An opportunity to break the mold

History: If campaign vows bear out, Michael S. Steele could rewrite the standards for African-American politicians
and lieutenant governors.

By Sarah Koenig
Sun Staff

November 9, 2002

The day after he won Maryland's gubernatorial election, Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. appeared before the press, gripped his running mate's shoulder and declared, "Michael Steele is my real
partner. That was not a campaign slogan."

It might seem an odd thing to stress at that moment, but considering the topsy-turvy relationships between Maryland's top two executives over the years, Ehrlich's advertisement of
harmony made sense. In addition, the remarks foreshadowed what Steele says will be his highly active tenure as lieutenant governor.

Michael S. Steele - Prince George's resident, lawyer, businessman, former seminarian and master of state GOP rhetoric - is not only the first Republican to hold the post; he's also the first
black person to be elected statewide in Maryland.

The weight of this dual historical whammy is not lost on Steele. "Being the first, it is an honor. I'm humbled by it. I know I'll be watched very carefully by a lot of people, with a lot of
skeptical eyes."

For now, the former state GOP chairman is heading Ehrlich's transition team, charged with transforming a Democratic government into a Republican one. Once that's over, he plans to take
up an ambitious agenda including three core components of Ehrlich's platform: economic development, education and faith-based initiatives. Steele says he will be the administration's
point person in these areas, overseeing programs and legislation from start to finish.

The other, and in some ways more complicated, part of his job will be to persuade African-Americans - the vast majority of whom did not vote for the Ehrlich-Steele ticket - that he
represents their interests.

"I think for those people who say, 'He's not our guy,' I say, they're going to have to deal with me. More importantly, I am more than willing to do what it takes to embrace our
communities," he said. "African-Americans need to get off this party thing and get involved with self-interest. And that's what I think I represent - a challenge to the status quo."

Besides, he added, "I know what it means to a 13-year-old black child" to see him in one of the state's top jobs.

Race loomed large in the governor's election. Ehrlich presented Steele, 44, as his running mate in July, calling them the "opportunity ticket" that would cross racial boundaries. Ehrlich's
campaign tried hard to win African-American votes, promising initiatives meant to appeal to urban black voters and spending plenty of time talking about business to wealthy
African-Americans in Prince George's County.

On Election Day, enormous posters of Steele appeared in Baltimore, telling voters to choose the "first black lieutenant governor."

In the campaign's final week, Steele and others railed against an editorial in The Sun that said Steele "brings little to the team but the color of his skin."

"I thought it was disrespectful, not just to me personally, but to African-Americans in general. They never bothered to find out anything about me," Steele said yesterday.

Sun editorial page editor Dianne Donovan said the editorial board meant no disrespect, and in hindsight would have worded the offending phrase differently. The board meant to express
that Steele's race was an asset to the ticket, since it signaled a commitment to diversity, she said.

However, the board found his resume did not show how he was qualified for the job. Ehrlich could have brought Steele to an interview with the board, but chose not to, she said.

In the end, blacks in Baltimore and Prince George's voted overwhelmingly for Kathleen Kennedy Townsend. Still, political observers say, Steele's presence made it difficult for Townsend
to portray Ehrlich as a racist, which helped him win Democratic crossover votes.

Ronald Walters, a government and politics professor at the University of Maryland, College Park and director of the African American Leadership Institute, says that nationally, the
election showed a disconnect between blacks and the Democratic Party, which could give Steele an edge in winning African-American support.

"I think that there's an opportunity in that vacuum for Steele to step in," he said. "But most of that will depend upon Ehrlich. If Ehrlich gives him a portfolio that places him in a position
that can help black people, that will give him some stature."

But if the Democratic-controlled legislature stymies Ehrlich's agenda, Steele will be wounded by association, Walters added.

It wouldn't be the first time a lieutenant governor suffered at the hands of his boss.

The state constitution gives the lieutenant governor no responsibilities, so the job is entirely defined by the governor. Maryland's first lieutenant governor, elected in 1864, was
Christopher C. Cox, an abolitionist whose job was abolished three years later.

The position wasn't reinstated until 1970. Gov. Marvin Mandel chose state Sen. Blair Lee III to be lieutenant governor. Lee was largely in charge of the state budget and stepped in as
governor when Mandel was convicted of federal mail fraud.

Lee had a rough time of it, said his son, Blair Lee IV, a political columnist for the Montgomery Journal. "Typically, during a campaign, it's a marriage of convenience," he said. "But once
they win, a curious dynamic takes over in which the governor's palace guard freezes out the lieutenant governor. They see him as an alien, as a possible future opponent. ... Marvin's
palace guard gave my father every dirty stick they could. The second floor can be a shark tank."

Gov. Harry Hughes fell out with his lieutenant governor, Samuel W. Bogley III, over abortion, which Hughes supported and Bogley didn't. And there are stories of nasty notes passing
between the offices of Lt. Gov. Melvin A. Steinberg and Gov. William Donald Schaefer.

"Some of the key people in the governor's staff, they think that they are next in line, not the lieutenant governor," Steinberg said. "But the key is the relationship, personally, between you
and the governor."

Steinberg and others say the Ehrlich-Steele duo could break the decades-long trail of hard feelings. Politically, Ehrlich will need to showcase Steele to prove that he is the centrist he said
he was on the campaign trail. And although Steele disagrees with Ehrlich on issues such as abortion and the death penalty (Steele opposes both), they generally agree on policy.

"I have heard the stories. I know the hiccups there," Steele said. "But the wonderful thing about my relationship with Bob is that he's not afraid to let me be in charge. He knows he can't
create the kind of government he wants without sharing responsibility."

Visions of being Maryland's next governor are already swimming in Steele's head. "The next four years are an opportunity to position myself," he said. "But do I start running for
governor today? No. ... My ego and ambition need to be kept in check in order to do the best job possible. Bobby's not a threat to my future, and I'm not a threat to his. We have an
opportunity here. Why waste it with petty positions?"

Here, here, says Bogley, who served only one term. "You're just a heartbeat away from the executive office," he said. "A lieutenant governor of Maryland is a terrible thing to waste."

Copyright © 2002, The Baltimore Sun