We wondered when M to the O was going to say something about crime, and suddenly this article is out, and just we got this in the inbox:
BOB EHRLICH: LYING BECAUSE HE'S LOSING, PART II
Down In Polls, Ehrlich Caught In Lie About Police
Bob Ehrlich has a truth problem - he has a problem telling the truth, and the truth is a problem for his campaign.
You may have seen or heard Bob Ehrlich strutting around like Foghorn Leghorn recently on television and radio, claiming that he wanted to send the Maryland State Police to Baltimore to fight crime, but Martin O'Malley told him to "pound sand."
Turns out, once again, the Governor is lying.
As today's Baltimore Examiner reports: "Documents obtained by The Examiner indicate it was Maryland State Police who failed to provide Baltimore City with the assistance they offered in 2003."
Ehrlich's newest fabrication comes on the heels of the 18th straight independent, public poll that shows him trailing Martin O'Malley.
Today's Sun reports that with less than 40 days left, "Ehrlich's campaign is getting increasingly more negative because he trails in the polls."
Earlier this week, Ehrlich launched another attack ad, this time attacking the integrity of Baltimore's police officers.
The Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 3 - which endorsed Ehrlich in 2002 - says the ad leaves them "disgusted." And they will not be supporting Ehrlich this time, because he has turned the brave men and women of the Baltimore Police Department into "political punching bags."
Police Commissioner Leonard Hamm calls Ehrlich's attack ad "absolutely false."
...The truth is that law enforcement and neighbors have come together and now crime is down in Baltimore:
The City increased investment in the police department by 47% and placed a system of hundreds of security cameras in troubled neighborhoods to give police more tools in making streets safer. [Baltimore City Police Department]
The Police and Neighbors reduced violent crime in Baltimore by 40%.[Federal Bureau of Investigation, "2004 Uniform Crime Report," Crime in the United States by Metropolitan Statistical Area; Baltimore City Police Department, "UCR Crime Total"]
The officers of the Baltimore Police Department helped reduce homicides by 18%. [Baltimore City Police Department, "UCR Crime Total"]
According to Commissioner Hamm, "We have the greatest crime decrease in the state of Maryland, and we did it without state help."
And that's the truth. Here's Bob Ehrlich's real failed record on crime - which makes clear why he is launching his shameful attack on Baltimore's Police Officers.We understand that Bob Ehrlich is down in the polls and has a horrendous record of failure. But, that doesn't justify lying to the people of Maryland, and it certainly doesn't justify attacking the brave men and women of the police force who put their lives on the line every day to protect our communities.
- He cut State funding to the Baltimore Police Department by 42% from $11.3 million in FY 2002 to $6.6 million in FY 2006.
- He cut State drug treatment funding in Baltimore by $3 million - from $52.2 million in FY 2003 to $49.2 million in FY 2005.
- He broke his promise to reform Juvenile Services - and instead, it has gotten worse, with children sleeping in bathrooms near toilets and riots caused by understaffing, according to Maryland's Independent Juvenile Justice Monitor.
- He broke his promise to implement Project Exile - which calls for all eligible gun crimes to be prosecuted in federal court. Federal gun prosecutions went down sharply under his handpicked U.S. Attorney, and he never delivered on his promised public/private advertising and outreach campaign.
- He broke his promise to end parole for violent criminals - and in fact, parole of criminals has increased on his watch.
- He has flat funded the State gun prosecutors grant to the Baltimore State's Attorney's Office (SAO) at the same $1.7 million that his predecessor began in 2001 - failing to account for inflation. The city has increased it's funding for the SAO by 50% since Mayor O'Malley took office (from $16.6 million in FY 2000 to $24.9 million in FY 2007).
- His much-hyped "Hype vs. Reality" campaign, launched at a press conference with Carmelo Anthony in May 2005 produced, literally, nothing.
- And under his watch, prisons are out of control, with corrections officers being murdered and nearly 20 times more violent incidents involving weapons than the larger Pennsylvania prison system - 257 compared to 15 for the first six months of 2006.
... Bob Ehrlich: Can't Be Trusted to Fight Crime; Can't Be Trusted to Fight for Maryland Families
MEOW! He's taking it to the street!
UPDATE: The mayor and the gov. have agreed to have two debates before mid-October.