Statement by State Treasurer Chip Flowers
All –
I was informed earlier today by my staff about the significant amount of false information being spread on this blog regarding myself and my former Deputy. Since this remains the subject of an ongoing internal investigation by our office, this will be my only statement regarding this matter. First, my relationship with my former Deputy has been and will continue to be professional and as a friendly colleague. As a supervisor, my job is not to get involved in her personal life and I am in a very serious relationship with someone who recently moved to Delaware so we can take the next steps in our relationship. From the perspective of the Treasury, we are in the midst of a very serious investigation relating to the state credit card process and no public statements will be issued until all the facts are ascertained. We are not going to respond to lies and falsehoods about Ms. Benner’s personal life, her former relationship with Rep. Trey Paradee or any other matter that is outside the scope of our office.
Second, with respect to the football game, Ms. Benner has stated publicly that she went to the game with a family member. It is my understanding that she has chosen not to disclose the name of the family member, because the individual did not know that she purchased the tickets with her state card and she does not want that individual to have any repercussions at their place of employment. The family member involved in this matter is not relevant to our investigation, since she has accepted full responsibility for this matter and the monies have been repaid. Any claims relating to me regarding the game or anything else are just false and lies.
Third, I am very upset to learn that certain individuals have falsely asserted that Ms. Benner received her employment at our office for purposes other than her abilities and skills. I believe such post are very degrading to female executives and quite frankly are very inappropriate. From the outset of this process, Ms. Benner has been upfront, cooperative and helpful in our investigation and I believe the report will answer all questions regarding this matter. She helped the state achieve over $30 million in market value in our portfolio during her tenure. Any statements to the contrary are just plain false.
Finally, with respect to the statements by her ex-boyfriend Rep. Trey Paradee on this blog regarding our interaction, he is aware of his unsolicited and unprovoked statements made toward me and my team relating to his proposed bill and I responded accordingly. Quite frankly, it was very inappropriate for him to try to work a bill relating to our office when the individual assigned to the bill was his girlfriend (or ex-girlfriend). We have taken steps in our office to ensure that practice involving a lawmaker will never happen again. As stated earlier, we are already conducting an internal investigation involving multiple state agencies and while Rep. Paradee may have some issues relating to Ms. Benner ending their relationship, we are not going to direct state resources to achieve personal actions against former individuals involved a relationship. Rep. Paradee should be grateful for our professionalism since a majority of Ms. Benner’s credit card transactions occurred while the two were dating (using the date he referenced in this blog). In our work, we do not assume and we base our decisions upon facts and evidence, not gossip. Our Treasury remains focused on our economy and please know that I do not personally know El Som. or any of the individuals on this blog claiming that they have the inside knowledge of me or my team. If they had such knowledge, the correct information that I just shared with you would have been in the blog.
Again, thank you for this opportunity to respond to these false statements and I hope that this website can return to the discussing the important policies facing the First State.
Yours Truly,
State Treasurer Chip Flowers
Huh?
Ugh.
🙄
Please.
After reading Trey Paradee’s comment and this one by Chip Flowers… PLEASE stop embarrassing yourselves. Seriously, don’t you guys have a staff to advise you to shut up?
I have to agree with him that alleging that a woman got a job because of a relationship is somewhat degrading to female executives. Am I indulging my internal Phil Donahue a bit too much?
@Pandora, That too. Don’t we all know how blogs work by now?
They’re both the Smartest Guy In The Room and need no such counsel.
Grow up. What a crock of shit.
I agree that the “woman has sex to get ahead” is vile – and extremely unfair, especially since these two male clowns are nothing to brag about and should STFU! Yeah, J, politics 101 – knowing how blogs work.
I’m disappointed this site did not put this post on the fancy parchment background it deserves and that has come to define the People’s Treasury.
“Ms. Benner has stated publicly that she went to the game with a family member.”
When? Where? What public statement is Flowers referring to? I can’t find any online. I re read the delawareonline articles. Brenner is not quoted as saying that she was at the game with family. It’s in the article but the reporter does not attribute it to her.
You have to give Chip credit for his choice of words. He doesn’t deny that he was at the football game, and he doesn’t deny that he had knowledge of the purchase. Very slick.
Have you met their staff Pandora?
Deep sigh.
There was a day a few years ago when I looked at Chip’s resume and thought “Here’s a guy I might be able to get behind. Young, articulate, smart – could we be looking at the first governor of color?”
How wrong I was. This jackass is nothing more than a tin-plated arrogant self-important popinjay with extreme delusions of grandeur. Sherman Miller had more of a chance at being the first black governor than Chipper does.
All I can ask now is that someone steps out of the shadows, crushes him in the primary – or the general; fuck, I’d vote for a Republican before this dope – and sends him packing before he and his minions can do any more damage.
Nope, but I can think of two people who need a staff with access to a leash and muzzle. 😉
Notice the same 5 people always criticize Chip. You were mad that he didn’t respond, now he responded with the truth and you did not like it. Get over it and I’m sure he is so scared for a primary because the 5 people continue to post. I’m upset that he chose to respond to a bunch of people that clearly are against him. SussexWatcher, don’t claim you ever liked him, you complained about him when he ran against Potter. Guess other Dems like him because he still topped 50 percent in the DL poll. This has gotten really stupid and if he reading this, Chip don’t waste your time and keep managing our money.
“Methinks the lad doth protest, too much”
Ok, I took liberty with the grammar, but in this case, where the comma goes makes the point I’m trying to make
And yes, I changed lady to lad…..
But ummm, compare Chip to the Biden’ s medical issues……apparently one side knows how to handle blogs the other , not so much…..
What was that again, …….can’t keep mouth nor zipper……zipped. 😉
Nuff said.
The rest of us don’t care about his zipper. He still has our vote and continuing this thread makes me want to support him more. This is so stupid.
LOL… DL is to Chip Flowers as FOX News is to Obama.
So true puck. Both are and will be fine.
