Prince Frederick, MD – With about five months left on his tenure as county commissioner, Pat Nutter [R – District 2] hasn’t held anything back during recent board meetings. Nutter, who was first elected in 2010, has, of late, been using his commissioner’s report time to speak his mind on a variety of issues. During the Tuesday, July 17 meeting Nutter not only had something to say, he had something to throw.
The commissioner’s latest rant was prompted by an email he said he received Friday the 13th from a woman who lives in another county. The writer, who Nutter did not identify by name, was apparently upset over a road sign, located on private property along Route 2/4 in Huntingtown. The billboard has been used for posting messages deriding “liberals.” After a previous posting that was perceived as a veiled threat was removed over a month ago, a new message recently appeared in the space. It reads, “Hey liberals, we’re back! Hope you enjoyed your 30 day break you are more worried about illegal immigrant children…but you fund Planned Parenthood to separate unborn children from their parents…no pity for them bunch of liberal pigs…from all your deplorables in Calvert County.”
Nutter, who claimed he has not seen the sign, read the email on camera. The writer stated that while Calvert County appears to be a beautiful community, 50 percent of its citizens are “eaten up with hate and madness.”
“I take exception to that,” said Nutter. “How dare you write such a message to me.” The commissioner indicated that hatred does not have a specific ideology, pointing to a political demonstration in Great Britain lampooning President Trump last week as one example.
Requesting a trash can, Nutter then balled up the email printout and angrily tossed it, on camera, into the receptacle.
Prior to his tirade, Nutter stated and verified with County Attorney John Norris, the fact that county government is prohibited by federal law from regulating message content on signs.
Contact Marty Madden at marty.madden@thebaynet.com
