Ehrlich Launches Negative Attack Ad With Another Misleading TV Commercial

Negative campaign comes despite record of failed investment and admission that he has no plan for education himself

Baltimore, MD (July 27, 2006) – Today, Bob Ehrlich launched the first negative ad of this year’s gubernatorial campaign, attacking the hard work and hard-earned progress of the school children, parents and teachers of Baltimore.

Ehrlich launched the negative ad campaign despite the fact that he has never fully funded the Thornton education reform plan—failing every year to allocate money for the geographic cost of education index (GCEI), a formula that gives extra money to school systems with higher education costs. [Washington Post, 1/27/06].

“Bob Ehrlich has a lot of audacity to attack the progress of school children in Baltimore while he used a loophole in the law to break his promise to fully invest in our schools while at the same time protecting a loophole in the tax code for the special interests,� said O’Malley/Brown campaign manager Josh White. “And now, instead of offering a plan for a way forward, he hides behind negative ads attacking the hard work and progress of students, parents and teachers.�

The ads stand in stark contrast to the facts. According to published reports, Baltimore elementary school student test scores have improved at every grade level, graduation rates are up and investment in school construction has increased. While there’s still more work to do, the students, parents and teachers of Baltimore have made hard-earned progress.

Previous Ehrlich campaign commercials have been criticized as misleading, and Ehrlich was forced to make changes to the ads after he was caught implying that he had support he did not in fact have.

After attacking the progress of Baltimore City school children, parents and teachers, the Ehrlich campaign was asked by the Baltimore Sun what their plan for education was. But instead of offering details of their vision “Ehrlich aides said they could not yet provide specifics on the governor’s education platform…â€? [Baltimore Sun, 7/26/06].

“As demonstrated by the schools that are now failing after being taken over by the state, Bob Ehrlich hasn’t had a education plan for the last four years,� said White “That’s why he’s taking credit for Thornton when he didn’t even sign it and why he’s left with no choice but to run dishonest negative ads. But Maryland’s children deserve action, not ads.�

Ehrlich continues to claim that the state should take over local schools despite recently-released test scores that show that three elementary schools taken over by the state and handed over to a private company have seen a significant drop in student achievement. [Baltimore Sun, 7/13/06].

In contrast, Martin O’Malley and Anthony Brown have offered several detailed plans to advance public education in Maryland over the course of the last nine months, including detailed plans to recruit and retain the best teachers, a plan to increase school construction and reduce class size, and a plan to freeze college tuition after Ehrlich’s 40% increase. The General Assembly adopted a tuition freeze this past legislative session after O’Malley and Brown released their plan.