Poor Delaware. The “First State” has long had a rather lukewarm rap, with its intrigue for tourists perhaps most memorably captured in 1992’s Wayne’s World, where the boys sum up the excitement of various states. “Delaware!” exclaims Wayne with a puzzled look. “Hi…I’m in…Delaware…”

But Maryland’s tiny neighbor is actually a small wonder—once the state’s actual nickname—and one that’s likely to soon be discovered, thanks in part to the hometown pride of America’s 46th president, Joe Biden.

“I am proud,” said Biden, before departing for his inauguration in January. “Proud, proud, proud to be a son of Delaware.”

Less than an hour’s drive to the state line from Baltimore, Delaware is much more than just the 20 miles of I-95 you drive through on the way to Pennsylvania.

The second-smallest state—actually part of Maryland for some 50 years in the 1600s—features plenty of reasons to visit, from college-town charm to metropolitan buzz to a long, winding portion of the Delmarva peninsula that provides ample access to some of the best beaches on the Atlantic Coast.

So pack up the car, or purchase a train ticket. Of course, ice cream is encouraged along the way.

→ CITY CENTER

For many, a trip to Delaware begins and ends at the old Amtrak station on the edge of the Christina River in downtown Wilmington.

Built in 1907, the majestic brick building has become most famous for one particular passenger, “Amtrak Joe,” as he came to be known, with Biden using the railroad as his primary form of transportation to and from Washington, D.C., during his decades as a senator and eventually vice president—so much so that they named the station in his honor.

But the short ride from Baltimore’s Penn Station only takes 45 minutes, with impressive views over the Susquehanna River to boot. On our last visit, we detrained onto one of the old, un-remodeled platforms, fit with vintage tile floors, long wooden benches, and a chandeliered ceiling—a glimpse into the golden age of American travel.

Wilmington—the state’s largest city, with a population of 70,000—is also a mix of past and present, grit and gumption, with a revitalizing waterfront and bustling business district featuring renowned restaurants and striking architecture spanning the centuries.

Market Street is the main thoroughfare, where hallowed venues like the Grand Opera House and the Queen, a block over, offer post-COVID concerts in historic settings. The nearby Hotel DuPont is an iconic structure, Wilmington’s first skyscraper circa 1913, where luxury suites and a stunning Versailles-like ballroom mark the legacy of its namesake family—the Rockefellers of Delaware.

While you’re downtown, consider dinner at James Beard Award semi-finalist (and Biden favorite) Bardea, which offers innovative Italian fare, followed by craft cocktails at Merchant Bar. For breakfast, find a locally roasted coffee at one of Brew Haha!’s beloved quirky cafes, then try lunch at El Diablo Burritos for tortillas stuffed with braised short-rib or citrus-seared mahi, before burning it all off at the riverfront.

The Christina River, a tributary of the larger Delaware River, runs along the southern edge of the city, and has served as the lifeblood of its recent renaissance. A 1.3-mile promenade follows the water, with access to several picturesque detours, like the Jack A. Markell Trail or the Russell W. Peterson Urban Wildlife Refuge, that cut through verdant marshland, as well as attractions like the Delaware Children’s Museum, an interactive learn-and-play space for kids, or Frawley Stadium, the home field of the minor league Blue Rocks baseball team.

Perhaps the neighborhood’s best-kept secret, though, is the Delaware Contemporary, a leading visual arts museum, which recently exhibited large-scale works by Baltimore’s own Theresa Chromati.

Before you move on, take a short drive north into the Brandywine Valley to walk the magnificent gardens of the Nemours Estate or Winterthur Museum, home to late du Ponts, or sleep stylishly at the Inn at Montchanin Village, with its luxe countryside spa and accompanying eatery, Krazy Kat’s, which serves up brunch among oil paintings of noble felines.

But don’t overlook the no-frills fare at Charcoal Pit on Concord Pike, a classic 1950s burger joint known for its homemade milkshakes, where pictures of Joe and Barack Obama hang on the walls. Even still, there’s always a sub at Capriotti’s, launched in Wilmington in 1976, and dubbed by Biden “the best sandwich in America.”