There was a day a few years ago when I looked at Chip’s resume and thought “Here’s a guy I might be able to get behind. Young, articulate, smart – could we be looking at the first governor of color?”
How wrong I was. This jackass is nothing more than a tin-plated arrogant self-important popinjay with extreme delusions of grandeur.
Well said.
Didn’t Good Ole Chip have some “woman problems” before he was elected?
Right! DL is Fox and Chip is Obama!
Remember when Obama randomly wandered over to the Capitol and got into a screaming match with Steny Hoyer? And then an Obama supporter called in to trash Steny on Fox News and then demand he get a security tape of the altercation? And then Obama went on Fox News to condemn Steny some more?
Wait – the President didn’t make those choices? Because that would be kind of bizarre? Oh. But that did happen here.
Chip will get re-elected. But he also makes some choices that are pretty easy to mock. Those two aren’t exclusive.
Why does everyone insist on judging Chip by their assessment of his chances to become governor?
This stuff is Clintonesque. He does not say that he wasn’t at the game. He does not say that he did not have a dating relationship with Benner.
Since his relationship w/Benner ended some time in early 2012, the fact that he has a current SO means nothing, but he saw fit to mention it.
He had the chance to clarify things. Instead, he used what looks to me to be evasive legalistic jargon to not answer the key questions while appearing to answer the questions. None of the questions I’ve asked were answered. Makes me wonder why he just won’t answer them.
As to the supposed ‘five people’ who allegedly have it in for Chip, might I point out that there are about five people who have defended Chip and, in at least a couple of cases, launched ad hominem attacks against anyone who dares to ask the questions that have still not been answered.
He has answered the questions to the rest of our satisfaction. It was good of him to respond considering the same people immediately tried to misconstrue his statements. If the goal is to bury the guy, the crazy posts are having the opposite effect. You are making him very popular. Just being honest from an outsider point of view. It appears people have an agenda by keeping this going.
By the way Mr. El Somonambulo, you criticized Chip for not responding on the older thread, but you were asked multiple times to provide your evidence and you have not. Please do so as he has risen to your challenge.
If by Clintonesque you are referring to the Whitewater investigation, I could not agree more.
“Why does everyone insist on judging Chip by their assessment of his chances to become governor?”
Because he wears his ambition on his well-tailored sleeve.
He did not say whether he was at the game or not.
He has not said whether he had a personal relationship w/Ms. Benner before or during his term as treasurer. Which, BTW, IS relevant in light of her salary and his failure to oversee her credit card misadventures.
He has not explained why he ignored evidence available to him to address Ms. Benner’s credit card charges.
In other words, he didn’t answer the questions.
As to it being ‘good of him’ to respond, he is and was aware of this controversy. He almost had to. And, instead of answering questions, he went into Clinton lawyerly mode.
He COULD have answered the questions as follows:
“I was not at the game.”
“My relationship w/Ms. Benner has never been anything more than professional and friendly.”
Uh, I don’t know how he’d answer the third question. Just know that he didn’t. Or perhaps that he can’t.
I’ll make a deal with all the Chipmonks out there: I will stop asking these questions when Flowers answers them. Fair enough?
“If the goal is to bury the guy, the crazy posts are having the opposite effect. You are making him very popular.”
Uh-huh. Sure. Care to release the internal polling?
Mr. Flowers, I see what you did. Deflection, omission and no admission. Really slick. This man takes the general public for fools I guess. Ms. Benner has been quiet as a church mouse. I wonder if she has an opinion about all of this especially when it is rumored that they indeed were an item?
Mr. Flowers sure made sure to let everyone know that he is currently in a “serious relationship”. Which El is right about, who cares? It means nothing in terms of what was happening in 2011/2012. It probably would be a good idea for him to take this time to shut up, or else he may have to consult that attorney Truth Teller said he used to date for representation.
Mr. Somnambulo, with all due respect, we did not elect Chip to answer every accusation you level at him. We elected him to manage our money, which he has done very well. Thanks to DL as puck said, I’m sure he has more name recognition than any treasurer in recent times. You did not provide any evidence and you just made more accusations. Chip told us in his statement that he does not know you, so why should we believe anything you say on this topic. I’m not trying to be rude, but I find it wrong for you to level personal accusations without evidence against someone you do not know.
Uh, why should his knowing me have any impact on the questions I’ve asked?
Don’t know him either. Didn’t stop me from pointing out the phony memes from the Bonini campaign in 2010. Doesn’t stop me from asking the questions he won’t answer.
Also, Mr. Somonambulo, though I disagree with you, I respect you for not trying to post under multiple names. Since I made my earlier statement that the same 5 people were commenting, it appears that 4 more people with similar thoughts have shown up under different names. I’m not buying it people, so stick to your original names. The rest of us are watching the Eagles crush the Skins and will vote next November based on his ability to manage money, not the unproved accusations.
There are only three names on the thread that don’t belong to regular commenters.
The best way to stop questions is to give answers.
Anon-
Continuing with YOUR theme, why should we believe anything Chip says?
I voted for the guy. I won’t be voting for him again. His job is to manage the State’s money, yet he makes excuses for his employee’s abuse of a state credit card & makes sure she lands in a comfy Merit Position WITH THE STATE SHE STOLE FROM. No thanks, Chip.
Thanks, Geezer. My point exactly. I don’t believe Chip’s base of support was ever DL and I don’t think voters will care about this nonsense next November. I feel the same few people are trying to keep it going and most likely support his potential opponents in 2016. If the best argument against Chip is this stuff, maybe he was right to respond.. Is this a distraction for him or his potential opponents? Like puck said, this is Whitewater and we all know how that damaged Clinton as he walked into a second term despite personal issues. Chip doesn’t have to answer for this, his deputy does. I think his enemies are overplaying their hand on this one. Honestly, if his statement is right, this may be more of an issue for the representative that dated her.
