Arundel Councilman Grasso Accused Of 'Accosting' Voters

[Wizard777]

Arundel Councilman Grasso accused of 'accosting' voters

Several voters have complained that Republican Anne Arundel County Councilman John Grasso bullied and berated them as they waited in line to cast a ballot, according to the county elections board.

In one case, a voter said Grasso yelled at him and jabbed a finger into his face while his children stood nearby. The voter said he'd cracked a friendly joke about reaching the electioneering boundary where Grasso could no longer talk to him.

"Mr. Grasso then acted in a very unprofessional and degrading manner and began to resort to childish and loud name calling as he verbally accosted me," Lorne M. Young of Glen Burnie wrote in an email to election officials that was obtained by The Baltimore Sun.

[Sprightly]

Arundel Councilman Grasso accused of 'accosting' voters

Several voters have complained that Republican Anne Arundel County Councilman John Grasso bullied and berated them as they waited in line to cast a ballot, according to the county elections board.

In one case, a voter said Grasso yelled at him and jabbed a finger into his face while his children stood nearby. The voter said he'd cracked a friendly joke about reaching the electioneering boundary where Grasso could no longer talk to him.

"Mr. Grasso then acted in a very unprofessional and degrading manner and began to resort to childish and loud name calling as he verbally accosted me," Lorne M. Young of Glen Burnie wrote in an email to election officials that was obtained by The Baltimore Sun.

Thanks for the link that has nothing to do with the topic -- or state.

[Wizard777]

Mr. Grasso obviously doesn't understand how politics work. As a Councilman it is his duty to enact the will of the people of his district. Apparently Mr. Grasso thinks it's up to the voters to enact his will or be verbally abused. It's bad enough when Mr. Grasso does this County Council meeting. But when it does it at a polling place I think he crosses a line.

On election day the nation was amused to see Republicans on FOX News screaming about voter intimidation because a member of the Black Panthers was outside a polling place opening the door for voters and displaying other good manners. In Anne Arundel County John Grasso is outside a polling place getting in voters faces, bullying, berating and calling them names like "idiot" all because they might not be voting the way he wants them to. If that's voter intimidation then I don't know what is. Is Anne Arundel County ready to say that for Black Panthers to go to our polling places to get in voters faces, bully, berate and call them names because they might not be voting the way the Panthers want them to is pefectly acceptable behavior for anyone to display at the polls?

But Mr. Grasso can ocassionally offer wise council. "Please don't vote for me. I'd rather not win than have that guy support me." I would add to that if he had a shred of dignity he would resign.

[Wizard777]

Thanks for the link that has nothing to do with the topic -- or state.

I must have had a leftover loaded in cursor. I fixed it.

[ODENTON]

Typical Grasso all mouth no action.

[Wizard777]

Typical Grasso all mouth no action.

That's not what I've heard. I know people that either know him or have dealt with him. They say he's a hothead that's not afraid to go hands on when it comes to, ahem, problem solving. They said the good news is it appears he was on his best behavior. The bad news is that's his best behavior.

Mr. Grasso's claim that there were others that wanted to hear his message and enjoyed his little performance. That is irrelevant. If this was strictly electioneering then Mr. Grasso should have focused his attention on those who were receptive of his message. He should not have focused his abuse upon those who were not. So this obviously goes beyond good natured electioneering. As with many textbook cases of schoolyard bullying there is frequently a crowd cheering the bully on. What is important here is that at least one voter felt intimidated to the point of taking the time and trouble of filing an official complaint. So that complaint must be taken very seriously. The law against voter intimidation forms a protection of the individual. If just one voter was bullied and intimidated while trying to vote. That is simply one voter too many.

[Wizard777]

Buffoon or conservative populist – we don't know yet

Connoisseurs of political buffoonery give two thumbs up to the election season just ended, with Republican candidates for the U.S. Senate posing as evangelical gynecologists, and Karl Rove melting down after Fox News called Ohio for the president.

But, here in Maryland, totally underrated nationally as a breeding ground of buffoons, we have great local resources. The Chesapeake crab population might rise and fall; the shad run might be robust in some years, slow in others. But you can always count on seeing bright new political stars rising to entertain us.

So here comes John Grasso, Glen Burnie's biggest noisemaker.

