Congressman Andy Harris voted for deep cuts to Medicaid last week.

In Maryland’s 1st District, more than 17% of his constituents rely on the program for health coverage. Among children under 19, 28% get help from Maryland CHIP, a health insurance program tied to Medicaid.

Harris also wants to get rid of the education department, which pumps more than $166 million yearly into schools across 10 counties in his district. All those federal employees in Maryland being laid off or fired?

Made up by liberals. No one’s complained to him, not even the ones who protested outside his office in Bel Air.

Instead, Harris wants you to know that the annual congressional art contest for high school students is accepting submissions.

Oh, how I wish I were still 17.

How could any teenager worth the title resist the chance to submit an entry tweaking the Republican congressman for his tone-deaf dismissal of concerns held by many constituents and fellow Marylanders?

Some social media pundits were unkind after Harris and his office announced the annual contest had returned.

“Hey Andy, you know they fired all the scientists at the agricultural research service who were investigating bird flu so I guess eggs are going up up up Andy.”

Others even said they had ideas for artwork suitable for framing.

“I’d like to submit my painting of an officer being assaulted on January 6. You seem to be ok with that, Andy.”

If I could enter, maybe I’d submit an image of Harris ignoring all the protests, looking to the bright future he sees at the end of this very bumpy road.

That’s one where retirees on the Eastern Shore can’t get answers about their Social Security benefits because everyone in the office has been laid off. One where farmers who voted for Harris lose the tax-supported supplements that have kept them going.

One where the Chesapeake Bay loses 65% of the resources and people working to clean it up.

Harris is a successful politician who has repeatedly won big victories over his opponents in the 1st District, which covers the Eastern Shore and parts of Baltimore and Harford counties. A side effect of Democratic gerrymandering to create safe districts for its members is that Republicans get one; Harris won his last election with 59% of the vote.

Could this be the moment when his constituents start having voters’ remorse, when “I’m With Andy” turns into “Is Andy With Us?”

He’s firm in his convictions and smart. His conservative values have served him well.

Will they serve his district going forward?

José Andrés, the food superstar who spends his days off feeding people in crisis zones, probably wasn’t serious when he said he would run against Harris because of his support for President Donald Trump. I don’t think he lives in the district.

If the Trump storm goes on for long, though, someone with high name recognition and deep pockets could give Harris the challenge of his life.

In my imaginary submission, I picture the congressman doing his dance of a thousand veils, distracting voters from an unprecedented shaking of the Constitution.

I’d certainly want to illustrate his relationship with Trump, who has referred to himself as king. How could you leave out the tech bro behind the throne, Elon Musk?

Maybe a portrait of right-wing royalty would work, with Harris, the Freedom Caucus princeling, tossed in for fun.

Trump seemed unhinged Friday as he shouted at Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office, demanding more gratitude for American support. Harris seemed to ignore who was having the emotional outburst.

Republicans control both houses of Congress. So it will be up to Harris and party leaders to find a spine and say, finally, enough.

If they don’t do it soon, the 145,000 federal workers who vote in Virginia will get a say on the party’s failure in statewide elections next fall.

Still, that seems far off. For now, I’d picture him as Superman, flying away from his responsibility to provide a check on presidential power.

Like lots of people interested in what Maryland’s lone Republican in Congress will do, I’m looking forward to Harris' next in-person town hall.

Andy drives home to Cambridge after his hard days of disruption in Washington, so he may talk face to face with constituents without a big to-do.

Many of his Republican colleagues are getting an earful back home, so maybe keeping it quiet is a good idea.

He certainly hasn’t joined Democratic colleagues from Maryland at protests around the state to hear what Marylanders are saying about the chaotic, possibly illegal firings.

So, a winning piece of art could reflect Harris, the Zen congressman, blocking it all out and staying in the calm.

Andy Harris has been in public life in Maryland for decades, first as a state lawmaker, then as a member of Congress.

He returned to Annapolis to help form a state chapter of his Freedom Caucus. He’s quick to criticize Gov. Wes Moore and the Democratic majorities in Annapolis.

It’s all laying the groundwork for some Republican to run against Moore in 2026. Could it be him?

I doubt it. But churning out mini-me Harrises is a great image, popping up around the halls of state government.

To the real teenage artists of the 1st District — not someone who was a teen on the Eastern Shore 50 years ago — I wish you the best of luck.

If you submit something that isn’t political, I hope you win.

Chances are, if you get snippy with the congressman in your submission, you won’t.

But how can you resist in this moment that might define your future?

Good luck.