Roughly Speaking

The lead author of a new Brookings Institution report explains why it's bullish on Baltimore

In this extra edition of Roughly Speaking,\u160\uLiz Bowie, the Sun's senior education reporter,\u160\utalks about the Dallas Dance case. Today was the 37th birthday of the former Baltimore County schools superintendent, but it was\u160\uhardly one to celebrate. A judge today\u160\usentenced\u160\uDance\u160\uto six months in jail\u160\ufor failing to disclose nearly $147,000 he earned from part-time consulting jobs.\u160\uDance pleaded guilty last month to four counts of perjury related to the income he earned outside of his role as superintendent for one of Maryland’s largest public school systems.\u160\u

Sun senior education reporter Liz Bowie talks about the Dallas Dance case.

Despite the late-arriving spring (or extended winter) in Appalachia, ramps have started to pop through the ground in western Maryland and West Virginia. The pungent spring onion grows wild in the region and, once harvested, becomes the centerpiece of annual church suppers and festivals.Dan and his foodie guests, John Shields and Henry Hong, speak with Maryland park ranger Caroline Blizzard about the annual ramps cook-off being held at Deep Creek Lake on April 28.John Shields offers a recipe for pickled ramps.Henry Hong tried growing them and wrote this essay about ramps for the City Paper in 2011.(Photo courtesy of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources)Links:http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2003-05-07/news/0305060051_1_ramp-wild-leek-cook-offhttps://wvexplorer.com/recreation/agritourism/ramp-dinners-festivals/http://www.discoverycenterdcl.com/ramp-cookoff/http://www.citypaper.com/bcp-cms-1-1137701-migrated-story-cp-20110427-eatme-20110427-story.htmlhttp://www.trbas.com/media/media/acrobat/2018-04/69859252114000-20044313.pdf

Evangelicals and Donald Trump -- how the Christian right made a deal to overlook a lot of issues related to Trump’s character to support him, no matter what -- no matter porn star, playmate, nasty tweets, or arguably anti-Christian tax cuts for the rich. According to Newsweek, a new poll suggests that Trump’s base of white evangelical support has not been turned off by allegations of his affairs with Stormy Daniels or a former Playboy bunny. If anything, white evangelicals have come to hold more favorable attitudes towards him. Why?Our guests:Melissa Deckman, chair of the political science department at Washington College, a regular contributor to Roughly Speaking and the author of “Tea Party Women: Mama Grizzlies, Grassroots Leaders, and the Changing Face of the American Right.” Sheri Parks, our American culture commentator, associate dean at the University of Maryland and, starting in June, she will be taking on a new job as vice-president for strategic initiatives at the Maryland Institute College of Art. Links:http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/page/ct-perspec-page-trump-evangelicals-tony-perkins-0128-20180126-story.htmlhttp://www.newsweek.com/trump-evangelicals-support-millennials-888267

The Christian right has overlooked much of Trump's character to support him. Why?

1:52: Paula Gallagher has this week’s book recommendation, a new memoir about a young woman who survived a survivalist upbringing to earn a Ph.D. from Cambridge. The title is “Educated,” by Tara Westover.6:05: Allison Galbraith talks about her campaign to become the Democratic candidate to challenge Republican incumbent Andy Harris in Maryland's First District in November. Galbraith gives her position on guns, coastal oil drilling and the development of wind turbines off Ocean City. She first appeared on the podcast in November. Two other candidates, Jesse Colvin and Michael Pullen, also have been heard on the show.19:28: We hear from a former Republican congresswoman, Connie Morella, who served eight terms in Washington representing Maryland’s 8th District. Morella talks about Donald Trump, Paul Ryan and political tribalism -- and what, if anything, can be done to fix the parts of Washington politics that leave so many Americans disgusted and disillusioned. Morella is a member of the ReFormer's Caucus, a group of former elected officials seeking to restore integrity to government.Links: https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2018/02/tara-westover-memoir-educated-interviewhttp://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/dan-rodricks-blog/bs-roughly-speaking-crime-fight-20171116-htmlstory.htmlhttp://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/dan-rodricks-blog/bs-roughly-speaking-jesse-colvin-20180223-htmlstory.htmlhttp://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/dan-rodricks-blog/bs-roughly-speaking-michael-pullen-20180320-htmlstory.htmlhttps://www.issueone.org/reformers/

Women from different generations and parties on the state of politics, plus a book recommendation.

This month marks 50 years since the release of one of the most influential and popular films of all time, Stanley Kubrick's ----2001: A Space Odyssey.---- Film critic Linda DeLibero, says, ----It changed my life. It made me realize that cinema was the most important art form.---- She says no science fiction film has topped Kubrick's for its ability to convey the ----limitlessness and terror of space.---- DeLibero and critic Christopher Llewellyn Reed talk about a movie that has been variously described as a milestone and a masterpiece, but also opaque and puzzling and ----the strangest blockbuster in Hollywood history.---- Linda DeLibero is director of film and media studies at Johns Hopkins University. Chris Reed is professor and director of the department of film and moving image at Stevenson University.Links:https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2018/02/behind-the-scenes-of-2001-a-space-odyssey-50-years-later

Taylor Branch, Pulitzer Prize-winning author and historian of the American Civil Rights Movement, talks about the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in April, 1968, the riots that broke out in Baltimore and other cities after King's death, and where the movement went after that. This interview comes in advance of ----King In The Wilderness,---- an HBO documentary film for which Branch, who lives in Baltimore, served as executive producer. The film airs on HBO for the first time on Monday, April 2 at 8 pm Eastern. Be sure to read The Sun's coverage of the 50th anniversary of King's death and the riots that ravaged sections of Baltimore in the week following the assassination.Links:http://taylorbranch.com/about-taylor-branch/https://www.hbo.com/documentaries/king-in-the-wilderness