The Maryland General Assembly on Tuesday voted to override Gov. Wes Moore’s veto of a bill creating a reparations commission, clearing the way for the state to begin formally studying how to address the legacy of slavery and racial discrimination.

The Senate voted 31-14 to override the veto, while the House approved the override 93–35, exceeding the three-fifths majorities required in both chambers.

Moore initially vetoed Senate Bill (SB) 587 in May, arguing that Maryland had already conducted extensive studies on the legacy of slavery and should focus instead on policies that directly narrow racial disparities.

In his veto letter to Senate President Bill Ferguson, Moore noted that Maryland has already launched numerous commissions and study groups over the past 25 years, including one examining lynching and the state’s history of slavery.

DEMOCRATS SILENT ON ILLEGAL ALIEN REGISTERED TO VOTE IN BLUE STATE

Del. Matthew Morgan, R–St. Mary’s County, spoke on the House floor Tuesday ahead of the vote, calling out his Democratic colleagues for talking about affordability while preparing to set up a commission for “race-bait handouts.” 

“This bill betrays the original intention, the unifying event of the civil rights movement. It’s immoral and it’s fiscally ruinous to this state and it sends a message to the generations out there now in Maryland that if you’re concerned about fairness, dignity, opportunity in this state — to flee Maryland,” said Morgan.

HOUSE DEMOCRAT TO INTRODUCE REPARATIONS PUSH, DECLARES ‘MORAL OBLIGATION’ TO SEND TRILLIONS TO BLACK AMERICANS

Del. Terri Hill, D–Howard County, urged colleagues to override the veto, calling the creation of the commission a decision “we still feel is the right one.”

With the veto override, SB 587 will now establish a commission to weigh possible forms of reparations, including official statements of apology, monetary compensation, property tax rebates, child-care support, debt forgiveness and higher education tuition waivers and reimbursements.

A preliminary report is due Jan. 1, 2027, with a final report required Nov. 1, 2027. The commission is set to expire in the summer of 2028.

EVANSTON, ILLINOIS FIRST IN US TO PAY REPARATIONS TO BLACK RESIDENTS

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The Legislative Black Caucus of Maryland hailed the override in a statement posted to social media. 

“This landmark action establishes a rigorous and comprehensive plan for reparations and marks Maryland’s first-ever step toward reparations,” the statement read in part. “At a time of growing attacks on diversity and equity, today’s action reaffirms our shared commitment to truth-telling, accountability, and meaningful progress for Black Marylanders.”

Warner Bros. Discovery has sharply rejected Paramount’s hostile offer, alleging the $108-billion deal carries substantial risks because the Larry Ellison family has failed to put real money behind its bid for Warner’s legendary movie studio, HBO and CNN.

Paramount “has consistently misled WBD shareholders that its proposed transaction has a ‘full backstop’ from the Ellison family,” Warner Bros. Discovery’s board wrote Wednesday in a letter to its shareholders filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

“It does not, and never has,” the Warner board said.

Warner’s board voted unanimously that Paramount’s hostile bid “was not in the best interests” of its shareholders.

For Warner, what was missing was a clear declaration from Paramount that the Ellison family had agreed to commit funding for the deal. Paramount last week told Warner stockholders that it would pay them $30 a share — or $78 billion for the entire company. Paramount also has said it would absorb Warner’s debt, making the overall deal worth $108-billion.

A Paramount representative was not immediately available for comment Wednesday.

The Warner auction has taken several nasty turns. Last week, Paramount launched its hostile takeover campaign for Warner after losing the bidding war to Netflix. Warner board members on Dec. 4 had unanimously approved Netflix’s $82.7-billion deal for the Warner Bros. film and television studios, HBO and HBO Max.

In its letter, the Warner board reaffirmed its support for Netflix’s $27.75 a share proposal, saying it represented the best deal for shareholders. Warner board members urged investors not to tender their shares to Paramount.