LeBay, you are clearly turfing for another campaign. Not worthy of assessing your comments. Do you have a copy of the findings or are you here to just give people the impression that you aren’t voting for him. My guess is that you didn’t vote for him the first time (just a hunch). He still won.
Umm…SussexWatcher? Did you refer to Chip as ‘articulate’? Be carefullllll. You’re treading on veryyyy dangerous R-word water there. Oh, wait…are you a registered Dem? If so, no worries; all will be forgiven. 😉
I didn’t vote for Chip because he sent a postcard mailer so riddled with grammatical errors that I thought it may have been sent by his opponent. I see things haven’t improved much on that front. Is he averse to commas? Seriously, tho. That might be the rambliest statement ever issued by an elected official.
BTW, I was a little bit uncomfortable with this part:
‘As a supervisor, my job is not to get involved in her personal life and I am in a very serious relationship with someone who recently moved to Delaware so we can take the next steps in our relationship.’
I mean, aside from the run-on sentence and missing commas, it seems a little TMI-ish to me. Taylor Swift should put it to music (trouble…trouble…trouble!)
Overall, the statement kind of screams Human Ambien to me. Pretty sure my eyes would glaze over three minutes into a conversation with him.
“Do you have a copy of the findings or are you here to just give people the impression that you aren’t voting for him.”
There are no findings yet, numbnuts.
Thanks SussexWatcher. You now see the light. There isn’t even a report. I’m sure the voting public is so worried about this over Syria that Chip needs to have an emergency press conference. Much to the dismay of the 5 people who dislike him, we don’t care about this anymore and I believe he answered the questions. This case is closed, but I agree Chip should assume he doesn’t have 5 votes and schedule a campaign crisis meeting. Jk.
And yet here you are so worried about what happens here among the 5 voters no one is worried about, pushing the talking points of the day, which always seem to be don’t worry, be happy and it doesn’t matter what other people think. And yet here you are astroturfing for Chip’s campaign, and (wrongly) accusing other people of doing the same thing for others. And yet here you are spreading your own untruths while getting huffy that other people may, in fact, be forming their own opinions.
Amateurs. That’s probably the thing that annoys me most about these chipmonk astroturfers. They can’t even drum up a minor bit of skill at this thing.
No, I am no turfing for his campaign. I’m not affiliated with his campaign. Rather, I’ve been reading and posting for years and all you people do is whine about him. At first, I was indifferent to him, but over the years I see how crazy the accusations and treatment of him. No one ever gives a balanced perspective of what he’s done and puck is right, all this site talks about his whether he should be governor or how he dresses. If you notice, none of his supporters are even bothering on this thread, because no one cares, which shows me that if this becomes a campaign issue, voters will be tired of it after 48 hours. Most of us are already done with it. Just my opinion. Sorry if it differs from the 5 people. It’s my right.
It is simply false to say that posts and comments here only deal with relative electability. Sure that comes up a lot, but when it does it usually attends job performance questions like, was it a good idea to try and expand the powers and responsibilities of the Treasurers office? And, is the misuse of a state credit card a window into how this office handles money? Those are legit questions.
Jason, I actually agree with you on those questions and even adding whether the Governors actions on trying to limit Chips powers because of that Board thing are legitimate. I think the discussion should focus on those questions, not accusing him without proof.. Plus, I’m not sure what that would prove. This is the problem with his critics, by focusing on accusations it allows him to get a win on policy. Sorry, but I think most voters in a treasurers race will ask is the money there? If the answer is yes, but a year ago he fired his deputy for using her card and paying it back, I think he gets reelected. Voters just aren’t going to get into that detail with that office because it doesn’t impact their daily life. Whether he should be governor or not is not on the ballot and may never be as puck pointed out. I think he has name recognition which is both good and bad for him, but in a race like that, his opponent will have a tough time getting that recognition for a race that won’t get much coverage, which was the Mitch Crane problem. Lets talk about his real pros and cons, which may actually impact people like me.
It’s my right.
It’s the right of everyone here. Where you differ is that somehow the fact that you *say* it is supposed to confer all kinds of credibility and truth. The world doesn’t work that way, especially the blog world — where there is a pretty finely tuned sense for talking points. Which is why you people are such amateurs.
I repeat, Ugh.
No.Kidding.
Casandra M, you are now accusing me of giving talking points? What are you talking about? It’s ok not to like the guy, I don’t care whether you do or don’t. But I think this site has gone from a positive policy forum to we hate Chip because he might run for governor. I’m not here to stick up for him, but I believe that I speak for those of us who think the criticism has been extreme and not based on his work. I don’t care if you like him or vote for him, I just think you should listen to those of us who are starting to take issue with this craziness. Ugh is right.
I’m not here to stick up for him
Why, yes as a matter of fact, you are. And the fact that you think that you can sell that line of BullShit here is an indicator of just how out of your depth you are. The News Journal comments section is what you’re after, I’m thinking.
From the moment he got elected, the Chippers have been spreading the “people attack him/me because of an eventual run for Governor.”
But that’s never been true. People criticize him when he makes silly mistakes, or attacks others irrationally or does things like attack his Deputy in the paper then immediately writes to OMB saying “I know you’re going to give her a job, right?” (and then attacks OMB for letting people know that).
Repeating – “this criticism is just attacks to stop a run for Governor” – is a nice way to have to avoid introspection.
How does anyone know Chip’s conversation with OMB unless someone is leaking them on this blog? Keep going, just proving Chip is not the problem and there are other forces at play. Maybe people are paranoid that my responses are canned because they are getting leaked talking points. I suspect Chipper will be fine and I’m starting to get a taste of what he goes through just trying to have a civil conversation on policy with DL people.
Really? What the Hell is Chip going to run for Governor of, because it can’t be the State of Delaware. He only made it past Colin Bonini in 2010 because the DEGOP put O’Nutjob at the top of the ticket and increased D turnout.
“This case is closed …”
Closed? I think not. I assume he will run for office again. When he does, the headlines will be reprinted in campaign ads.