[foxhound]

I did early voting at the North County Library branch. Grasso was being kind of an annoyingly loud jerk there, too. But he was in the "permitted electioneering" area, and I didn't see any finger-in-face poking going on.

[Wizard777]

I did early voting at the North County Library branch. Grasso was being kind of an annoyingly loud jerk there, too. But he was in the "permitted electioneering" area, and I didn't see any finger-in-face poking going on.

Everyone knows that when you vote you have to walk the gauntlet. You have to walk past small crowds of usually cheery people wanting you to vote for various people and things. It takes me all of 5 or 10 seconds to get past them. So it's no big deal. But when they have you pinned down in a line that is outside the no electioneering zone for 5 or 10 minutes, maybe more. They can get very annoying very quick. Especially if someone has decided to exploit the situation and hammer away at you. The only way you have to get away from that is to leave the line and possibly not vote. So if they can't reduce the line to ensure that it does not go beyond the no electioneering zone. Then they have to extend the protection of the zone to include anyone standing in a line waiting to vote. If the line of voters goes outside the zone. They can stand next to the line of voters and solicit anyone approaching the line. But once they are in that line the electioneers should not be able to say a word to them.

[bmorepunk]

Hopefully I can be part of ejecting Grasso from his seat in the next election, since I live in his district.

I was marginally harassed two years ago during early voting at the North County Library. All I wanted to do was vote, and apparently trying quietly get past crazed people with signs without engaging them is a provocation. What I don't understand about Grasso's actions and the actions of the people I have to deal with is that if anything they're causing me to vote against them. You don't win many people over by irritating them while they're trying to go vote.

If I had my way there would be no electioneering on voting days. There's a fine line between advertising and intimidation, and I've seen enough of the latter.

[foxhound]

But when they have you pinned down in a line that is outside the no electioneering zone for 5 or 10 minutes, maybe more. They can get very annoying very quick.

I waited in line for 3 hours and 20 minutes, and I'd say that well over 2 hours of that was in the "electioneering permitted" zone. I believe that zone is defined as a function of physical distance from the entrance to the polling place, and, yeah, they probably weren't thinking that voters would be a captive audience for more than just a few minutes at worst. But it is what it is, unless/until they change the rules.

[bmorepunk]

That would be messed up. I'd probably not vote instead of having to deal with that for two hours. Might as well just have some dude peering in over your machine while you're voting heckling you.

[Wizard777]

Under those circumstances they are not trying to change your mind. They're trying to get under your skin and make you go away.

Even in it's most positive light. Electioneers tend to think that Voters MIGHT be slightly more intelligent than the grass they're standing on. But they secretly hope that's just a nasty rumor and they really aren't that smart. The whole reason for them being there is what I'll have to call a Political Superstition. The superstition is that you will vote for the last name you see or hear before go into the polls. They are all out there vying to be that last name you see or hear.

[Wizard777]

This is surreal. I don't know which is worse Grasso's nonapology or Benoit accepting it. Shouldn't the people he accosted be involved in this somehow?

Anne Arundel Councilman John Grasso gives apology

In the wake of an accusation he "accosted" a voter, Anne Arundel County Councilman John Grasso on Monday apologized to people who watched him "draw a line in the sand."

Grasso gave a three-minute speech at the start of Monday night's council meeting apologizing to witnesses of a confrontation between himself and a voter who later complained to elections officials that the councilman berated him and called him an idiot while his kids stood nearby. It was one of several complaints elections officials said they received about Grasso's behavior outside a Glen Burnie early voting center in October.

"I am extremely sorry for the folks who had to watch this display between myself and a constituent," Grasso said. "It is not something I chose to do. But I also hope that those people appreciate that I stood up for my rights."

[demopublican]

I don't know anything about him. But he sounds like an idiot/nut/jerk.

[LarryN]

What a tool.

[Saticon3]

I spent about an hour in the voting line, and everybody around me spoke quite cordially, just small talk, etc-- I never once heard how anybody intended to vote nor any talk of the issues whatsoever--- which was quite fine with me, I assumed the unofficial adopted ettiquette of the situation was not to talk politics, and it was a pleasant experience. I would have been quite po'ed if Grasso or anyone else had showed up and acted as it was described the way her was.