SAVAGE--Times have changed for Dr. Mike Hargadon (R-Woodstock).

[img_assist|nid=2420|title=Dr. MIke Hargadon|desc=|link=none|align=right|width=134|height=147]Back in December, the career dentist told PolitickerMD.com that he did not “intend to raise money or make a serious challenge” to Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Baltimore) in Maryland’s 7th Congressional District. Six months later, with a small campaign team behind him, Hargadon is moving forward, and held his first significant fundraiser before a crowd of a few dozen supporters Friday night in Savage.

“This is the first time we’re trying to do something on this scale,” Hargadon told PolitickerMD.com.

Asked about his previous comments, Hargadon said, “At that time I did not have a committee. I didn’t expect that I would be able to raise money.”

He said he did not know how much money the campaign would raise from the event. Tickets were $60 per person.

A strict ‘constitutionalist,’ Hargadon registered as a write-in candidate for lieutenant governor in 2006. He has served as a regional coordinator for the Maryland Constitution Party and on the board of Pro-Life Maryland.

Hargadon supported Ron Paul for president in 2008, saying the Texas congressman “inspired me to step out of my comfort zone.”

On the issues, Hargadon said his campaign would run on a theme of “economic freedom for you.”

He added, “How can Congress spend and borrow money from China and leave our children to pay the bills?”

Asked to differentiate himself from Cummings, Hargadon cited his opposition to abortion. Cummings is pro-choice.

“I don’t think federal courts should be allowed to tell the states to accept abortion,” he said.

Hargadon also accused Cummings of being “weak on immigration,” and said, “He is not a big Second Amendment guy. I am.”

Cummings has served the people of District 7 since 1996. He has been re-elected with ease since then, running unopposed in 2006. In 2004, he won re-election with 73.38 percent of the vote, his smallest margin of victory in a general election. He last faced a Republican opponent in 2002.

So, can Hargadon pose a serious challenge this November?

“I hope so,” the candidate said.

“In a way I feel like I’ve already won because I’ve given voters a choice,” he added.

“Some people may think I’m a little foolish to challenge Congressman Cummings but somebody had to do it,” Hargadon said.

On other issues, Hargadon said he favored a “non-interventionist foreign policy.”

In regards to the war in Iraq, he said, “We need to get out as soon as we can.”

“I haven’t seen any justification for the war,” Hargadon said.

Cummings voted against giving the president the authority to use force in Iraq in October 2002.