Del. Pat McDonough And The Angry Mob That Wasn’t

Losing all focus and apparently abandoning the previous day’s fight against alleged oppression at the Bel Air Independence Day parade, Del. Pat McDonough and a handful of his supporters have launched an oppressive act of their own – attempting to silence and control this local news web site for daring to call them an “angry mob.”

Yesterday The Dagger used the term “angry mob” to refer to the mad crowd who supported Del. McDonough’s fight, online and in person, to carry his “Speak English” signs in the Bel Air July 4th parade.

Del. McDonough himself referred to them as a “vitriolic” “crowd,” yet he was horrified that we would use such a vile term as “angry mob” to describe his supporters.

McDonough was further incensed that we would dare accuse him of inciting that “angry mob.” He asserts he was merely informing his constituency about the situation.

In a newsletter sent out by the ...Continue Reading

Tags: constitution, delegation, free speech, mcdonough, tax

Del. McDonough Threatens Legal Action If Parade Rules Don’t Change

Del. Pat McDonough has threated to pursue legal action and introduce legislation in Annapolis if the Bel Air Independence Day Committee fails to remove or revise rules he claims prohibit free speech during the annual July 4th parade.

A furious letter writing campaign and bitter back-and-forth between Del. McDonough’s supporters and members of the Independence Day Committee ensued after Parade Chairman Mike Blum and McDonough disagreed over whether the signs the delegate carried with him on the Bel Air parade route violated the terms of a contract for the event.

Although Del. McDonough is now calling the incident a “disagreement” and backing away from using the word “confrontation,” earlier versions of the story included descriptions of “obscene disrespect” and “yanking signs from children.”

Evidence may exist in the form of a video filmed during the parade, but Del. McDonough is unsure of whether he will release ...Continue Reading

Tags: Bel Air, constitution, delegation, free speech, july 4th, mcdonough, parade