For someone who has not been in Legislative Hall for very long, the News-Journal’s Ginger Gibson perfectly captured the sometimes surreal picture of what goes on there in today’s superb blow-by-blow account of the passage of the sports betting bill.
The endlessly-ringing bells that never summon anyone to the chamber, the late-night pizza pigout, the very idea of a legislator taking a meeting with 9, count ’em, 9 racino lobbyists and, ‘bulo’s favorite, the Harrington lobbyist getting caught in a lie:
During Tuesday’s debate, Harrington Raceway CEO Patti Key told the chamber she had offered her financial records to the governor’s office, but they had ignored her. Key said those records were proof that her business could not absorb the added costs.
On Wednesday, McGonigle said, they asked Key for the records she discussed on the floor of the House and she told them she would first have to consult with her attorney.
On Thursday, Key said she had turned over all of her financial records to the governor’s office, but didn’t want to comment on claims that she had insisted on consulting an attorney after claiming to have previously offered them.
“Are we going to keep this pissing match going?” Key responded when asked about McGonigle’s claim.
When asked if that’s how Key would describe the negotiations, she demanded that her previous comment be revoked.
“I’ll deny I said that,” she said in front of a large group of people on the second floor of Legislative Hall.
That makes El Somnambulo nostalgic for the days of the late, great Ralph Moyed. He would’ve loved a story like this.
Although the Beast Who Slumbers has buried the lede, he will now try to unbury it:
1. Markell stood up to the special interests and won a convincing victory. Denis McGlynn of Dover Downs is probably right that this was less a compromise than a rout, and that’s a good thing. The racino bullies were called out for the obstructionists that they were, and they had no choice but to back down.
2. This win doesn’t mean anything unless it’s sustained in the Senate. Believe it or not, there are probably enough votes to pass this bill in the Senate. But the figure of Thurman Adams looms large. ‘Bulo recommends contacting your respective senators and encouraging them to support the bill as is, not some emasculated version that Uncle Thurm cooks up with Harrington and the Delaware State Fair folks. Let them know that you’ll be watching. A serious blow has been dealt to the traditional way of doing business in Dover. Whether it marks the beginning of a permanent change or merely a temporary setback for the entrenched interests is solely up to each and every one of you.
A final ‘bulo tip of the sombrero to Ginger Gibson. Keep writing stories like this, and El Somnambulo will continue to read them.