Board members said they were concerned that Paramount’s financing appeared shaky and the Ellison family’s assurances were far from ironclad. Instead Paramount’s proposal contained “gaps, loopholes and limitations,” Warner said, including troubling caveats, such as saying in documents that Paramount “reserve[d] the right to amend the offer in any respect.”

The Warner board argued that its shareholders could be left holding the bag.

Paramount Chairman David Ellison has championed Paramount’s strength in recent weeks saying his company’s bid for all of Warner Bros. Discovery, which includes HBO, CNN and the Warner Bros. film and television studios, was backed by his wealthy family, headed by his father, Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest men.

Ellison sent a letter last week to Warner shareholders, asking for their support. The tech scion wrote his family and RedBird Capital Partners would be strong stewards of Warner’s iconic properties, which include Batman, Harry Potter, Scooby-Doo, “The Lord of the Rings,” and HBO’s “Game of Thrones.”

Ellison wrote that Paramount delivered “an equity commitment from the Ellison family trust, which contains over $250 billion of assets,” including more than 1 billion Oracle shares.

In regulatory filings, Paramount has disclosed that, for the equity portion of the deal, it planned to rely on $24 billion from sovereign wealth funds representing the royal families of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Abu Dhabi as well as $11.8 billion from the Ellison family (which also holds the controlling shares in Paramount).

This week, President Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner’s Affinity Partners private equity firm pulled out of Paramount’s financing team.

Paramount’s bid would also need more than $60 billion in debt financing.

Paramount has made six offers for Warner Bros., and its “most recent proposal includes a $40.65 billion equity commitment, for which there is no Ellison family commitment of any kind,” the Warner board wrote.

“Instead, they propose that [shareholders] rely on an unknown and opaque revocable trust for the certainty of this crucial deal funding,” the board said, noting that a revocable trust could always be changed. “A revocable trust is no replacement for a secured commitment by a controlling stockholder,” the board’s letter said.

Throughout the negotiations, Paramount, which trades under the PSKY ticker, failed to present a solid financing commitment from Larry Ellison — despite Warner’s bankers telling them that one was necessary, the board said.

“Despite … their own ample resources, as well as multiple assurances by PSKY during our strategic review process that such a commitment was forthcoming – the Ellison family has chosen not to backstop the PSKY offer,” Warner’s board wrote.

David Ellison has insisted Paramount’s offer of $30 a share was superior to Netflix’s winning bid.

Paramount wants to buy all of Warner Bros. Discovery, while Netflix has made a deal to take Warner’s studios, its spacious lot in Burbank, HBO and HBO Max streaming service.

Warner plans to spin off its linear cable channels, including CNN, HGTV, Cartoon Network and TBS, early next year.

Paramount’s lawyers have argued that Warner tipped the auction to favor Netflix.

Paramount, which until recently enjoyed warm relations with President Trump, has long argued that its deal represents a more certain path to gain regulatory approvals. Trump’s Department of Justice would consider any anti-trust ramifications of the deal, and in the past, Trump has spoken highly of the Ellisons.

However, Warner’s board argued that Paramount might be providing too rosy a view.

“Despite PSKY’s media statements to the contrary, the Board does not believe there is a material difference in regulatory risk between the PSKY offer and the Netflix merger,” the Warner board wrote. “The Board carefully considered the federal, state, and international regulatory risks for both the Netflix merger and the PSKY offer with its regulatory advisors.”

The board noted that Netflix agreed to pay a record $5.8 billion if its deal fails to clear the regulatory hurdles.

Paramount has offered a $5 billion termination fee.

Should Warner abandon the transaction with Netflix, it would owe Netflix a $2.8 billion break-up fee.

Warner also pointed to Paramount’s promises to Wall Street that it would shave $9 billion in costs from the combined companies. Paramount is in the process of making $3 billion in cuts since the Ellison family and RedBird Capital Partners took the helm of the company in August.

Paramount has promised another $6 billion in cuts should it win Warner Bros.

“These targets are both ambitious from an operational perspective and would make Hollywood weaker, not stronger,” the Warner board wrote.