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political attractiveness or willingness to
stand for election.
That, in essence, is the report of the
Committee in support of its recommenda-
tion that the Constitution remain silent as
to the attorney general.
Are there any questions?
(First Vice President James Clark, as-
sumed the Chair.)
DELEGATE J. CLARK (presiding) :
Are there any questions of the Chairman
of the Committee?
Delegate Rybczynski.
DELEGATE RYBCZYNSKI: Mr. Chair-
man, to what portions of the state govern-
ment, or the local governments, does the
attorney general presently act as legal ad-
viser? Is it just to the administrative sec-
tion, or does it cross over various lines?
DELEGATE J. CLARK (presiding) :
Delegate Morgan.
DELEGATE MORGAN: I think he acts
sometimes for all branches. As a matter of
fact, on occasion he acts for the judicial
branch, where there are disputes between
judges or matters of that kind.
DELEGATE J. CLARK (presiding) :
Are there any other questions?
(There was no response.)
If not, Delegate Morgan, the next thing
is for Delegate Mason to come forward
with the Minority Report.
Delegate Mason.
DELEGATE MASON: Mr. Chairman,
Ladies and Gentlemen of this Committee:
As you perhaps know, the Committee on
the Executive Branch voted 11 to 9 not to
recommend to this Convention the office of
the attorney general. A Minority Report
was filed, and I appear here as representa-
tive of that minority.
I assume that all the delegates have read
it, and, therefore, I will not impose upon
you by rereading the report.
However, I will review with you briefly
some of the reasons stated in the Majority
Report for the abolishment of the office of
attorney general in the constitution.
If there is one thing that I have read
and heard more than anything else since
I have been a delegate to this Convention,
it is the theory espoused by most political
scientists and theorists to the effect that
there should be no checks and balances
within any branch of the government, but
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only checks and balances between the
branches of the government.
It is significant to note that every wit-
ness who appeared before the Executive
Branch Committee in opposition to the elec-
tion of an attorney general relied prin-
cipally, if not solely, on this doctrine, that
there should be no checks and balances
within any one branch of the government.
In fact, the Commission draft echoed the
same doctrine and premised its recommen-
dation on the fact that an elected attorney
general would be a check and balance
within the executive department.
We all know what the Commission's rec-
ommendation was, but do we know the rea-
sons the Commission had for supporting
this recommendation?
I think it will be of interest to this Com-
mittee to know what the reasons were the
Commission based its recommendations
upon.
Governor Tawes, Governor Lane, and
Governor McKeldin appeared before the
Commission as witnesses, and were asked
if the attorney general should be elected
or if the attorney general should be ap-
pointed.
Governor Lane expressed no preference.
Governor McKeldin, before the Commis-
sion, favored election, and Governor Tawes,
although the record is not too clear, also
favored election.
Now, based upon this testimony, and this
testimony alone, and one casual comment
from a 1953 Soboloff-Stockbridge Report,
the Commission, without any other evi-
dence, recommended that the attorney gen-
eral not be provided for in the constitution.
I am sure that you will agree with me
that I would not be indulging in under-
statement if I were to suggest that the
evidentiary support for the Commission
recommendation was less than overwhelm-
ing.
I am also sure that you will agree that
the Commission, in considering whether to
abolish or retain the office of attorney gen-
eral in the constitution should have had
the benefit of at least one person who had
held the office of attorney general.
In marked contrast to the consideration
given the office of the attorney general by
the Commission, the Committee on the Ex-
ecutive Branch heard the testimony of
many knowledgeable and distinguished citi-
zens, including Hall Hammond, Chief Judge
of the Court of Appeals of Maryland;
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