Eastern Shore Republican and Chair of the U.S. House Freedom Caucus — the far right wing of the GOP — Andy Harris (R-District 1) visited the Maryland State House on Wednesday to back his colleagues’ efforts to repeal various clean energy initiatives.

Harris gaggled with the press following the Maryland Freedom Caucus’s media event to promote its four-part plan to “Lower Electric Bills Now” and spoke on numerous statewide issues with national traction, including early redistricting.

Early redistricting

Harris has been a vocal opponent of Gov. Wes Moore and House Democrats’ efforts to approve a new Congressional map that would loop more Democratic voters into Harris’s district.

The proposed map could threaten Harris’s 15 years-long tenure in the U.S. House, but it has not been voted on in the state Senate, despite the chamber’s Democratic supermajority.

Senate President Bill Ferguson (D-Baltimore City), who controls which bills are brought to the floor for a vote, has cited numerous reasons as to why he is opposed to early redistricting, largely due to inevitable litigation that Ferguson believes could result in a court-drawn map that cedes further ground to Republicans.

One of the most notable dates affecting redistricting efforts came and went on Tuesday — the election filing deadline for candidates.

Any changes made to the Congressional map now would require legislative action to extend the filing deadline and potentially shift other components of the 2026 election schedule.

Moore filed for reelection to serve as Maryland’s Democratic governor for another four years on Monday, but told The Washington Post in a recent interview, “These are artificial deadlines. These are deadlines that are made by politicians.”

When asked about Moore’s comments on Tuesday, Ferguson responded: “I don't know what the governor means by that. I think any deadline that exists in laws exists because it was an act of the legislature and signed by the governor, and so they're not arbitrary.”

“Today's the deadline. It's the reason I think the governor filed for office yesterday… appears that he believes that that deadline matters as well. And so I believe the deadline’s the deadline, and so I think we'll be — move forward onto the next stage of this, after today,” he followed.

There is legislation filed in the House of Delegates that would extend the Congressional candidacy filing deadline to March 20, 2026 – it awaits a vote in the House Government, Labor and Elections Committee.

Harris also believes changing the Congressional map after the filing deadline could lead to increased legal woes.

“Any plans to change boundaries for this cycle are functionally gone,” Harris said. “Now, I heard that the governor has some alternative plan. That's fine, you know, we'll see you in federal court.”

Harris says he has no knowledge of the details of the governor’s alleged alternative plan.

“Any alternative plan will end up in federal court. We will go to federal court, and simultaneously, we will go to state court and challenge the current map because the current map has never been challenged in state court,” he said, alluding to Ferguson’s exact fear. “So good luck, governor.”

A spokesperson for the governor’s office said it had no comment on Harris’s allegations of Moore developing an alternative plan, but The Washington Post reported an anonymous source with knowledge of a redistricting plan B confirmed its existence.

Maryland House Speaker Joseline Peña-Melnyk (D-Anne Arundel and Prince George’s Counties) — who voted in support of the proposed map — agrees with Moore that the passing of the filing deadline does not mean that an early redistricting effort is dead.

“Anything is possible until sine die,” she said during a media availability on Tuesday, referring to the Latin phrase used to mark the end of the legislative session on April 13. “I have seen bills pass here in one day, so anything is possible.”

U.S. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries recently visited Annapolis to apply further pressure on the state Senate to vote on the proposed map.

Ferguson said his mind remained unchanged following his private meeting with the top Democrat.

When asked during a press gaggle if he felt there is an advantage to having a Trump ally in Congress on Maryland’s behalf, Jeffries took to criticizing Harris’s policies.

“Andy Harris is a proponent of the ‘one big ugly bill.’ He's one of its strongest supporters, and Donald Trump's ‘one big ugly bill’ hasn't helped the people of Maryland. It is hurting the people of Maryland,” he said.

Jeffries is referring to President Trump’s signature tax legislation that passed in July 2025, frequently referred to as the “One, Big Beautiful Bill Act.”

Jeffries has some serious political skin in the game when it comes to the outcome of the upcoming 2026 elections.

Republicans hold a razor-thin majority in the U.S. House — 218-214 with three vacancies — and if Democrats can take the majority, Jeffries is poised to become the nation’s next speaker of the House.

The Cook Political Report says U.S. House Democrats would need to hold all of their solid and likely seats, win the 13 seats that lean in their party’s favor and win at least seven of the 18 party tossup seats.

Oysters, Key Bridge and Iran

Days ago, Maryland's Department of Natural Resources approved a two-week extension for oyster season due to many waterways and parts of the Chesapeake Bay freezing in January and early February.

The recent sewage spill into the Potomac River also appears to be adversely affecting shellfish harvesting, leading to the restriction of harvesting in nearby waterways out of “an abundance of caution,” not because of dangerous bacteria levels.

Harris says he’s in support of Moore requesting federal disaster aid over the distress.

“There are funds available specifically for that, it's not like we have to create a new program. I think, given the convergence of competition, the ice, all the problems the oyster industry has this year, I think it will qualify,” he said.

When asked about updates on the rebuilding of the Francis Scott Key Bridge – which has an expected completion date of 2030 – Harris said he “hasn’t heard much about it” and has not spoken with U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy.

The U.S. and Iran are in the midst of negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program and stockpile of missiles as the U.S. continues its military build up in the Middle East

Trump warned of “bad things” if Iran does not agree to give up its nuclear program and curtail its stockpile of ballistic missiles, but some lawmakers are expressing serious concern over a potential war if negotiations go sour.

The War Powers Act of 1973 mandates the president notify Congress within 48 hours of declaring hostile action, and it requires military deployment to end within 60 to 90 days unless Congress declares war.

“As far as I'm concerned, let the president have at it for 60 days. These are mortal enemies. This is the largest funder of terrorism in the world,” Harris said.

A bipartisan war powers resolution that would require Trump to win Congressional approval before launching a strike against Iran has been introduced, but not enough Republicans appear on board to pass it.