I receive Andy Harris’ newsletters which do tell a lot about what he regards as major issues affecting his constituency. It is interesting how he highlights legislation that he supports which tend to be of minimal importance to his constituency or are misleading. He never reports on his extreme conservative voting record as head of the House Freedom Caucus which go against the very important needs of the Eastern Shore. Yes…there are 800 lb gorillas in the room and he is ignoring them!
In his most recent newsletter he highlighted parental rights with regard to gender issues in elementary and middle schools. He reported on honoring the Victims and Heroes and Legacy of 9/11. He gave a talk on how he understands how federal health care decisions affect doctors and patients.
Here are a few issues not included in his newsletters that I researched on the official House website and a broad range of news articles.
Agriculture
He supports the war in Iran and Trump’s tariffs which are causing major problems for our agricultural sector including high costs for gas, fertilizer, and machine parts as well as the loss of markets for our crops going to China.
He supported the end to USAID which bought crops to help those in need around the world. It is estimated that between 600,000 and 762,000 people have died as a result of food and global health cuts. It is estimated that 2/3 of those casualties are children. Of course, this is a tragedy of global proportions. It’s caused a loss for the U.S. on the world stage. And it has hurt our farmers whose crops are no longer sold to our government for this program.
As Chair of the House Agriculture Appropriations Committee he proposed cutting $8.3 billion from USDA. These policies are causing financial strains and making it difficult for farmers to plan for the coming year’s crops. And, of course, these affect everyone’s cost of living.
Conservation
His newsletter often includes his support for protecting the Bay and our natural resources for future generations. Yet he voted to repeal the Clean Water Act that protects Bay streams and wetlands important to our watermen. We worry about utilities but he votes against wind power projects
Healthcare and Support for the Elderly
Though he says he understands how federal policies affect healthcare, he voted to repeal the expansion of the Affordable Care Act with no alternatives to address health care needs. This affects thousands of low-income residents who earn too much for traditional Medicaid but too little for private insurance.
He supports large scale Medicaid cuts which will remove 130,000 Marylanders including 27,000 in our district to go into effect after the 2026 elections. Without Medicaid rural hospitals are at risk of closing.
As for the elderly he supports cuts to social security to meet deficit targets.
Immigration
He frames immigration as a threat to economic and security needs despite the fact that our major sectors on the Eastern Shore depend on these hardworking individuals. He has no problem with how ICE agents are implementing cruel and unjust policies. In fact, he insists that any jurisdiction that doesn’t work directly with ICE lose federal funding.
Veterans
While he often talks about his admiration and support for our great veterans he has supported cuts in VA funding. He even voted against legislation to address the healthcare needs of veterans suffering from exposure to toxic burn pits.
Voting
While his constituents may want to vote against Harris because of his policies, he supports the SAVE Act to make voting difficult especially for women and minorities who don’t support him. He supported term limits when he ran for office the first time. Obviously this is no longer an issue for him.
There are many more areas of concern besides these. While his newsletters cover issues of minor importance and his supposed policies to benefit his district, we, the voters, need to think about all the gorillas in the room that we see but he doesn’t!
Barbara Vann
Chestertown
3 Responses
Excellent piece, Barbara!
When he ran for office in 2010, Rep. Andrew P. Harris (R-QAnon) campaigned on a pledge to serve no more than six terms (12 years) in the House.
Having bested Democratic Rep. Frank Kratovil, Harris entered the House in 2011 and based on his promise, would seem to have been obliged to step down in 2023.
But not our Andrew!
Still in the House as of 2026, he chairs the extremist Freedom Caucus and continues to do pretty much nothing for his Eastern Shore constituents.
He sorely needs to keep his long-forgotten promise, and we can help him do just that on Nov. 3.
Thanks, Barbara, this is an outstanding article. We should also note that although Congressman Harris prides himself on being an independent thinker, he has never dared to disagree with Donald Trump – not on Trade, not on Health Care, and not on the Constitution. He has promised to represent the Eastern Shore, but he exclusively represents 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. It’s time for a change.
Thank you, Barbara, for this article. You hit the nails on all the heads. The facts are just as you have pointed out. It is time for a change, indeed. We need someone who isn’t afraid of the gorillas!