Kittleman Out as Maryland Senate GOP Caucus Leader

Maryland State Senator Allan Kittleman, one of only 14 Republican State Senators in the Maryland General Assembly, was basically bush-whacked into resigning as the leader of the State Senate GOP Caucus this week.

His resignation came just after he announced that he was going to introduce legislation recognizing civil unions in Maryland. Gasp! This cannot be tolerated!!!

That was sarcasm. I honestly do not have an opinion on civil unions and gay marriage. But what I do have an opinion on is that Allan Kittleman is a moderate Republican and in a state run by liberal extremists bordering on being Socialists, Allan Kittleman is the Republicans' best bet for keeping the Republican Party relevant in this state.

I have met Senator Kittleman (hence the picture) and he is a leader. He is a very intelligent and knows what is going on in the community.

If the Maryland Republican Party thinks that it can push an agenda that would make George W. Bush proud, then they will be extinct in this state before too long. Allan Kittleman was the rational bridge between the two parties. If the Senate GOP promotes David Brinkley to the leadership position as I expect they will, the tone of the Republican Party surely will shift farther to the right.

This is the main problem with party politics. Most of the populace (at least across the nation as a whole) fall to the center of the political spectrum. And the Republicans and Democrats fall to the far fringes of that spectrum. The center is not adequately represented. While you could successfully argue that this is not the case in Maryland, it surely goes without saying that the closer the Maryland Republican Party is to the center, the more votes they will get. Politicians in "safe" districts can surely get elected with a far-right agenda, but they'll be standing in small numbers on most issues.

Is Kittleman setting himself up for a run for the Governor's mansion in 2014? It's surely possible. O'Malley will leaving office (thank God!!!). Kittleman is probably the most likely candidate at this point to go up against either current Lt Gov. Tony Brown, State Comptroller Peter Franchot, or Maryland Attorney General Doug Gansler. But for the rest of the Maryland Republican Party, if they're smart they will continue to look to Senator Kittleman for leadership.