Former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan and Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks squared off on Oct. 10 in their only debate of the 2024 Senate race.
The debate on Maryland Public Television between the Republican and Democrat nominees, respectively, comes just weeks before the Nov. 5 elections, which will also decide control of the U.S. Senate. Hogan’s last-minute entry made the race in the Old Line State competitive.
Party vs. Independent Voice
Alsobrooks suggests that Hogan strictly toes the Republican Party line in order to be a reliable vote for the party’s leadership in the Senate.“Former Gov. Hogan accepted an invitation by [Senate Minority Leader] Mitch McConnell to run in this race because they want to give Republicans a majority in the Senate,” Alsobrooks said.
Alsobrooks said she supports the Democrat agenda.
Hogan presented himself as someone who has stood up to Democrats and Republicans and would continue to do so if elected. He cited his record of criticizing both sides of the aisle, giving as an example his staunch criticism of Trump.
“One voice standing up can make a difference. And I don’t think we need more partisan politicians who are going to be rubber stamps for their party,” Hogan said.
“What we need are people that are willing to stand up and work with both parties or to criticize both parties when they’re wrong.”
Hogan went on to note that as governor he worked with presidents from both major parties, including former Presidents Barack Obama and Trump, and President Joe Biden.
Agreements
Despite being on opposite sides of the political spectrum, Alsobrooks and Hogan demonstrated agreement on some issues.One issue they agreed on was abortion, both expressing support for a woman’s choice to terminate a pregnancy.
Hogan and Alsobrooks reiterated that they would vote to codify Roe v. Wade, the 1973 landmark Supreme Court ruling that established the federal right to have an abortion. The court overturned the ruling in 2022, returning the decision to individual states. Presently, 21 states either ban the procedure or have strict limits—all with exceptions, according to the Guttmacher Institute.
Hogan said he has opposed a national abortion ban since 1992.
“When I ran for governor, I promised to provide access to abortion that would do nothing to change [the] law,” he said. “That’s exactly what I delivered on for eight years.”
Hogan reiterated his pledge to sponsor a bill to codify Roe.
Alsobrooks went after Hogan for vetoing a bill to expand abortion access. Hogan said the bill would have allowed non-licensed professionals, such as midwives, to perform the procedure.
Alsobrooks noted that Hogan’s support for codifying Roe is irrelevant if the GOP controls the Senate.
Another issue where Alsobrooks and Hogan expressed consensus was on guns. Both would back a ban on the so-called assault weapons.
Hogan cited his time as governor when he signed a red flag law to prevent the mentally ill from obtaining a firearm and a bump stock ban in addition to a bill to mandate Maryland high schools to employ school resource officers.
Differences
While the candidates showed agreement on some issues, their views contrasted on other matters. One was inflation.Hogan blamed out-of-control spending by both Democrats and Republicans for contributing to the issue.
Alsobrooks put the blame on big companies “who are receiving record profits right now.”
“I attribute that to the rising costs, and we also know that there’s a lack of competition,” she said.
Alsobrooks aligned herself with Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris in pledging to cut middle-class taxes and not raise taxes on those who earn less than $400,000.
Additionally, while both support abortion, they disagreed on whether the filibuster, which requires 60 votes to move most legislation in the Senate, should be abolished in order to codify Roe. Alsobrooks said that the filibuster, which she called “destructive,” should be abolished or reformed; Hogan said it should not.
“You’ve got to be careful what you wish for because you don’t know who’s going to be jamming things through,” Hogan said.
“I like the idea of continuing to have to find people across the aisle, find that bipartisan compromise.”
Finally, an issue the two disagreed on was support for Israel in its war with Hamas in Gaza. This week marked the first anniversary of the Oct. 7 attack, when the terrorist group committed what was the deadliest single-day massacre of Jews since the Holocaust.
While Alsobrooks expressed support for Israel’s right to defend itself, she called for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas and a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Hogan expressed strong support for the Jewish state.
“I don’t think you can try to walk down the middle on this issue,” Hogan said.
