U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) roamed the stage of an auditorium at a senior citizen retirement complex in Gaithersburg, giving little indication that he has any plans to become a retiree himself.
During an hour-long town hall at Asbury Methodist Village the other day, the 79-year-old lawmaker spoke fluidly about gun safety, abortion rights, border security, climate change, and foreign policy challenges in Central America, Eastern Europe, Asia and Haiti. He called out the local officials in the auditorium and saluted them for their hard work.
About two-thirds of the way through the program, Maria Roberts, the head of the Asbury Methodist Democrats, rose to point out that serving in the U.S. Senate is “no walk in the park.” She asked Cardin about gun control, and then slipped in a question about whether he plans to seek a fourth term next year.
“You’re going to be shocked to hear I’m not going to answer your second question,” Cardin replied, eliciting chuckles.
Yet it is a question that hangs over the entire 2024 election cycle in Maryland. And the answer, in the view of many political professionals, is going to come very soon — perhaps as early as this week.
Click here to read the rest of the article written by Josh Kurtz over at Maryland Matters