“I think this site has gone from a positive policy forum to we hate Chip because he might run for governor.”
Take a look back at the home page, sport. Most of the posts and most of the comments are about other things. The very fact that you even know the state treasurer’s name shows that you’re not just some internet-surfing stump-jumper who stumbled across this. No normal, politics-ignoring Delawarean has the slightest idea who the state treasurer is. Governor? At the rate he’s going, he’s going to struggle to stay treasurer.
“Keep going, just proving Chip is not the problem and there are other forces at play.”
Here’s the problem, sport: His top deputy repeatedly misused a state-issued credit card, and Flowers failed to get it under control. How can you spin this as anything but a fuck-up — and not the first — by the PR-conscious Mr. Flowers? Best-case scenario is he didn’t know what was going on, in which case he should have. If he did know and didn’t stop it, now he’s got to explain why, particularly as this woman apparently got a longer-than-usual leash on cleaning this up.
Your failure to see this as a problem doesn’t mean it’s not a problem.
Other forces are always in play. Chip Flowers’ problem is that he keeps giving them fresh ammunition.
“Maybe people are paranoid that my responses are canned because they are getting leaked talking points.”
The paranoia consistently comes from Mr. Flowers’ camp. I well recall the Chipmunks’ freakout when his contretemps with his date hit the news. Their main concern was that the media concentrate on who leaked it rather than what actually happened.
“I’m starting to get a taste of what he goes through just trying to have a civil conversation on policy with DL people.”
Now how would you know what he goes through unless he told you?
I’m starting to get a taste of what he goes through just trying to have a civil conversation on policy with DL people.
Just starting? Seriously, buddy, you are one of the crew that appears everytime someone says something bad about your guy. So here is more evidence of your amateurish approach here. And when you are having a serious discussion, you’ll get a serious discussion. But as long as you are here just plumping for your guy, you can’t pretend to be having a discussion about *policy*.
If by “leaked” you mean “in the paper towards the end of the article…” then, yes.
It is so obvious where this is heading.
Someone needs to ask Chip two very simple yes-or-no questions:
Where you at the Cowboys-Patriots game?
Did you ride in the limo?
If the truth is somewhere close to the rumors, Chip will say, “Hey, I didn’t lie. I never said I wasn’t at the game. When the limo rolled up, she told me to hop in, so I did. I didn’t know until April how it was paid for.”
See if I didn’t tell you so.
I love that by asking some questions that I get attacked. Lets keep this up. So, we still have no proof about the game, just lies. We know where those are coming from. We now have leaked OMB statements on the matter. We have a representative that according to the statement was dating her, but I guess Chip was responsible for her bad charges while the representative was dating her and no one is questioning the representative but accusing Chip for some random game and the limo ride (why bother to read his statement because it didn’t please those who insist on lying). You can post as many times as you want, but if I’m the only calling bullshit, so be it. Change your names but I don’t mind standing alone against this nonsense. The Republicans must be cracking up that we try to eat our own with accusations. I like him, I think these attacks are coordinated and I think other campaigns are keeping this going. Attack me all you want, you have not proven any point except you don’t like him and I think he will be fine.
Geezer, I know you wish that I worked or was affiliated with him, but I’m sorry to disappoint you. The baseless attacks are why I’m on this blog sticking up for him and yes, I’m have enough political sense to know the name of my Governor, Lt. Gov, Senators, Insurance Commissioner and Auditor. I’m posting on a political site. I don’t mind if people keep changing their names to attack me, I find it refreshing that I can combat the tide with simple logic.
as long as you are here just plumping for your guy
What is the opposite of plumping?
How is something leaked to this blog if it was in the News Journal article?
When he does, the headlines will be reprinted in campaign ads.
You are probably right. More of those insidery, WTF attack ads where you have to research to figure out just what they are going on about. I’m sure there will be unlimited funding for them.
I don’t give a rat’s ass whether you work for him. My point is that you already ruined your credibility by signing your name “Anon” and pretending you’re some kind of political rube. My comment was about your points, not about you. I answered them, and I notice you have nothing to say about what I had to say. Either respond to the points or leave me alone, because I don’t have time to listen to this self-important numbnuts and the few (very few) benighted souls like you who give a shit what happens to him.
I neither know who you are nor care, only that you’re a liar. My points are the points Chip Flowers will have to face regardless of whether people like you want to pretend he’s wonderful or not.
He keeps stepping in shit. Don’t complain that people keep pointing out that he stinks.
“More of those insidery, WTF attack ads where you have to research to figure out just what they are going on about.”
Yeah, like those insidery Coons ads reprinting the articles about Gordon.
I realize you like to pretend you know what you’re talking about, but it annoys those of us who know full well you don’t.
“I guess Chip was responsible for her bad charges while the representative was dating her ”
He was responsible for, at the least, either not knowing what she was doing (irresponsibility) or giving her special treatment in not suspending/firing her when she couldn’t clean up her act.
If you can’t see that, you’re either a Flowers shill or so stupid you don’t know how to case a vote. I”m betting on the former.
Yeah, like those insidery Coons ads reprinting the articles about Gordon.
See? I’m going to have to research that.
Lol. Too funny Geez, when the anti-Chip crowd answers my questions about the lies, I’ll answer yours. Deal? I actually agree that he will have to respond to the cc process in his office, but not this other stuff. The campaign finance scandals will be a problem for all Dems next year. If this is what the election is about, yawn. No one else on this blog other than the same people that respond in mass seem to care. On another note, the President gave a great speech tonight (the rest of Delaware believes that was the top news story, not this).
I wasn’t looking for answers from you. I merely note that if you were interested in discussion, instead of persuasion, you’d have something to say.
You are getting a poor reception here because you are insulting everyone’s intelligence. If the story’s so unimportant, stop talking about it.
Advice of the day.
I’m not accepted here because I call bullshit on lies and people who spread falsehoods. Advice to people who lie, stop lying.
Take your own advice, buddy. You’re the main font of disinformation here.
