March 23rd, 2018 by WCBC Radio
Maryland Matters, a political website, reports that a long-simmering feud between state Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. (D-Calvert) and state Comptroller Peter V.R. Franchot (D) burst into open view Thursday night.
In a conversation with reporters, Miller blistered his fellow Democrat as a “shameful” publicity hound and political “Chameleon” who has infuriated lawmakers and picked unnecessary and irrelevant policy fights.
Miller also went after Franchot’s chief of staff and longtime political adviser, Len Foxwell – who, in a conversation with Maryland Matters, returned the fire.
Miller’s remarks came as the House considers a bill to study whether to strip the comptroller’s office of its role as the state’s chief alcohol regulator and lawmakers ponder a proposal to limit the ability of the Board of Public Works – which consists of the comptroller, the governor and the state treasurer – to dole out school construction money.
Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr.
Franchot, who is completing his third term as comptroller after 20 years in the House of Delegates, has evolved from a bomb-throwing liberal lawmaker to a bomb-throwing fiscal conservative who is closer to Republican Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) than he is to any elected Democrat. Franchot’s evolution and penchant for publicity has given Democrats fits through the years – yet he has been untouchable politically and is about to waltz to a fourth term as comptroller.
Whether lawmakers will be successful stripping Franchot of his official duties or whether they are merely trying to extract a measure of political payback is very much an open question. But Miller made the case for doing so Thursday night.
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