Former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley said the nation’s cities have been neglected and that if he runs for president, he’ll make it a central issue of his campaign and announce in Baltimore.
“I wouldn’t think of announcing anywhere else,” O’Malley said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
O’Malley, a Democrat, said the unrest in Baltimore following the death of Freddie Gray in police custody “should be a wake-up call for the entire country.”
O’Malley served two terms as governor (2007-2015) and two terms as Baltimore’s mayor (1999-2007), but rejected criticism that he is to blame for any of the city’s troubles.
He told the show that he worked to reduce violent crime in Baltimore by 35 percent and to end criminal prosecution against some kinds of minor drug charges, including marijuana possession.
O’Malley called the rioting a “heartbreaking setback” for the city.
O’Malley also rejected criticism that the billions of dollars spent on social programs to help poor communities has been ineffective.
More help is needed, O’Malley said.
“We haven’t had an agenda for America’s cities for at least two decades,” he said. “Not since Jimmy Carter. We have left cities to fend for themselves.”
O’Malley said cities including Baltimore, New York and Philadelphia have been “coming back” and are attracting young people.
Yet he argued the cities are suffering from an economy that has shifted jobs overseas.
“There are people in parts of our cities who are being totally left behind and disregarded,” O’Malley said. “That extreme poverty breeds conditions for extreme violence. People are frustrated and angry and they feel people are not listening.”
