“Middleton ready for prime time”

The Gazette, Jan. 17, 2003

by Thomas Dennison
Staff Writer

Jan. 17, 2003

ANNAPOLIS -- Thomas McLain Middleton says he is beginning to realize that his first year as Senate Finance Committee chairman is going to be a collision course with the state's most powerful and richest special interests.

But that's nothing compared to growing up with 14 brothers and sisters.

"The middle child is usually the facilitator, and I'm No. 8 of 15," Middleton said. "I'm the fourth of seven boys. ... Just like when I was younger, there are always two groups of people pulling you different directions. I like to run to the center, hear both sides and go from there. That's just the natural way I do things."

That statement crystallizes the way Middleton (D-Dist. 28) of Waldorf does business, and what has earned him a solid reputation as he takes the helm of the Finance Committee.

But Middleton's transition from the Budget and Taxation Committee to the head of the Finance Committee is being overshadowed, several senators and lobbyists say, by being former Sen. Thomas L. Bromwell's replacement. Bromwell, a Baltimore Democrat, was considered a future Senate president until he resigned last year.

There is also an air of uncertainty and uneasiness coming from lobbyists and other special interest representatives, who are waiting to see what special touches Middleton will bring to the committee. There are also questions about how he will strike a delicate balance between business-led and union-led initiatives that are handled by the Finance Committee, as well as the masses of bills dealing with health care and insurance.

"The jury is still out," said one lobbyist who works closely with the Finance Committee. "There is a big difference between the Budget committee and Finance committee; all the lobbyists are kind of feeling our way around at this point."

Middleton is cognizant of the expectations and concerns.

"I've begun to realize what an awesome responsibility it is to be a chairman of a committee, and I've also come to realize the overwhelming number of special interests that are dependent on the work of the Finance Committee," he said.

Different approach

Bromwell was a larger-than-life figure and allowed lobbyists to play a major role in writing complicated legislation dealing health care, utility deregulation, labor law and telecommunications standards.

By contrast, Middleton said he will bring more of a by-the-book method to the committee that he learned from his years on the Budget and Taxation Committee. But he is not expected to bring the same hostile attitude toward lobbyists that former Budget chairwoman Barbara A. Hoffman, a Baltimore Democrat, was known to have. He plans to incorporate more subcommittees and is not interested "in having lobbyists at the table" during voting sessions.

"I have a very big concern that John Doe citizen is sitting out there thinking that work we do in this committee is being done by the lobbyists," he said. "I'm very much in favor of open voting sessions, but the only time lobbyists will be called on is at the chairman's discretion."

Lawmakers say no one should be surprised at how Middleton operates the Finance Committee.

"He's made some changes on how to run the committee, but the lobbyists should be used to what he's done because that's how all the other committees in Annapolis are run," said House Economic Matters Committee Chairman Dereck E. Davis (D-Dist. 25) of Upper Marlboro, whose committee handles similar issues.

Bromwell left the Senate last year to become head of the state's Injured Workers Insurance Fund -- a quasi-governmental agency that offers workers compensation coverage to businesses and health insurance to individuals who might not be able to afford it.

Bromwell said Middleton is up to the job.

"Mac Middleton is a whole lot smarter than I was when I started as chairman of the Finance Committee," said Bromwell, who will testify before the committee this year as he explains legislation dealing with IWIF. "He brings a perspective on the budget that I never had, and he understands how to listen to people, which is very important."

Taking a stand

Although Bromwell and Middleton share the same blue-collar roots -- Bromwell is a former tavern owner, Middleton is a tobacco farmer -- the two are polar opposites in style and positions on key legislation that will be deliberated this year.

Middleton is at the center of two of the most controversial issues to be debated this session -- legalizing slot machines and the pending conversion of CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield to for-profit status.

Middleton is perhaps the most vocal opponent of legalizing slot machines in the Senate, and he is widely skeptical of the proposed $1.3 billion sale of CareFirst to Well Point Health Networks, a for-profit insurer based in California.

Bromwell, who is from Perry Hall, favored slots because of the horseracing industry and was supportive of the CareFirst sale because the company's headquarters was in his district.

"CareFirst butchered the issue in the jury of public opinion," Middleton said of the large executive bonuses that CareFirst executives are set to receive if the company is sold. "I cannot see how this conversion would benefit the citizens of the state of Maryland."

Health care needs to be addressed because former Gov. Parris N. Glendening (D) "didn't have the issue on his radar screen."

Middleton said he is not convinced universal health care is the right approach, saying the delivery of health care should be private sector-driven.

"It's time we take a comprehensive look at health care," he said. "The legislature is going to drive this issue."

The Annapolis crowd also has speculated that Middleton is in line for the Senate presidency because he comes from the same conservative-leaning Southern Maryland mold of his mentor, Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. (D-Dist. 27) of Chesapeake Beach.

"I have not set out a political course for myself," Middleton said. "If there is a vacancy somewhere, I'll rise to the occasion, but I'm not building a war chest to be elected president of the Maryland State Senate."