What are those lies again? It is quite apparent that you are trying to redirect the conversation away from the underlying issue here which is Delaware has a state treasurer who has a problem with managing both his personnel and his personal life. That hullabaloo that is supposed to be a statement of fact does not dispose of these issues. I imagine he released it to stop the conversation that has been brewing about this whole fiasco and all it did was make people think he is more of an idiot. My suggestion Anon, Mr. Flowers or whoever you are, is that you shut the hell up and stop stirring the pot. If you continue to do so, you may draw attention to those things that Mr. Flowers really doesn’t want uncovered.
We have a representative that according to the statement was dating her, but I guess Chip was responsible for her bad charges while the representative was dating her and no one is questioning the representative but accusing Chip for some random game and the limo ride (why bother to read his statement because it didn’t please those who insist on lying).
Yes, Chip is 100% responsible for every charge put on every State of Delaware credit card issued to every person in his office. Since the abuse was going on over the course of several months, it makes him look lax. Why are we trusting the state’s investment portfolio with a man who can’t even keep track of a handful of credit cards assigned to his handful of employees.
Why would anyone question Rep. Paradee, he was only dating her, good for him, his statement makes it very clear that the charges were not for activities he was involved with. It was, however, Chip who was responsible for his employee getting a state credit card, his employee’s use of the credit card, and it was Chip who was getting his employee’s credit card statements sent to his office.
Here come the multiple attacks from the “uncoordinated” group. Chip will be fine and stop with the threats. I dont speak for him or his people. if you were acting this way with another Dem, id be calling you out just the same, but you only lie on him for some reason. You have shown you have no inside information, just leaks from people who don’t want him elected. I’ll have to think of a name for the attacking group. How about the Jackettes or the Jokers? Jokers sounds about right.
Did you really just say why would anyone question the person in her personal life, but accuse her boss for being around when she was making personal charges in her personal life. Jokers, please stop and get better talking points. You accused her of sleeping her way to the top, accused her boss of being at the game not her boyfriend and now you are saying that her boss not boyfriend should be questioned for her personal charges that she made when she was probably with her boyfriend. If that’s the Jokers logic, he will be governor. I’m not even in politics and buying that spin. Yes, chip has a duty to inform us how the process failed and how it was corrected. If her boyfriend knew about it, he has a duty to tell us why he didn’t report it. If the Markell administration knew they have a duty to tell us why they didn’t report it.
And the ridiculous continues.
No doubt. Lets agree to stop the thread, because the stink and bad logic is getting worse. I think we have learned a lot about what’s really going on here. I’m done.
Jokers, please stop and get better talking points. You accused her of sleeping her way to the top, accused her boss of being at the game not her boyfriend and now you are saying that her boss not boyfriend should be questioned for her personal charges that she made when she was probably with her boyfriend.
Yes, her boss not her ex-boyfriend should be questioned. Her ex-“boyfriend” is calling for a complete audit of the Treasurer’s Office. He made a statement where, unlike Flowers, he said he was not with her at the football game (which was at least 6 months before they were dating), the Red Roof Inn (why would he need to go to a motel when the relationship was not secret and he has a house in Dover), or any other place she abused the credit card that was issued by the state and should have been monitored by the Treasurer’s Office.
If Chip Flowers isn’t grown up enough to realize and admit that he is responsible for how his employees use the State credit cards issued to them, he has no place in the Treasurer’s Office.
if you were acting this way with another Dem, id be calling you out just the same
You are only kidding yourself here. We’ve had tough words for a fair number of DE Dems and you are NEVER anywhere to be seen. The only time you show your face is when someone speaks less than glowingly about Chip Flowers.
As multiple people have advised you – this stops when you stop insulting our intelligence here. Glad you’re done, but you’ll be back the minute Chip needs more defending here. Sheesh.
Question of the Day:
Questions: Why are the Jokers so intent on blaming a Democrat before waiting until the findings? Why are the Jokers so passionate about this $2000 issue when the money was repaid, but Silent on a 63,000 taxpayer funded trip to Isreal? Why are the Jokers so focused on a dead issue when our state economy is in trouble? Why are the Jokers focused on Chip when everyday for the past week, Zimmerman has claimed corruption in our campaign laws by other Dems in amounts in well in excess of 2000? Why are the Jokers focused on this small issue trying to distract us from the other issues and their candidates. I say again, this is coordinated and if I can call this bullshit out, I’m sure Chip’s campaign team and the Republicans should take notice. If you think the millions he probably made in our portfolio is going to be offset by 2000, good luck with that argument. Also, the paper says the Division of Accounting not Chip’s office runs the creidt card program. Uh oh, Jokers, I warned you to stop but ive done some research. Jokers, who runs the Division of Accounting? Whose boss is this Kris Knight? im looking now but im guessing its Markell. You haven’t even convinced me and I have even seen Chip’s campaign literature. Jokers, please stop making a fool of yourself or I’ll get some Dema to start blogging about the real issues that you are clearly trying to hide. Better get your talking points together. Lol.
See what I mean? As long as there is an insensible defense of Chip to be made, you will find this very clueless Anon.
Answer the questions Cassandra. You called me out now I’m calling your bullshit out. Answer them.
If not, STFU, as you said earlier. See, it’s not nice to use those phrases. Answer up Jokers or are you going to refocus on Chip (of course you are as that’s the script) and the 2000 dollars that was repaid. Bullshit, talk about the real issues that you are hiding.
Could everyone please stop feeding the troll?
I’m no troll, but I suggest you take pandora’s advice, because I’m tired of this clear bullshit and distraction from real issues.
I’m not the one who needs to answer questions. And P is right we should stop feeding this troll — except that this troll has been caught up in his own bullshit and can’t find a way out. He said he was “done” a few hours ago — yet can’t bring himself to put down the spinning defense. Sorta funny, actually.