→ SCHOOL SPIRIT

Biden might be the University of Delaware’s most famous alum, but he’s followed closely by Joe Flacco, who played college football there before joining the Ravens in 2008. Football games are still a big lure for sports-lovers across the state, who flock to the Newark campus, where boisterous tailgate parties take place in the stadium’s parking lot. The team’s Colonial Athletic Association affiliation also faces them off against the likes of our own Towson University.

About 20 minutes south of Wilmington, not far from the Maryland line, the school’s home base is a quaint and classic college town. The campus’ lush, central green is surrounded by Georgian classroom buildings, and its leafy downtown is studded with local boutiques and bistros, typically bustling with students and professors in a non-COVID year.

Amble down Main Street for a vinyl treasure trove at Rainbow Records, cute home goods and gifts at Grassroots, and all the Delaware swag you could possibly dream of at the National 5 & 10.

For locally made brews, try Iron Hill Brewery for regional classics, or the small-batch, experimental suds of the more recently opened Autumn Archer Beer Project. Follow them with creative vegetarian fare at Home Grown Café or homemade pastas at Caffe Gelato. Just save room for dessert at the on-campus UD Creamery, which sells ice cream made with the milk of cows cared for by the schools’ College of Agriculture and Natural Resources.

For more scenic recreation, head 10 minutes north of town to White Clay Creek State Park, a sprawling greenspace for freshwater fishing, hiking, biking, and birding in a woodland setting, best accompanied by a copy of The Delaware Naturalist Handbook, written by UD professor and Baltimore resident McKay Jenkins.

While you’re up there, we recommend a quick hop into Pennsylvania for two of our top regional attractions: Longwood Gardens, featuring more than a thousand acres of botanical wonders, and the Brandywine River Museum of Art, home to an impressive collection of works by N.C. and Andrew Wyeth.

→ DOWNY OCEAN

Of course, many Marylanders have already spent a fair amount of time in Delaware, drawn to the several sandy beach towns that are located an hour and a half south of Newark and Wilmington down Route 1, or two hours from Baltimore across the Bay Bridge.

There’s Bethany, Fenwick, and Dewey, but Rehoboth is undoubtedly the most popular destination, with its nostalgic boardwalk and family-friendly shops without the hubub of nearby Ocean City. It was nicknamed “the Nation’s Summer Capital” in the 1920s, when newly paved roads opened the community to D.C. residents, and, today, Biden owns a beach house there, making it likely the next presidential Hyannis Port or Mar-a-Lago.

Unsurprisingly, the beachside boutiques are now filled with Biden swag, from candles to coffee mugs, and a scramble down Rehoboth Avenue toward the mile-long boardwalk to snag your own is a requisite. Along the way, swing into Browseabout Books, an independent stalwart with more than 35,000 titles, and Ryan’s Surf Shop, a circa-1961 spot for beach gear and boogie boards (not to mention a round of mini golf on the roof upstairs).

But we all know the reason we come to the beach: the junk food—from pizza slices, via Grotto’s, a go-to local chain born in Rehoboth, or Nicola, a seminal pie palace since 1971, to ice cream cones, be it frozen custard at Kohr Brothers or hand-dipped scoops at the Royal Treat. Road snacks abound for the ride home, too, at Dolles (saltwater taffy), Fisher’s (Old Bay caramel popcorn), and Thrasher’s (with vinegar, duh).

For a sit-down meal, a seat at the bar at Henlopen City Oyster House is our go-to for craft beers, fresh-shucked shellfish, and the best fried clams we’ve had. But don’t roll out of town without a spin in the teacups at Funland (preferably before you eat).

If we had our druthers, we’d spend most of the time in lesser-known Lewes, a cozy hamlet near the Tangier Outlets (tax-free shopping!) where the Delaware River meets the Atlantic Ocean.

