So Many Candidates, So Little Time to Score at Calvert Forum

The most dramatic exchanges of the evening came during introductions for the state's attorney candidates.

In his opening statement, incumbent E. Gregory Wells (D) blasted challenger Laura L. Martin (R), saying she ran a "campaign of misinformation" and alluding to court cases in which, he claimed, she was soft on sexual assault predators, an issue she has campaigned on aggressively.

Martin responded by criticizing Wells as an ineffective leader and poor mentor and for creating an ineffective system for domestic violence cases.

That sort of combativeness is to be expected in a race pitting one prosecutor against another, Martin said. Her only complaints were the one-minute time constraint and the question-and-answer format that limited responses. "It would have been nice if we were able to rebut things," she said.

Assertiveness was not confined to the lawyers, showing up in some down-ballot pairings, such as the county treasurer race.

Democratic challenger Grace Mary Brady charged that Republican incumbent Nova Tracy-Soper perpetually relegates residents who call the treasurer's office to an answering machine and allows checks to languish for weeks before being deposited, which Brady said costs the county interest income.

Tracy-Soper defended her office's operations, saying that an overwhelming volume of checks arrive in September when county property taxes are due. She said the answering machine is used only to give residents basic tax information.

"People shouldn't be saying, 'It's only a treasurer or register of wills position,' " Brady said after the debate. "If the taxpayers are paying that salary, then it's important they choose the best person for the job."

The longest and most complicated portion of the forum came at the end, when the 11 candidates for the five county commissioner seats took the stage. The questions asked by moderator Patrick J. Griffin, a public affairs professor at American University, focused on issues that the candidates have been stressing for months: growth, property taxes and affordable housing.

Particularly on the issue of reducing property taxes, the candidates were divided, with incumbents largely on one side and challengers on the other.

"Tonight, you're going to hear a lot about what can't be done," said Republican challenger Cal Steuart, who has claimed on ubiquitous posters that he would cut taxes. "But I say it can be done."

"People keep talking about cutting taxes, but what are they going to cut to make that happen?" said Republican incumbent Gerald W. Clark (Lusby), who pointed out that board members had been fiscally conservative, balancing a budget that had repeatedly dipped into county reserves in past years.

The board has cut as much as it can without undermining services, said incumbent Wilson H. Parran (D-At Large). "We have great roads. We have great schools," he said. "You cannot cut yourself to greatness."