?
Even more, Jalisi’s resume is packed with all kinds of questions.
Still, at the end of the day, the people in Northwest County have to decide if they want a so-called physician who has never practiced medicine in Maryland to hold this very prominent post for the next 4 years or more, or if they want a bona fide American hero in Ben Brooks, a man who served our country in Vietnam, came home and started a family and also built a successful accounting business on Liberty Road, and then found his way into politics to serve on an even higher level.
So, here’s to hoping that the difference between Jalisi and Brooks is painfully clear. While Brooks will represent you, the voters, Jalisi will continue to serve himself and his own twisted and eclectic vision of reality.