The bullshit is the assertion that the Agency/State Department that the credit card holding state employee works for isn’t responsible for what’s being charged. The State of Delaware website is clear, an employee cannot make personal charges on a state card, and the AGENCY is RESPONSIBLE for quarterly reconciliation of it’s employee’s cards.
Let me put this in easy terms so Chip Flowers can understand it – the Treasurer’s Office is responsible for going over their employees credit card statements minimally every 3 months to make sure there is appropriate documentation (i.e. receipts) for all of their employee’s credit card activities and all of the charges are allowable under the terms of use.
For anyone to say that Chip Flowers isn’t responsible for what his employees are charging on their state issued credit cards is nothing short of an admission that Flowers is too damn stupid to run a state agency, and particularly a state agency tasked with spending money.
I think it’s more embarrassing that a state treasurer let gossip about his girlfriend on a blog get to him in such a way. Does he really care what anonymous argument-starters are shooting their mouths off about? THAT, to me, shows poor judgment and conflict management. Does he not understand how teh internets tubes work?
Seems like the administration just tried to issue a response. The Markell people actually posted policies (are these publicly posted or the Jokers called in for reinforcement). I guess Im hitting a nerve, so the truth is starting to come out. We must continue now. Answer the question, does Kris Knight work for Jack Markell or Chip Flowers? Did Kris Knight or Jack Markell, as administrators of the program, tell Chip that suspicious charges were in the credit card system? If they did, when? If Kris Knight’s people administer the program, why the hell is a football game charge and other personal charges not caught in the system. wow, now i see why the Jokers are blaming Chip, they need to cover the Gov, but it is clear to me that the person responsible for the program had a duty to say something. Instead, this continued. Knight talks about informing Treasury officials, but never stated in the article I read he told Chip. Very clever. Did he tell the receptionist at the Treasury? I smell even more bullshit and don’t post policies that we can’t verify are real ones. Answer the questions.
Girlfriend? Oh, back to the female slept her way to the top to try to get back to Chip. Nice try Socialist Ben. I’m not buying that sexist bullshit.
Anon, I guess you are going to insist on being a complete idiot here. The responsible agency is supposed to reconcile its own credit cards. Not the Finance Department. I’ve never heard of an organization that doesn’t insist on those accountable for budget performance specifically approve the expenditures of those spending your budget. If Chip wasn’t paying attention to these credit cards, or if he had delegated reconciliation and approval to someone else, or if he just didn’t know what the policy was — the bottom line is that he wasn’t doing his job in making sure that the “People’s Money” was spent well. If he was paying attention to the spend down of his own damn budget he would have caught this business well before the Finance Department people did.
Seriously — you and Chip need to get a clue that people here are WAY smarter than you think. Y’all need to run off and work up some smarter spin, I’m thinking.
Please. Finance Department? We were talking about the Division of Accounting? Here comes the cover up. Stop trying to associate me the campaign or Chip. I’m not, just like you claim to be independent Jokers. Quoting some arcane reconciliation rule to absolve the Governors people is not going to work. Obviously, the Finance Department or Division of Accounting can’t keep track of a simple credit card program. Has this ever happened in other agencies? Is Chip’s deputy the only person to do this? Again, who does Kris Knight work for?
Someone in here is having a serious melt down with all of these posts. I tried to help you about three hours ago and told you to shut the hell up. Since you can’t seem to buy a clue I will help….if you shut up people will stop commenting!!!
You have hit us with way too many rants in this thread trying to redirect. At the end of the day Mr. Flowers messed up. He did. He is refusing to answer questions directly posed and has responded with a statement of – you guessed it – fluff and no answers. Most of the people that hear this story have surmised that Mr. Flowers and Ms. Benner had something personally going on, deny it as you may. We all know that there is a strong likelihood that Mr. Flowers was in attendance at said football game and/or the red roof inn. Beyond all that, Mr. Flowers did not manage the credit card spending of his right hand! And for that reason (along with others), he is receiving this unwanted attention.
So, go back to the spin room and quit trying to convince people with brains that the things being discussed are not real issues. You’re wasting our time and yours.
Really, fool, you could just stop now. We get that you don’t know what you are talking about and that neither you or Chip knows how to deal with this pretty spectacular lapse in managing the “People’s Money”. He can either man up and deal with how he undermined his own silly spin of managing the “People’s Money” or he can drag this out working out the weak spin and eye-rolling deflection through you.
You aren’t doing this guy any favors by keeping this thread alive. But hey — no one has accused you of any smarts here.
Jokers? as in the batman villain who puts makeup on? like black-face? Nice try anon (or Anon…. are anon and Anon 2 different commenters…. years shooting my mouth off on this site and I still havent figured out the Anon Variation Guild), but I’m not buying that anti-Pacific Islander BS.
see how annoying that is?
Jokers, I’m not impressed by your threats and my questions remain unanswered. Blame Chip Flowers is the talking point, but I see that you guys want to cover up stuff. No wonder the thread was about football games and other bullshit. Keep trying, maybe the NewsJournal or State News won’t find the truth about the role of those in charge of the program. I’m sure you will the hit hose blogs just as hard to make sure the blame Chip mantra is heard. Nice try and I hope that him and his team are reading this thread and see your lies and tactics. Jokers we shall meet again when try this bullshit strategy again and I have no problem standing alone fighting you for what is right.
Let me fix this for you:
There.
Quoting some arcane reconciliation rule…
The rules for state credit card use are not “arcane.” Every state employee entrusted with a card is given these rules when they are given their card.
Every agency is responsible for reconciling their credit cards minimally every 3 months. They are required to have the appropriate documentation for charges.
If you think that state agencies don’t track the money their employees are spending, think again. DEDO pressed criminal charges against a 20+ year employee who retired for using their state cell phone after their last day of work.
