Van Hollen Looks to Support Hoyer’s SoMd Efforts

Senate candidate Chris Van Hollen, left, and former Maryland Attorney General Doug Gansler attend a rally in Leonardtown, MD.

At a rally in Leonardtown in his honor, Chris Van Hollen, the Democratic candidate for the US Senate seat held by the retiring Maryland Sen. Barbara Mikulski spent much of his time at the microphone praising Congressman Steny Hoyer’s work nationally, at the state level, and at home in St. Mary’s County.

Congressman Van Hollen represents the 8th congressional district currently and serves with Congressman Hoyer in the US House of Representatives. He spoke to a few hundred people at the rally about the projects the Maryland delegation has brought forward, including efforts on behalf of keeping the economic engine of the Patuxent River Naval Air Station intact in St. Mary’s County as well as protecting the important national security missions carried out at Pax River from BRAC.

Congressman Hoyer stressed that Rep. Van Hollen would be a good senator for Southern Maryland. And Rep. Van Hollen agreed, noting visits he had made with Rep. Hoyer to learn more about Patuxent River NAS, the Naval Support Facility Indian Head in Charles County, MD, and the growing UAS programming coming to the St. Mary’s County Regional Airport.

Congressman Van Hollen told the rally that the governors of New Jersey and Virginia were fighting to get the bulk of the UAS test facility approvals. But Congressman Hoyer led efforts that ultimately turned to benefit Maryland’s development of an unmanned systems economy. In particular, the actions fostered a partnership with the University of Maryland resulting in the construction of a UAS test facility at St. Mary’s airport.

The UMD test site at St. Mary’s County Regional Airport operates through the James Clark School of Engineering and unabashedly describes its mission as leveraging the brain trust nurtured by NAVAIR, the Naval Air Systems Command, into economic development for Southern Maryland and the entire mid-Atlantic region. In addition to Crisfield, NAS Patuxent River and Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia are other partnering airfields.

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For more information about House Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer, visit his Leader Page.