The 3 P.M Phone Call

Clinton records robocalls for Delaney; Brinkley goes on TV.

Monday, April 2, 2012 | 2:06 p.m.

Bill Clinton "recorded robocalls on behalf" of financier John Delaney (D) (Livingston, "At the Races", Roll Call, 4/1).

Meanwhile, state Sen. David Brinkley (R) launched "the first television ad of his campaign" on March 30. The 30-second spot "takes aim" at Rep. Roscoe Bartlett (R) "without mentioning him by name." The campaign "said the ad will continue through the election" (Fritze, "Maryland Politics",Baltimore Sun, 3/30).

He Just Had To Go There

Brinkley's camp last week accused Bartlett's camp "of implying in a mailer" that Brinkley "has been complicit" in MD's "regularly escalating state budgets." Brinkley spokesperson Don Murphy: "Blaming David Brinkley for the spending of a Democrat-controlled legislature and Democrat governor is like blaming the Wright brothers for 9/11" (Cella, Washington Times, 4/2).

Run, Don't Walk

Over the weekend, Delaney and state Senate Maj. Leader Rob Garagiola (D) "crisscrossed" the district. Delaney "portrayed himself as a reform-oriented newcomer who has drawn the backing" of Bill Clinton. Garagiola "emphasized his record in Annapolis and support from local unions and progressive groups" (Pershing, Washington Post, 4/1).

Garagiola "moved from door to door in a complex of town homes" in Germantown, "reminding voters of his lengthy list of endorsements and asking for their support." Delaney "put his family to work, with his parents coming in to help make phone calls to possible voters. Delaney also knocked on doors" in Montgomery Co. over the weekend and "attended a meet-and-greet at a supporter's home in Gaithersburg" (Fritze, Baltimore Sun, 4/2).

St. Mary's College's Todd Eberly "suggested" that Garagiola "initially underestimated the Delaney campaign and is now struggling to regain momentum and escape the sentiment among some that he was handpicked to win the nomination." Eberley: "Within the electorate, there is this underlying anger at the system and the feeling that it's designed to benefit people who are already part of it. I think Garagiola really got caught up in that" (Hill, Washington Times, 4/1).