Funny, the proof may have been on Ms B’s facebook site that was deleted or taken down as the news was released in the NJ
I think a major question should be, if this is as bad as we all think it is, where was the oversite from Markell’s Dept of Finance? Tell me you people didn’t really buy that story about them “trying to reach the Treasurer’s office for over a year to alert them of their concerns”….. I guess we’re supposed to believe that they couldn’t find the Treasurer for a year. Maybe its hard to spot Chip. Black men tend to just blend-in down in Legislative Hall (sarcasm). Although if he can dress as well as Geezer has repeatedly mentioned, I doubt he’s hard to miss. Or maybe, just maybe, it was because Finance didn’t care about these charges because it was small potatoes and the repayments were coming in… late and slow, but coming in nonetheless. All of a sudden after a few public spats with the Governor this issue, that sat for a year as a minor concern, is now a major scandal that’s ready for primetime? Personally, I think that the height of incompetence is a Finance Dept that can’t locate the Treasurer’s office. No questions from any commentators about this though; because we need to get to the bottom of football tickets and the traveling tales of Chip Flower’s penis. The Jack Pack is in full effect.
And another one pops up!
Sheesh. Chip is the person accountable for how his budget gets spent by his employees.
The Finance people are basically the QC function — checking and double checking. They aren’t responsible for the fact that Chip couldn’t manage to do a basic function of a line manager.
And you know what? If you think that the Governor’s people have a bullseye painted on your back — you work REALLY hard to not give them ammunition.
Is it “a major scandal” anywhere besides this thread? I’m seriously asking.
And you have the 100th comment, Jason!
Whoo hoo !
I agree Jason! As for Cass… “And another one pops up” You proved my point. I never said that Chip had no blame. The only person erasing blame from someone is you.
My argument is not that the Flowers office acted properly, but rather that they acted improperly and the “check and balance” that was supposed to be there to prevent ongoing improprieties was non-existent until the Governor began to have open disagreements with the Treasurer.
“The Finance people are basically the QC function — checking and double checking. They aren’t responsible for the fact that Chip couldn’t manage to do a basic function of a line manager.”
That “checking and double checking” thing you mention is actually called “their job”. And while they are not responsible for approving these charges, they are responsible for oversite of all state credit cards and ensuring that each office is following the state’s regulations. If a story arises that an office was not following the regulations for over a YEAR, you have every right to question said office, but to totally disregard the division who’s job it is to ensure that these things do not fester as they did, is either a gross misunderstanding of how government works or a deliberate case of turning a blind eye.
Now because you have clearly stated that you are aware of the responsibility of the Dept of Finance, I cannot accuse you of misunderstanding how government works. Which unfortunately leaves me with the only other option… a deliberate case of turning a blind eye.
There’s no blind eye — the people who were doing the QC function clearly found these issues and clearly worked at getting the Treasurer’s attention.
But here’s your blind eye — if Chip had been doing *his* job in the first place, the QC people never would have been in the position to chase him down for 18 months.
Black Cobain, you are right but the Jokers have been told to blame Chip for everything (even 9/11 of they could) so the administration is absolved for their gross failure. They were probably hoping this would get dumped before his election and chose not to inform him. Chip didn’t fail, he was setup and they want to distract us with penis allegations. Don’t you find it interesting that Cassandra magically has all the policies right at her fingertips? Now if we did that, we would be accused of pumping for Chip!
This is now satire, right?
FYI, funny how Cassandra actually believes that the Adminsitration was incapable of finding our state’s only African-American statewide officeholder but told a “mysterious” treasury official. My guess is they told the receptionist. However, they seem to have no trouble finding the newspaper and the blogs when they want to throw him under the bus and tell lies.
I guess you are going to beat everyone into submission with this ridiculousness Anon. I feel like we are dealing with a little kid…need the last word much?? This is just stupid now.
You are not going to change anyone’s mind on this board with a brain. Mr. Flowers is more of a victim of his arrogance than anything or anyone else. As Cassandra said, with no ammunition no one can talk. You, I mean Mr. Flowers, clearly wants the bulls-eye on his back with the moves he is making.
And the fool who said he was done at 10AM is back spinning up more bullshit.
My guess is that Chip hid from the Finance people — he knew he couldn’t sell them the bullshit you are trying to sell us here. Because he hasn’t been able to justify the mismanagement of the “People’s Money” by his staff anywhere, why would it work on the Finance Dept?
Oh dear. Listen Anon et al…. I’m trying to cut Flowers some slack here, but you numb-nuts are making it tough. You can’t argue “this was nothing” and “he’s been set up” at the same time. You have to pick one.
Trust me. You aren’t doing your guy any favors here.
Cassandra, did you really say that Chip hid from the finance people? You don’t answer the questions and you’ve gotten desperate. Chip can fight the Governor but he is afraid of Tom Cook? That’s some funny shit. Jokers are funny, no one is changing anyone’s mind here.
If no one’s mind is being changed, then I will ask again, WTF are you even here? You can’t even keep your defenses straight — as Jason points out above.
Plenty of people keep answering your so-called questions — your problem is that no one is following you down the rabbit hole you keep falling down into yourself. You don’t have any chance whatsoever at changing anyone’s mind if you keep serving up that weak-ass shit.
You did not answer the questions. You keep blaming. Curse all you want but no one bought the lies the Jokers tried to push. I hope the truth comes out and the Jokers attempt to cover up the setup is exposed.
The only questions to be answered are Chip’s, since he’s the one experiencing serious management failure here. So that’s another bit of failed spin.
But keep hope alive, good buddy.
Lol, Cassandra! I’m sure you meant the only persons are Kris Knight, Tom Cook and maybe Jack Markell for hiding information. I’m sure it was a typo on your part. Jk. Don’t worry, I’m sure people won’t believe that Governors people would hide stuff from the treasurer they don’t like. I’m sure that won’t sell newspapers. Lol.
Now Tom Cook cares about selling newspapers?
See what I mean about failed spin?
Credit card reconciliations are submitted to your supervisor for approval. The evidence of this problem went right past his desk. It was hiding in plain sight — it didn’t need to be hidden from anyone. But if the Treasurer was doing his job and supervising the expenditures of his staff, then the Finance Department wouldn’t have had to chase him down, right?
