“We need to stand up, not just California,” said Governor Gavin Newsom. “Other blue states need to stand up. We need to be firm in our resolve.” Time to get to work?

Wrapped up another productive annual conference of the Maryland Association of Counties in Ocean City this weekend and got to catch up with some old friends and colleagues!

It was pretty neat to be able to see all of creative efforts by the teams of the 2025 National Youth Airborne Robotics Cup held here in Maryland this weekend! We had students from over six states and Canada in attendance demonstrating the interest and value in STEM education.

Ice cream with Democrats at the Columbia Democratic Club's social last night = a great time!

Tonight, Missouri's gov declared that their Republican-controlled legislature will convene on Wed for a special session to redistrict. It’s Maryland's turn to meet the moment, stand up to Trump, and demonstrate to Missouri that we, too, are ready to act. politico.com/news/2025/08/2…

"This is where the state has an opportunity to step in to intercede in a way that helps encourage greater access to more housing in a balanced way." I was quoted in the Baltimore Sun supporting an executive order bolstering affordable housing across MD. baltimoresun.com/2025/09/03/moo…

Great turnout and celebration at the Washington Chinese Cultural Festival this year!

Glad to see so many Democrats out to make their voices heard at the Maryland Democratic Party’s talk back tour in Howard County last night. It’s important that party leaders hear directly from Democrats everywhere.

Great outpouring of support from the community for Mark Covington for Board of Edu's campaign launch yesterday! If you haven't heard of Mark, definitely check him out and consider voting for him for Howard County BOE.

When I was in the MD House, I worked with Sen. Nathan-Pulliam to pass a new law creating a pathway for the certification of community health workers. Some 7 years later, it was great to see groups like the Asian American Center of Frederick celebrate more than 300 CHWs trained!

On the UN's International Day of Peace, I was fortunate to have the opportunity to speak to a multicultural audience about how achieving peace requires active effort. Peace doesn't happen natural on its own, and we all have a role in advocating for peace around the world.

Del. Gary Simmons and I stopped by Belle Grove ES to congratulate Anne Arundel's Teacher of the Year, Jackie Sanderson! She's doing great work serving the students and families of North County, and became the first Anne Arundel educator from a Title 1 school to become TOTY.

Congratulations to the Chinese Language School of Columbia on celebrating their 50th anniversary! It was amazing to hear how far this school has come since it's humble beginnings to being an institution here in Howard County.

I enjoyed stopping by the West County Democratic Club's annual fish fry in Glen Burnie and had a chance to meet Democratic candidates like Heidi Schmidt, who is running for Maryland House of Delegates in District 31.

MD needs to move away from housing children under the state's care in hotels and this recent death is exactly why we need to make faster progress on this. See my response yesterday in this sad story of a teenager who died alone in an East Baltimore hotel. cbsnews.com/baltimore/news…

If you love bubble tea and missed Rockville's bubble tea festival, make sure you check it out next year! Thank you to Rockville's Sister City's program and their counterparts in Taiwan for organizing this wonderful event.

As the Senate's only physician, I'm always amazed at the health fairs organized by our communities. Thank you to Shri Mangal Mandir, a Hindu temple in Olney that (for the last 15 years!) have organized volunteer doctors, specialists, and even blood work--all free to the public!