Somehow, thus far, the little historic downtown has remained largely untouched by the kitschy commercialization of its touristy neighbors, and is mostly frequented by local residents and weekenders passing through on their way to or from the Cape May-Lewes Ferry. Visit the Station on Kings as you head into town for farm chic home goods and decadent desserts, as well as the Historic Lewes Farmers Market on Saturday mornings, considered one of the best on the peninsula.

In town, make a dinner reservation at the adorably decorated James Beard semifinalist Heirloom before dropping your bags at the hip Dogfish Head Inn. (Or your tent at the Cape Henlopen State Park, one the Mid-Atlantic’s best-kept-secret campgrounds, with plenty of nature—particularly along the Junction & Breakwater Trail—for non-campers to also enjoy.)

But back to Dogfish Head, because no trip would be complete without a final pit stop at this king of craft beer, with the Wonka-like brewery and tasting room just 15 minutes from Lewes, founded by local beer wizard Sam Calagione in 1995. Order one of their dozens of exclusive pints, lean back on their outdoor patio, and raise a glass to Delaware. Small Wonder, indeed.

Kweisi Mfume’s return to Capitol Hill after two-plus decades out of elected office is more than a second act. It’s like his fifth. Overcoming a troubled youth, Mfume was elected to the Baltimore City Council in 1978. Eight years later, he went to Congress, eventually giving up his seat to helm the NAACP. In 2013, he was named chair of the board at his alma mater, Morgan State University. We discussed the national political climate, and the work at hand.

With the presidential inauguration this month, it seems appropriate to ask how well you know President-Elect Joe Biden.
I know Joe well. I used to bump into him on the train [to D.C.] when I first got elected. A couple of years ago, at Morgan State University, he came and gave the spring commencement address. He’s just a good guy.

How has COVID-19 impacted working on the Hill for Congress?
Well, you can participate in one or two hearings at the same time. And oftentimes that will happen. But I don’t know if it adds to the quality of the process.

Donald Trump is leaving the White House, but most likely not the national scene. How do you understand his appeal to a significant percentage of voters?
Donald Trump is an individual, who aside from being narcissistic, has the ability to stoke the fears of people, and to do it over and over again by pushing certain buttons, and people rally around that. Unfortunately, it’s because they think that they have something to lose and that he’s going to protect them. He is a master salesman, which is how, in my opinion, he was able to beat that large field of Republican candidates four years ago and become the nominee of the party. He is, in many instances, all about Donald Trump. And it’s unfortunate, because in a leadership position such as the President of the United States, you have to at least attempt to work with the other side of the aisle.

What do you consider an achievement from when you held this seat previously?
I was proud of the Americans with Disabilities Act. I was an original co-sponsor, and I helped to get it passed on the floor. We tend not to think about it now because it’s been so many years. It’s just the way we live. But there was a real struggle getting that out of committee onto the floor and becoming law. I’m proud of the ban on assault weapons that was in place for 10 years. Unfortunately, Congress did not reauthorize or renew it.

What are your goals for the 117th Congress?
As we deal with this wicked virus and all that it’s done to us over the last 10 months or so…we’ve got to get a stimulus package, a second one through. Cities and states are hurting, and there has got to be relief for them in this package. There’s got to be a one-time stimulus check for families. There’s got to be unemployment insurance. People who are essential workers deserve essential pay. They’re not getting that. In many instances, their pay has been cut. So, we’re trying to find a way to get money into the hands of people, which in turn will get it into society and buoy the larger business community…That’s my number one priority. I don’t understand how Mitch McConnell has slowed the process on the other side of the Capitol in the Senate, but we’ve got to find a way to do that. We can’t fight back with one arm tied behind us.

Visit the Baltimore City and Baltimore County Board of Elections websites for more information. 

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan says he supports the impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump in the wake of a whistleblower’s report of alleged widespread abuse of power by the president and his administration.

President Trump and others in his circle and administration—including the president’s personal attorney, Rudolf Giuliani, and U.S. Attorney General William Barr—have been implicated in an alleged scheme to pressure the Ukrainian government into investigating Trump’s potential Democratic rival in the 2020 election, former Vice President Joe Biden, and his son Hunter Biden, in exchange for the release of U.S. military aid.