Keep hope alive, good buddy.
I’m not saying Chip was set up…. Anon you may be going too far with that. I’m not even saying that what he did wasn’t wrong and irresponsible. I’m just saying that if you believe that the Treasurer’s office is the only one at fault I have to challenge your rationale. To say that…
” if Chip had been doing *his* job in the first place, the QC people never would have been in the position to chase him down for 18 months”
is silly, because if you really believe that the Finance Dept couldn’t reach the State Treasurer for 18 months… I’ve got a bridge for sell.
You do realize that that the Finance Dept has the ability to cancel any state credit card if they have reason to believe that it is being used unlawfully. So this means that they either chose not to cancel the card or were asleep at the wheel for 18 months. I just find it hard to believe that anyone “with a brain” would completely let the Finance Dept off the hook with such a weak excuse of “We were trying to get in contact with him for a year and a half”….
When I was in college and I had a credit card, you know how my parents got in contact with me when I was going too far? They turned off my card, then I called to see what the problem was.
The Dept of Finance’s responsibility of overseeing the actions of each department’s use of their state credit cards is just as meaningful as the Treasurer’s responsibility to oversee his office’s use of the card. To attack one party and excuse the other would lead reasonable people to assume that you are biased.
I agree Black Cobain and I concur that both offices have responsibility for this issue. It seems very unfair to accuse Chip without knowing the process and role of the Department of Finance. I don’t understand how the Finance Department that has the controls to administer the program is not at fault, but then blame an agency for not catching something that is probably put into Finance’s system, not the Treasury’s. In other words, does the credit card monitoring computer system reside with the Treasury or Department of Finance. If it resides with Finance, how would an agency havethe system to flag a bad charge. For example, if a DuPont employee makes a bad charge, should we blame Ellen Kulman the CEO if she didn’t personally know or the group responsible for the program if they didn’t take any action and notify her? Not excusing Chip’s office, but if he was never told by Finance, that seems very wrong.
And here you are — still trying to excuse your guy! The mismanagement here is not providing any oversight to his Direct Report — not to the receptionist out front. If he can’t bother to oversee how his Direct Reports are using their state-provided assets, there’s no reason to trust him with much of anything. The Finance Department doesn’t oversee the Treasurer’s Direct Reports, sheesh.
I know facts won’t change the morons’ minds, but here are a few for clarity’s sake.
The Department of Finance oversees the credit cards like Chip Flowers oversees the state’s portfolio. That is, from a distance and with lots of layers in between.
It is the responsibility of each agency to make sure that CC charges are legit. Receipts must be submitted, a form must be completed and both a departmental finance staffer and the employee’s supervisor must sign off.
At some agencies, the top leadership regularly reviews the CC spending in addition to the other steps. A friend works for an agency where the cabinet secretary goes over the list of charges every month.
There are some instances when an employee will accidentally use a state card instead of a personal card. Those require immediate payback and typically only happen once. Agencies have little tolerance for repeat screwups.
I don’t know why it took 18 months to get these things paid back, but I have two guesses. First, the DOF probably tried to go through proper channels, working with the finance staffers at the People’s Treasury. That’s how the system is supposed to work. They wouldn’t have reached out to Chip directly at first. Second, Ms. Benner was second-in-command of the agency. A lot can get buried on the desk of a senior state official, and junior staffers are often reluctant to challenge their superiors on something this sensitive. And third, said junior staffers are highly unlikely to want to escalate this to the top boss who handpicked the No. 2.
Chip may not have known. No one is accusing him personally of condoning his deputy’s innovative personal loan program. What we are questioning is his management and oversight of his agency. If he can’t set ethical standards and monitor the work of a hundred or so people – and that’s just a guesstimate; I have no idea how large the People’s Treasury is – how can he be trusted for another term, let alone the other work he wants to take on?
This is going to come back and haunt him next year, no question. He has handed the GOP or a primary opponent the perfect attack line, one which will really resonate with people who aren’t allowed to make similar mistakes with their checkbooks and credit cards, or stretch out payback over 18 months, or claim an “illness” conveniently times, or would just GET THEIR DUMB ASSES FIRED if they pulled a similar stunt with a company credit card. Joe Blow isn’t going to have any tolerance for this type of shenanigans.
I would like to clarify a claim that one of Chip’s devotees made somewhere above me. He did not fire his deputy; she resigned, and he’s fighting for her to get her old job back on the state payroll. That’s not the image of a guy who’s working on behalf of The People, but someone protecting a friend.
@Sussex Watcher: Well said.
Dumbest. Troll. Ever.
Well, it looks like Chip Flowers has a Jon Moseley.
I read this whole thread because I’m suffering from insomnia. It didn’t help.
AQC – you should have read it in a Red Roof Inn.
@Sussexwatcher Great comment. It confirms my view that everybody is right. People who think the Treasurer should have had the credit card situation in hand, and that Flowers handled the employment situation oddly…They are right. People who think the Gov’s office probably used the credit card situation to take a jab at Flowers, they are right too.
This is a case where both sides make perfect sense. I suppose passions are running high because the other side of the coin is also true – everybody is wrong. People who think the Treasurer is being unjustly abused…they are wrong. People who think that there is nothing political going on…they are also wrong.
Jason, that kind of magnanimous, “shades of gray”, common ground talk isn’t welcome here.
You either think Chip Flowers is a martyr who should be immediately elevated to super-governor, or you think that he and his office are middle schoolers. Pick a side, sir!
Golly goodness! To think that politics have played a role in an issue involving a political office!
Who says the Markell administration must support Flowers instead of undermining him? Anyone with a brain realized from jump street that Flowers would run a minefield in trying to expand the powers of his office. Some of us expected that he wasn’t nimble enough to run that minefield.
Now every little “boom” reminds us that whatever else he is, Chip Flowers is no wiz at political operating. If he was, he would have had a lot more friends in powerful positions when he started his drive to restore his office to its former powers.