The Democrats tire of hearing about how much of an underdog the governor thinks he is against what is in reality an internally fractured Democratic team. Ehrlich's Democratic predecessors, Glendening and William Donald Schaefer, had stormy relations with the legislature and still passed major initiatives.
Ehrlich "came in paranoid that there was going to be this backlash, and he had to shore up the tent and hold on and fight, fight, fight," says Sen. James Brochin, a Democrat who represents a Republican section of Baltimore County. "In reality, it was a 2-to-1 Democratic state saying, 'Let's give this guy a chance,' and moderate and conservative Democrats were waiting for an invitation to come and talk about public policy that would move Maryland forward."
As a stormy legislative session nears its end in Maryland, the political football called malpractice reform is hurtling toward Gov. Robert Ehrlich.
(Lucian Perkins -- The Washington Post)
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The governor's allies discount Democratic siren calls for more compromise.
"Their idea of compromise is doing things their way -- if he doesn't change his mind and abandon his principles, he's not compromising," says Carol Hirschburg, a Maryland GOP activist and public relations consultant. "He's not going to raise taxes. He's actually not going to do that. How could that be happening? They just don't get that."
The Sports Junkies
Drive time on a Wednesday morning. You flip on the radio. There's the hearty sound of regular guys shooting the breeze.
WHFS's Sports Junkies: What if, like, you and the beautiful first lady need a moment together, what do you do? There's no middle-of-the-day moment?
Ehrlich: It's like, she says, 'You want to go and have a romantic getaway?' Just the two of us -- and four Maryland state troopers!
Junkies: Hahaha!
When Ehrlich has had it with Annapolis, he gets out of town. He takes his message and personality directly to the people. He's a natural. It is almost as though the state has two chief executives: There is the wary, elbow-throwing governor in Annapolis, and there is "the Guv," the regular guy, the genial ex-jock. The Guv is the hero of those funny tourism ads, where he is always popping up to do your chores so you can go sample Maryland; the governor hopes to benefit from the GOP's new barrage of pointed political ads targeting Democrats to thwart a veto override.
Talk radio is his favorite medium to reach the people, one without an editorial filter. He's also partial to television cameras. He is frank about his disdain for The Washington Post and the Baltimore Sun, which he says are "not necessarily happy we're here."
This morning he is calling in to "The Junkies in the Morning," featuring the Sports Junkies, four buddies born and bred in Maryland -- J.P. Flaim, John "Cakes" Auville, Eric Bickel and Jason "Lurch" Bishop -- three Democratic supporters and one Republican, as it happens. Ehrlich has been a fan since he was commuting between Timonium and Capitol Hill. Now he calls in every week to make football picks.
On a recent business trip to Asia, he called the Junkies from Singapore to make his picks. If he picks more winners this season, the Junkies will have to stand at a busy intersection with an Ehrlich sign. If they pick more winners, he must take them golfing. Recently, they went to a Ravens game together.
Junkies: I gotta tell ya, this guy gets a reception that anybody would want. Of the 65,000 fans out there, I didn't hear one person heckle the guy.
Ehrlich: Well, it's pretty neat, you guys, I have to say.
Junkies: You know why, Guv? You're a man of the people!
Ehrlich's also a regular on political shows. It was in response to a question on WBAL in May that he referred to multiculturalism as "crap." After an uproar, he elaborated that he honors ethnicity, but believes America must be a melting pot with a common culture and language.
Such unscripted blunt talk is part of the Guv's appeal, say his allies.