“I think we do need an inquiry because we have to get to the bottom of it,” Hogan told PBS’ Firing Line host Margaret Hoover in a segment that will air Friday night at 8:30 p.m. “I’m not ready to say I support impeachment and the removal of the president, but I do think we should have an impeachment inquiry.”

At the same time, Hogan expressed some apprehension that the impeachment inquiry led by the Democratic-led House of Representatives would be “a fair, objective one.” But he added, “I don’t see any other way to get the facts.”

Hogan joined two other other Republican governors in blue states, Vermont Gov. Phil Scott and Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker, in their backing of impeachment inquiry proceedings.

Hogan, who did not support Trump for president in 2016—he says he wrote in his since-deceased father, former Maryland U.S. Rep. Lawrence Hogan Sr., on the ballot—added he would not support Trump again in 2020. However, he added, he could not possibly support a Democratic nominee either.

“We’re 14 months from the election, I’m not sure who the nominee is going to be, who the president is going to be,” Hogan added with a nervous laugh as Hoover pressed him. “We’re just going to have to wait and see.”

When Speaker of the House and Baltimore native Nancy Pelosi announced the start of the impeachment inquiry on September 24, Maryland’s congressional contingent, which had been withholding calls for the start of a formal impeachment investigation, unanimously came out in favor of the inquiry.

To date, all but a handful of the 235 Democratic members of the House of Representatives have expressed support for the impeachment inquiry. But not a single member of 197-member GOP caucus has publicly backed the inquiry. Former GOP-turned-independent congressman Justin Amash has pledged his support for the inquiry.

If the House impeaches Trump, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said the GOP-controlled Senate will hold a trial. In order for Trump to be removed from office, at least 20 of the 53 Republican senators would have to vote in favor of impeachment.

On Friday on Capitol Hill, former Ukrainian Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch testified before the House Intelligence Committee after receiving a subpoena. The White House had attempted to block her appearance and in her opening remarks, Yovanovitch said her sudden departure in May was the result of pressure from Trump and others “with clearly questionable motives” on the State Department to remove her.

Governor Hogan, profiled by Baltimore a year ago, is familiar with the process of impeachment proceedings and has often noted that his father was the first Republican member of the Judiciary Committee to call for the impeachment of former President Richard Nixon in 1974.

Hogan considered a primary challenge to Trump earlier this year and travelled to the early primary states of Iowa and New Hampshire. He eventually decided against running in June, citing his commitment to governing the state on the heels of winning reelection and his new role as chairman of the National Governors Association.

That said, as Hogan, 63, himself highlighted in a Washington Post story this summer: “At some point, there’s no longer going to be a Donald Trump Party.” Whether Trump survives the latest controversy surrounding him and his administration, Hogan most likely has his eyes on a 2024 bid for the GOP nomination and will be keeping his options open should an opportunity arise sooner.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced Tuesday afternoon that the House of Representatives will begin a formal impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump. Pelosi’s action—long awaited by many Democratic activists after findings in the Mueller Report—comes in response to startling new allegations that the president recently sought to enlist Ukraine in his personal electoral cause. Namely, undermining current frontrunner for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020—former Vice President Joe Biden.

Pelosi, the daughter of former Baltimore mayor Thomas D’Alessandro Jr., announced the start of an impeachment inquiry on Capitol Hill following a closed-door meeting with her Democratic caucus.

“The actions taken to date by the president have seriously violated the Constitution,” she said. President Trump, she said, “must be held accountable—no one is above the law.”

Impeachment has occurred twice in U.S. history, with charges brought against Presidents Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton. Neither president was removed or left office. Rather than face a House of Representatives vote on impeachment over the Watergate scandal, President Richard Nixon resigned in 1974.

Even if the House—where the Democrats hold a majority—votes to impeach Trump after their inquiry, forcing a president from the White House requires a conviction in the Senate. In that chamber, where Republicans hold a majority, elected GOP officials have remained in lockstep behind Trump during each controversy of his presidency.

