Rep. David Trone (D-6th) is ready to turn the page. Also.
After a successful career in business, an additional six years in Congress, and investing more than $60 million of his fortune in this year’s unsuccessful Senate race, Mr. Tron is joining Total Wine & More’s management team. He said he has no intention of returning. There is no “immediate interest” in politics. He now wants to spend more time doing charity work.
“I have no regrets at all,” he said after being moved from the office of Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) to make way for a new class of congressmen elected Nov. 26. said in a recent interview. November 5th.
“Time you’ll never get back. That’s the most important thing,” Tron said. “It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to step forward and help change America.”
The dynamic 69-year-old philanthropist says he has no intention of returning to head Total Wine & More, the national retail chain that added 15 more stores last year. Trone relinquished control of day-to-day business operations after being elected in 2018 to represent Maryland’s 6th Congressional District, which spans western Maryland and is considered the most competitive House seat in the state. Ta.
“I started the company in 1984 while I was attending the Wharton School of Business (at the University of Pennsylvania). I’m not interested. I did it,” he said. “Now I have a chance to give back and help people.”
That assistance will be provided by the Tron Foundation, named after him and his wife June.
Tron said the foundation will support nonprofits and other organizations with a focus on five areas: addiction, mental illness, criminal justice, medical research and immigration.
These same themes are what Tron focused on as a Congressman and what led him to become one of the most bipartisan members of Congress.
Trone ranked 27th out of 436 House members in the 118th Congress last year, according to an analysis released in May by the Lugar Center and Georgetown University’s McCourt School of Public Policy. The center’s report, released during the first year of the 117th Congress, ranked Tron 23rd.
In both reports, Tron had the highest approval rating of any member of Maryland’s House of Representatives group.
When it comes to legislation, Tron sponsored or co-led 30 bills that were signed into law. They include:
Continuity of Care Due Process Act. It amends the Medicaid inmate exclusion policy to allow Medicaid coverage of medical services for pretrial juvenile detainees. Behavioral Health Adjustment and Communication Methods. Creates an interagency office to coordinate communications with agencies and departments regarding federal programs addressing mental health and substance use disorders. The Fraud Victim Veterans Benefits Recovery Act reimburses families of veterans for benefits from loved ones who died before the fraud case was resolved.
“Talk to fans”
Mr. Tron will be joining four incoming Democratic members of Maryland’s delegation, including Sen.-elect Angela Alsobrooks, in-elected Representatives Sarah K. Elfreth and Johnny Olszewski, Jr., and Mr. Tron’s successor. April McClain Delaney) has some advice.
“I stress to them that they don’t have to spend time talking to each other. It’s like talking to a fan,” Tron said.
“Get out of the Democratic side and walk to the other side. Sit next to someone you don’t know, introduce yourself, shake their hand, and focus especially on the committees where the bill passes,” he said. .
Trone also said national and state Democratic leadership needs to have more conversations with voters, especially after Republicans won the White House and Senate majorities and narrowly maintained a majority in the House.
“We have to find ways to get better messaging,” he said. “We have to talk more about the issues that really matter to people. It’s about their wallets, it’s about their jobs. Let’s talk about inflation, let’s talk about better jobs. Let’s talk about more manufacturing in this country. Discuss ways to bring about karma.”
Tron said he misses working with people like DeLauro and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), who is a future speaker of the House and “should be president.” ” he predicted.
Tron called President Joe Biden “one of the greatest presidents of all time,” citing the “monumental” legislation passed in the 117th Congress, including the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill. He was compared to President Lyndon Baines Johnson.
Tron has not completely abandoned politics, supporting Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Aisha Braveboy in the special election for county executive and said he plans to contribute financially to her campaign. . Mr. Braveboy supported Mr. Tron in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate, but lost to Mr. Alsobrooks, then the county executive, in May.
However, Tron plans to spend the holidays relaxing with his family and awaiting the birth of his third grandchild, a girl, due in March.
Trone then plans to return to work immediately in January.
“We have a lot of relationships. We have a lot of energy. We have a lot of management expertise in how to run a business and how to run a group. I we want to do that,” he said of his philanthropy. “I’m not looking for a paycheck. I’m looking for results.”
