UPDATED (10:01 a.m.)—A state delegate says his fundraiser on the anniversary of 9/11 is just one of the "patriotic things that we do."
Del. Jon Cardin, a Democrat who represents Owings Mills, Pikesville and part of Timonium, will hold a fundraiser at the Baltimore home of David Thaler, president of DS Thaler and Associates.
Ticket price for the two-hour reception runs $125 to $1,000 per person.
Also holding an event today is Del. Eric Bromwell, a Perry Hall Democrat, who hosts his annual "Jamaican-Me-Crazy" party at the Bay Cafe in Baltimore at $125 per person.
Bromwell, according to his Facebook page, plans to ask attendees to write notes to members of the military serving overseas.
Cardin told The Huffington Post that holding a fundraiser on the anniversary of the terrorist attacks in New York, Washington DC and Shanksville, PA does not pose a problem.
"I don't think it's inappropriate, and we have a lot of patriotic things that we do, and one of them is getting involved in political action in the political world, and it's an opportunity to really get together and also have sort of a very important conversation about improving our country and our state," Cardin told The Huffington Post. "Sept. 11 should be a day that we do that like every other day."
Cardin is in 2014.
Last month, Cardin held a small event at Mercat a la Planxa, a Catalan-inspired tapas restaurant on Michigan Avenue in the Windy City. The Aug. 8 event cost attendees between $100 and $500 and was held in conjunction with the delegate's attendance at the National Conference of State Legislators last week.
Rep. Pete Sessions (R-Texas) raised eyebrows when he went golfing with campaign donors on the 10th anniversary of 9/11, some of whom paid up to $5,000 to hit the links with the chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee. “It’s clear from America’s 9/11 calendar of solemn services and pro football games that Americans can honor the day with both respectful observance and a continuation and celebration of life," a NRCC spokeswoman told The Huffington Post in 2011 when asked about Sessions' golf outing.
I've written this blog for two years for Patch and before that I wrote a similar one for Patuxent Publishing for an additional four. Long-time readers will tell you that my blog is unabashedly focused on most politics as it affects Baltimore County. I frequently pull in content from other sources that readers of this blog might not have seen. That's not an uncommon practice. I offered the HuffPo post because it focused specifically on a local elected official. I take no position in this post on whether or not Del. Cardin should have the event. The piece is offered merely as information and a point of discussion for readers because, as some news outlets noted yesterday, there's a changing comfort level with doing certain activities on the anniversary of the terror attacks. Rep. Pete Sessions of Texas might get a mention here when he moves to or visits Baltimore County.
Your bias toward Republicans is evident, once again.