Trump’s alleged efforts to pressure Ukraine into investigating Biden, his potential rival, and his son, Hunter Biden, who served on board of the country’s largest private gas company, were brought forth by a U.S. intelligence whistleblower. Earlier Tuesday, Trump acknowledged he withheld $391 million in military support for Ukraine in the run-up to his July 25 phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

The president and his personal lawyer, former New York Mayor and former GOP presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani, have suggested Biden tried to protect the Ukrainian company, and thereby his son, from a corruption investigation. Neither Trump, Giuliani, nor anyone else to date, has provided evidence of illegal activity by either Biden.

Fact checking and investigations by multiple U.S. news outlets have repudiated Trump’s and Giuliani’s allegations that the former vice president attempted to protect his son by advocating for the removal of the former top Ukrainian prosecutor. The current prosecutor general of Ukraine, Yuri Luiseno, has looked into the matter and cleared the Bidens.

Leading up to Tuesday’s announcement by Pelosi, Maryland’s congressional delegation, who had been hesitant to speak out in favor of an impeachment inquiry previously, offered their strong backing for formal hearings.

“We can now see with our own eyes that the President is jeopardizing our national security,” Rep. Elijah Cummings said in a statement, referring to Trump allegedly holding back military aid to an ally in exchange for damning information on an American political candidate. “He admitted to personally withholding military security that Congress appropriated to help Ukraine counter Russian aggression. He admitted to personally urging a foreign actor to dig up dirt on his political rival. And he personally attacked a whistleblower whose protected information is being withheld from Congress in violation of the law.”

In a move described as unprecedented, the Trump Administration’s acting director of national intelligence, Joseph Maguire, has refused to share the whistleblower complaint with congressional intelligence committees, even after receiving a subpoena.

Trump tweeted on Tuesday that he would release the transcript of his phone call with the Ukrainian president, referring to the conversation as “totally appropriate.” The release of the whistleblower complaint, which is required to be turned over to Congress, remains another story, however. Intelligence Community Inspector General Michael Atkinson determined that whistleblower’s allegations involving the president and his contact with Ukraine—of which the July 25 phone call with the Ukrainian president is just a part, according to reporting from The Wall Street Journal, New York Times, and The Washington Post—were deemed credible and of “urgent concern.”

The Mueller Report, of course, found multiple contacts between Trump campaign officials and Russian representatives during the 2016 election season.

Fellow Maryland Democratic Rep. C.A. “Dutch” Ruppersberger emphasized his national security concerns regarding the president’s contacts with Ukraine: “As a former prosecutor, I have resisted calls to begin formal impeachment proceedings against the President until we had clear, indisputable evidence that transcends politics,” Ruppersberger said in a statement. “Jeopardizing our national security is where I draw the line. Withholding duly appropriated money meant to aid a country that could be overtaken by Russia is reckless and dangerous. This is yet another example of the President doing Putin’s bidding.”

“President Trump’s actions are a threat to our democracy,” Maryland Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen said in a press release. “His continued disregard for our Constitution and the democratic norms that guide our nation have caused irreparable harm to our country, our standing in the world, and to the Office of the Presidency. As the White House continues to prevent the House of Representatives from exercising their Constitutionally-mandated oversight role, it has become clear that the tools provided by an impeachment inquiry must be employed.”

Maryland Democratic Congressman John Sarbanes said Trump’s alleged conduct, “constitute[s] a direct attack on our democracy and signify an unprecedented new level of corruption and lawlessness in the White House.”

“President Trump’s attempt to pressure a foreign government to interfere in the 2020 election is a blatant abuse of power,” Sarbanes said.

By coincidence, former Vice President Joe Biden was scheduled for a private fundraising event at Citron, a Pikesville restaurant and event space, Tuesday evening, according to reporting by The Baltimore Sun. However, Biden and his team were forced to head back to home to Wilmington, Delaware, after realizing the former vice president would not make it in time because of traffic caused by an overturned a tractor-trailer on I-95.

