By Elizabeth Faragi
Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown said he does not believe that the United States is in a constitutional crisis at his fireside chat event on Thursday afternoon.
Brown gave University of Maryland students, faculty and alumni insights on the current state of politics in the United States. The Department of Government and Politics and the Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement hosted the fireside chat event.
“We’re not in a constitutional crisis,” Brown said. “Our universities still exist … our courts are still open. We don’t get results in every case that we want, but they’re still open … Congress, how dysfunctional they may seem, they are functioning, and their dysfunction is by their own choice … Law firms still operate, they’re under attack, and they’re fighting back. So our democracy and our competition are being tested and stressed.”
Brown pointed to what he believes is the biggest threat to democracy: President Donald Trump and his administration.
“The biggest threat to democracy is the resident of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. It’s just that plain and simple,” Brown said. “Our democracy is being threatened by the executive orders coming out of the White House, by the decisions and rules that are being made in agencies of this administration.”
With the abundance of executive orders, assault on immigrants and beliefs on diversity and inclusion, Brown said, the Trump administration is attacking democracy.
“Second, only to that, is the normalization and the complacency among residents of this country in the face of those assaults,” Brown said.
As attorney general, Brown is the state’s lawyer and represents Maryland in court. He also advises the state of Maryland on the legal risks of its decisions. There are cases when the state doesn’t follow Brown’s advice, he said, but it rarely happens.
“Legislatures, including the U.S. Congress, and executives, including the president, will sign into law bills that, in terms of legal sufficiency and constitutional sufficiency, are questionable,” Brown said. “I think it’s an important role that, not only attorneys general, but private litigants, when impacted by legislation, to challenge it and test it in the courts.”
One of the foremost jobs of the attorney general is to protect the public. Brown said he has a crime division to handle major crimes, such as drug trafficking and human trafficking, as well as protecting Maryland consumers and investors in the economy.
Susan Rivera, dean of the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences, explained that the current political climate is a threat to democracy and it is affecting UMD students, faculty and all Marylanders.
“I don’t have to tell this remarkable gathering about threats to our democracy,” Rivera said. “But I absolutely will take this opportunity to say that I am very proud of the work that we’re doing on this campus, the work of the Attorney General Anthony Brown. I’m really proud to be a Marylander at this time.”
Because of the changing and complex political climate, the attorney general’s role has become increasingly important, Brown said.
“We are the people’s lawyers. We protect Marylanders in the areas of consumer protection,” Brown said. “We protect the public.”
Brown also addressed the public’s distrust in many of the government institutions and how the way public officials conduct themselves in the current political sphere fuels this distrust. He said that many of the actions the administration takes are conducted and articulated in offensive ways.
“If we are civil and if we recognize the differences among us, and that really is what is the richness of this country,” Brown said, “when we try to be more empathetic and understanding of the impact lies that we are from … the impact of the decisions that we make. I think we can reestablish trust among the American people.”
Professor Antoine Banks, the chair of the Department of Government and Politics, expressed his excitement about Brown’s chat and the insights he could give to UMD students and faculty.
“Today’s discussion really highlighted not only the crucial role that the attorney general’s office plays in upholding the rule of law,” Banks said, “but also the broader responsibility in protecting and strengthening our democracy.”
Brown’s talk gave students and faculty insight into the job of an attorney general and what those directly involved in the political sphere feel about the complex political climate that is today’s world.
“There’s a lot of stress, a lot of pressure,” Brown said. “Institutions exist. They survive. We’re going to get through this. [We’re] not in a constitutional crisis.”
Featured Image: Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown speaks at his fireside chat on March 26. Photo by Miller Rogers-Tetrick.