Cardin, Others Give Reactions To Pugh Saga

Mayor Catherine Pugh, currently on a medical leave of absence, faces growing questions and investigations related to her business dealings. Through her LLC, she sold children's books to entities including Kaiser Permanente, which had business before the city at the time, as well as political allies.

Over the weekend, Sen. Ben Cardin spoke about Pugh and the future of Baltimore's leadership.

Today begins the third week of Mayor Pugh’s leave of absence - we are hearing from some about whether she can be effective if and when she returns to office @wbalradio pic.twitter.com/cqnNVmMSam — Phil Yacuboski (@WBALPhil) April 15, 2019

Cardin would not say if the Mayor should step down. "You know that's going to be up to the people of Baltimore. It's up to Mayor Pugh," Cardin told WBAL-TV 11. "Baltimore needs leadership. Baltimore needs to support the ex officio Mayor, " said Cardin adding that he is focused on the federal delegation helping acting Mayor Jack Young.

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Also over the weekend, acting Mayor Bernard C. “Jack” Young is now questioning whether Pugh can be effective if and when she returns to work. "According to all of the folks who asked for her to resign, the latest being the Greater Baltimore Committee...I really don't think so," Young said. He also said that he has been given no indication of when Pugh will return to work.

Howard Libit, the executive director of the Baltimore Jewish Council and a former top aide to Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, believes it will be tough for Pugh to return to work. "I think it's a real difficult situation when you've got the city council and the business community all saying it's time for a change," Libit said.

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