Former Maryland Rep. John Delaney announced he was giving up his seat in Congress with an op-ed in The Washington Post almost two years ago. In the piece, Dulaney, who represented Maryland’s gerrymandered 6th District for three terms, said a lot of the usual stuff—“The American people are far greater than the sum of our political parties,” “our government is hamstrung by excessive partisanship,” and the like.

He also included the typical bit about how his vision for the country is based on his “own American Dream.” Translated, he means his dad was a union electrician, but he went to college and became a very successful entrepreneur. In fact, Dulaney launched and led two financial services companies—Health Care Financial Partners and Capital Source—that ultimately were traded publicly on the New York Stock Exchange.

Two years on the road, traversing Iowa (he’s visited all 99 counties) and New Hampshire (more than 15 visits) on his own dime, Delaney finally gets some national television spotlight tonight. Well, at least 1/20 of piece of it. The only Marylander in this year’s contest, Delaney will join Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Sen. Cory Booker, Gov. Jay Inslee, former Rep. Beto O’Rourke, Sen. Amy Klochuchar, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio, Rep. Tim Ryan, and Rep. Tulsi Gabbard on stage on the first night, of the two-evening, first Democratic presidential debate of 2020.

The major networks and cable stations plan to broadcast the 9-11 p.m. debates Wednesday and Thursday. Round two tomorrow night includes: Former Vice President Joe Biden, Sen. Bernie Sanders, Sen. Kamala Harris, Mayor Pete Buttigeg, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, Sen. Michael Bennet, former Gov. John Hickenlooper, Rep. Eric Swalwell, author Marianne Williamson, and entrepreneur Andrew Yang.

Outside of Maryland (and maybe inside parts of the state, too), Delaney may be the least known of the bunch. With that in mind, here’s five things to know about the former Congressman.

1. He’s a centrist.
In primary races, the more liberal voices on the Democratic side and more conservative voices in Republican contests tend to attract the most attention and copy. Delaney told WMUR that he doesn’t think “centrist . . . is a dirty word. He’s a free trader. He does not support Medicare for All bill proposed in the U.S. Senate or the Green New Deal.

2. He supports a modest corporate tax increase.
Delaney says he would like to see the corporate tax rate raised from 21 percent to 25 percent.

3. He’s polling at 2 percent.
In other words, there are a lot people ahead of him. Delaney says he decided to enter the race after Hillary Clinton lost to Donald Trump. “That moment made me think we have to think differently about everything,” he says. “And stop pitting American against American . . . We have to focus on getting things done we agree on.” What Delaney needs to do tonight is put forth who he is and what he stands for in a compelling bit-size (because that’s all the time he’ll get) narrative.

4. He’d trade support for Trump’s wall for “Dreamer” protections.
Delaney has said he’s willing to increase funding to build more steel barriers along the Southern border if it means creating a pathway to U.S. citizenship for the estimated 1.8 million “dreamers”—younger immigrations who were brought here by their parents.

5. He thinks Wall Street regulation is basically fine as is.
When asked, Delaney says he believes “first and most importantly” banks in this country are “well capitalized and safe.” “I think Elizabeth Warren believes the banks are a bigger risk than they are . . . “they’ve been appropriately regulated since the last financial crisis.” Other economic issues, including the threat of technology to jobs, are more important to focus on, he says.

“Delaney does—in his own (way)—present something different from the rest,” said Mileah Kromer, who oversees the Goucher Poll as the director of the Sarah T. Hughes Field Politics Center told WAMU. “At least different from the more progressive wing of the party.”

Former U.S. Senator Barbara Mikulski watched the Supreme Court nomination hearings Thursday of candidate Brett Kavanaugh and said she found the testimony of the Stanford University professor who has accused him of sexual assault to be sincere.

