Hogan Meets President, VP And Others At White House Friday
WASHINGTON, D.C. (WJZ) -- Maryland's governor-elect Larry Hogan travels to Washington and meets with the President and top leaders at the White House on Friday.
Mike Hellgren reports on the governor-elect's special visit.
Hogan has been especially busy before he's even taken office, meeting with the president and cabinet members at the White House on Friday. He's expected to reveal his own cabinet picks sometime next week.
Maryland's Republican governor-elect, Larry Hogan, met with the president, vice president and top Obama Administration officials at the White House, accepting the invitation despite strong political differences.
"It's more listening for me than talking so I'm not trying to accomplish anything other than get a chance to meet some people that we're going to be working with and to try to get up to speed as much as I can with the things that are going on at the federal level," Hogan said.
Hogan said he holds no animosity toward the president, who, along with the first lady and other top Democrats, campaigned for his opponent, Anthony Brown.
"I look forward to working with the administration," Hogan said. "You know I've said that we don't always agree, but I've always said you can disagree without being disagreeable."
Before heading to Washington, Hogan attended the swearing in for the Frederick County Sheriff.
"I was invited down to meet with the President and the vice president at the White House this morning, but I have my priorities in order," Hogan said.
Hogan is part of a group of seven newly elected governors who came to the White House. Most of them are Republican.
"He's just as eager to hear from Republicans and to hear what's on their agenda," said Josh Earnest, White House press secretary.
The governor-elect will not reveal specific policy changes until his inauguration, but the co-chair of his transition team called Maryland's massive budget gap an 800 pound gorilla and Hogan said fixing that will be his top priority.
"I'll agree that all of the problems we face are not Republican problems or Democrat problems and it's going to take bipartisan solutions and sitting down together, reaching across the aisle and trying to come up with common solutions," Hogan said.
The governor-elect also spoke about the need for federal funds to calm that rising heroin addiction and deaths across Maryland. He called it a state of emergency and said he would put his lieutenant governor in charge of the effort.
The governor's met with the secretaries of education, health and human services and transportation.
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