TIME TO LEAVE – AT 10:40 A.M. ET:   Some politicians just don't know when to get off the stage.  They need help, or a visit from a psychiatrist.

Martin O'Malley just left the governor's office in Maryland.  A Democrat in one of the most Democratic states in the Union, O'Malley couldn't even help elect a Dem successor.  Maryland now has a Republican governor, Larry Hogan.  O'Malley has been mentioned by the Great Mentioner for the presidency.  Even though he fumbled his succession, it's clear that he still has presidential thoughts.    From The Hill: 

Former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley (D), a possible candidate for president in 2016, on Monday called the White House's decision to allow drilling along parts of the East Coast "a big mistake."

"The BP Deepwater Horizon disaster should remind us that the benefits of drilling do not outweigh the threat to local economies, public health and the environment when an inevitable spill occurs," he wrote in an op-ed published in The New York Times.

O'Mally argued that placing oil rigs off the East Coast would result in accidents with broad consequences — noting recent, strong storms like Hurricane Sandy in 2012.

"If a single hurricane has the power to damage or destroy more than 650,000 homes in its path, we should consider what might become of an oil rig," he wrote.

"Expanding offshore drilling is irreconcilable with the realities of climate science and irrelevant, at best, to taking advantage of the vast economic opportunities clean energy presents," he added later in the piece.

This is nonsense, of course.  Environmental setbacks are rare, and are fixable.  The benefits to our economy from increased drilling are substantial, bringing thousands of jobs and feeding thousands of families.

It's clear that O'Malley is positioning himself well to the left of Hillary Clinton.  But I don't think he has any chance at all if she runs.  If she doesn't run, and Elizabeth Warren stumbles, he might try to enter the race as a darling of the left.  The odds are way against him.  I mean, who actually has heard of him?

The Obama administration said last week that it would allow drilling off one part of the Atlantic seaboard and open up more portions of the Gulf of Mexico to drilling. The plan would also ban drilling in parts of Alaska.

In addition to the obvious proximity of O'Malley's home state to the coastal area in question, the former governor may be trying to stake out territory to the left of Obama as he mulls a presidential campaign.

COMMENT:  Everything depends on Hillary's announcement, due, we're told, in July.

February 2, 2015