Mikulski was one of just two women in the U.S. Senate when she witnessed the testimony and treatment of law professor Anita Hill, who told the all-male Senate Judiciary Committee that then-Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas had repeatedly sexually harassed her when he was head of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

“I, of course, found Professor [Christine Blasey] Ford very credible,” Mikulski said Saturday following an event at the Baltimore Convention Center to promote the city’s efforts to ensure an accurate count in the 2020 U.S. Census. “Not only in her personal presentation, but that on her own she had spoken about this with a therapist and a friend previously.”

It is worth noting, added Mikulski, who began her career as a Baltimore social worker, “that she [Ford] remained so distressed years later that she wanted to have a different front door on her own house.”

When Mikulski moved up from the House of Representatives to the U.S. Senate in 1986, she became the first Democratic woman ever elected to the upper chamber of Congress. Five years later, she saw first hand the machinations behind the appointment of Thomas, who was tapped by then-President George H.W. Bush to fill the seat of retiring Justice Thurgood Marshall appointment, and Hill’s testimony.

After Ford and Kavanaugh’s own testimony last Thursday, the Senate Judiciary committee, divided along partisan lines, initially voted to move his confirmation forward without further FBI investigation into Ford and two other women’s allegations of sexual assault. Later, at the behest of Arizona Senate Republican Jeff Flake, President Donald Trump and Senate Republicans agreed to an additional background check of Kavanaugh—a limited investigation, however, that is now drawing scrutiny as inadequate.

“First of all, I’m glad the Senate is finally returning to regular order and re-opening the background check on Judge Kavanaugh,” said Mikulski, who earlier jokingly described herself as a “C-Span junkie” in retirement. “They need to actually look at the facts of the case involving Professor Ford and there are the other allegations as well.”

Later Saturday, NBC News reported the FBI, as part of its background check, will investigate the allegations of Ford and Deborah Ramirez, who alleges inappropriate sexual behavior by Kavanaugh when both were in college at Yale. But the agency, at the direction of the White House, will not investigate the allegations of a third accuser, Julie Swetnick, who alleges she witnessed Kavanaugh “engage in abusive and physically aggressive behavior” toward women while in high school at Georgetown Prep in North Bethesda and that he was present at party where she was drugged and gang-raped.

Also at the direction of the White House, it has been reported, broader area of investigations are off limits—including Kavanaugh’s drinking in high school and college, interviewing certain witnesses, as well as questions of whether he lied to the Senate during his testimony.

“Judge Kavanaugh, who is a D.C. appellate judge, deserves to have all the facts presented, too,” Mikulski said. “He wants to clear his name, and a further background investigation can add to his cause.”

In 1991, Republican senators on the Judiciary Committee, including Orrin Hatch of Utah and Charles Grassley of Iowa, both of whom remain on the committee, were excoriated for their harsh and often insensitive cross-examination of Hill. Democratic senators, including top-ranking member Joe Biden, were scrutinized for failing to recognize the significance of Hill’s claims.

Other women, who made similar allegations to Hill’s sexual harassment charges against Thomas, were not called to testify.

“To anybody out there who wants to be a whistle-blower, the message is: Don’t blow that whistle because you’ll be left out there by yourself,” Mikulski said in 1991, regarding the lack of support among her male Senate colleagues for Hill. “To any victim of sexual harassment or sexual abuse or sexual violence, either in the street or even her own home, the message is nobody’s going to take you seriously, not even the United States Senate.”

Today, there are 23 women in the Senate. Seventeen are Democrats and six are Republicans. Four Democratic women serve on the Judiciary Committee.

Maryland Democratic Senator Ben Cardin, who also attended the U.S. Census event Saturday, suggested Friday in a tweet that the Judiciary Committee call more witnesses to testify under oath, including “the retired federal agent who administered Ford’s polygraph.”

Cardin told MSNBC in a weekend interview that Kavanaugh had “crossed the line” and “demeaned the process” during his often emotional, and at times angry and belligerent, testimony last week.

Sen. Chris Van Hollen, who filled Mikulski’s seat after her retirement two years ago, said in a Facebook post midday Saturday that he supported “the effort to postpone any further votes in the Senate until the FBI reports on these credible and deeply troubling allegations. The truth is nonpartisan.”

Van Hollen also said that, with his combative testimony Thursday, Kavanaugh revealed he is not an appropriate appointment to the country’s highest court.

“Talk to your friends and your family—and then have them talk to five more people that they know,” Van Hollen continued. “Please tell your friends in other states to keep calling their undecided Republican Senators and tell them what’s at stake.”

After Thursday’s testimony from Ford and Kavanaugh, Maryland Governor Larry Hogan, along with three other Republican governors, said he deemed the allegations against the judge “credible.”

“It’s very disturbing. It gives me great pause. There are credible charges and big concerns. They need to be heard,” Hogan told The Baltimore Sun. “They ought to take whatever time it takes to make sure these accusers are heard and he has a chance to respond to them.”

Previously, Hogan had declined to comment on the Kavanaugh nomination, except to say he would not call for an investigation by the Maryland state police.

On Friday, after receiving a request from the Montgomery County state house delegation to investigate sexual assault charges against Kavanaugh, Montgomery County Chief of Police and Montgomery County State’s Attorney John McCarthy said they would only do so, per procedure, at the behest of a victim.

Over the years, Baltimore’s DIY scene has birthed a number of dynamic music festivals. Whartscape. Scapescape. Fields Festival. Ladyfest. Most have petered out—some losing their venues and others with founders who have moved on to bigger projects—while a small few still remain, like the punk-forward U+N Fest.

Now, after a three-year hiatus, the Ratscape music festival has announced its return to Station North with three days of underground music during Artscape weekend on July 20-22. Named for the city’s prolific rodent but also as a celebration of the scene’s underdog status, the event will feature more than 40 acts across multiple genres, playing for free or small covers outside at the Ynot Lot and inside at The Windup Space.

After the festival’s last event at the Ottobar in 2015, “we decided to take a break for a couple years because we wanted to move things into our own venue and do things by our own rules,” says Joshua Schleupner, who co-founded the festival with Mike Franklin at the now-defunct Hour Haus on North Avenue in 2012. Lack of sufficient space has long been a point of conversation and contention in the city’s various arts communities. In the wake of 2016’s Ghost Ship warehouse fire in Oakland, CA, the DIY Bell Foundry was shut down on North Calvert Street, and while Mayor Pugh’s Safe Art Space Task Force released recommendations for the creation of new safe and affordable arts spaces in December, there is still no timetable for their implementation.

But while the Ratscape founders have yet to open their own venue—they’re currently looking at buildings in Station North, Remington, Mt. Vernon, and the Bromo Arts District—Schleupner, Franklin, and fellow artist Caroline Devereaux recently founded the Baltimore Music Preservation with the long-term goal of creating a new, inclusive music space to help nurture the city’s artists.

“The current political climate can really contribute to the breaking down and separating of arts scenes, even further than they already were—and never should have been in the first place,” says Schleupner. “We just want to bring people together and let them realize that they’re appreciated.”

This year, the organizers hope that the festival, located within walking distance of Artscape, will have a community block-party atmosphere. In the tradition of their past lineups, which have included such revered local artists as Arbouretum, Celebration, Eze Jackson, Wet Brain, and Wing Dam, the bill features a diverse mix of both up-and-coming and national news-making acts.

On Friday, be sure to catch experimental rappers JPEGMAFIA and 83 Cutlass, followed by late-night sets from synth-pop singer Pale Spring and Giddeon Gallows, the new solo project by producer Drew Scott of electronic duo Blacksage. On Saturday, check out hardcore punk band Joe Biden, pictured, rising rapper Butch Dawson, and the Champion Sound 4 showcase, featuring some of the city’s top beat makers and emcees. On Sunday, wrap things up with garage “un-pop” group HexGirlfriends, R&B singer Bobbi Rush, rapper Dyyo Faccina, and experimental duo Wume, followed by late-night sets from drummer-producer Josh Stokes and electro-pop singer Gurl Crush.

“There’s this constantly evolving idea of what music is,” says Schleupner. “These young artists will keep pushing us forward and innovating, paving the way for more.”