5 Who SHOULD Be Challenged
2nd RD-Hazel Plant: “Vote for me and I promise to not show up for work. This is a promise that I’ve proudly kept for the last two terms, and I’m deeply committed to not showing up for the next one either, should you honor me by voting for me to continue in my no-show job.”
11th RD-Greg Lavelle: “Vote for me and I promise to only represent my well-heeled constituents on the western side of Concord Pike. To my Claymont constituents, stop whining and go out and get a real job already. To alleged victims of pedophilia by priests and pediatricians, hey, life isn’t fair. Suck it up.”
21st RD-Mike Ramone: “Vote for me and I promise to act more like a representative and less like a befuddled constituent. I promise to occasionally read a bill before asking the most simplistic questions on the House floor.”
26th RD-John Viola: “Vote for me and I promise to continue to promote special interest legislation on behalf of the alcoholic beverage industry and the anonymous casino high-rollers. I also pledge to continue my record of being the first person out the door when session ends. I also pledge to do nothing else.”
28th RD-Bill Carson: “Vote for me and I promise to continue buying the first round every afternoon at Happy Hour. I’ll even get a secretary who will read my e-mails to me quicker, since I can’t be bothered to learn how to read e-mail myself, nor should I have to since I’m an elected official. And a quicker reading will enable me to get to Happy Hour earlier. Say, 2 p.m.”
Geez, the crooked leeches are everywhere. And here I thought the insurance commissioner was an exception.
I vote for Bill Carson as the person least likely to read this post.
No, but he could have someone read it to him.
Is Hazel Plant actually alive? She seems kind of Weekend at Bernies-ish…
While I agree with this list, I have two notes:
1) Your criticism of Hazel Plant may be valid, but I don’t believe any of this same sentiment was expressed when Sen. Byrd passed away. I think this criticism is just as valid, if not more so, when applied to his latter service in the U.S. Senate. What’s fair is fair.
2) You need to be very careful of your final criticism. That is a heady charge and a bit distasteful, frankly.
JTF: Good points both. Allow me to respond. I’ve raised the issue of people ‘staying too long at the fair’ before, and have referenced several people looking to leave Leg Hall ‘feet first on a gurney’.
Someone, it might’ve been Biden, referred to the US Senate looking more and more like a nursing home, citing Byrd, Pete Domenici wandering around in his PJ’s, etc. I tend to focus more on local matters, so I don’t think I’ve referenced it. Point taken.
As to Carson, I understand where you’re coming from. However, I have two first-hand sources for this: me and him. His aide’s desk was right behind mine when I worked in Dover. That’s how I learned that this guy wouldn’t spend the time to read his own bleeping e-mail. And, although I wasn’t in Dover on THAT many non-session days, whenever I was there, he was talking about getting away early so that he could make it to Happy Hour. So, I’m not reconstructing something from vague whispers, I am citing myself as the source here.
I disagree with you about Lavelle. His point on the pedophilia scandal was that lawmakers were doing away with the statute of limitations for the church but not the state. When those issues were decoupled, he still pressed for lifting the SoL on the state. Were he interested only in protecting the church he wouldn’t have, would he?
We continue to disagree on this. What Lavelle sought to create was a false analogy between the Church and the State of Delaware. In general, there has never been ANY institutional attempt on the part of the State to excuse and cover up a decades-long culture of pedophilia. Yet that’s the canard that Lavelle sought to perpetuate.
Plant has an opponent, in a primary, Stephanie T Bolden.
*Sigh*. Not sure that’s a step up. At least she’d probably show up for work. Man, isn’t there someone with at least SOME credibility in the 2nd?
It’s Wilmington, the city of party hacks and incompetent leadership. What do you expect?
ES: I think we disagree because we view his motives differently. You believe he was working in the employ of the church. Me, not so much. If you have documentation or other evidence that he acted at the behest of the diocese, that might change my mind.
It does not matter to an individual victim whether a system-wide state of abuse and cover-up occurred. I believe that if we are going to extend or abolish a deadline, it should be done for all or none. It is too convenient to extend it only for victims whose claims would not add to the state’s financial burden.
El Somnambulo: You always bring some great stuff to the blog, but keep your personal feelings out of it. Publishing some private conversations from years ago in Dover is not fair and disingenuous. This is exactly the reason you no longer have a job in Dover.
So you heard Carson try to leave early and go to happy hour….who cares? Are we supposed to judge him based on this one coversation that you listened in on?
Even if you have legitimate concerns about Carson…do you really think that making him look stupid publically is the way to get things done?
Keep bringing the content and analysis we love, but keep your scorned lover, crazy-ex, “boy I wish I still worked in Dover” crap to yourself.
“So you heard Carson try to leave early and go to happy hour….who cares?”
I do. I’m guessing lots of others do, too.
“This is exactly the reason you no longer have a job in Dover.”
How do you know?
Taking the personalities out of it…why should the state be excluded from the abuse claims extension? If there were no issues, there would be no valid claims. If there were issues, the claims should be allowed.
I don’t wish I still worked in Dover. And spilling confidences is not the reason I no longer have such a job since I didn’t do that while I was there. You don’t last 24 years by spilling confidences.
The conversations were right out in the open, not private. And they were multiple. Like, every-day multiple. Session and non-session days alike.
I don’t have to work to make Carson look stupid. Just pay attention to him for two minutes. I wish that someone other than me would. Then, they’d know.
I try to bring my perspective from having worked in Dover to this blog. My opinions may be strong, but they come from having seen a lot of BS take place from a lot of people who the general public only knows, if at all, from their campaign lit. And, when I’m unable to step back and look at something in a completely objective manner (See ‘Brady, Gerald’), I let everyone know rather than hiding it.
Which is why my point about Lavelle stands. Regardless of what he now says was his intent, the IMPACT of WHAT HE DID was to delay legislation to provide justice to victims of pedophile priests. Many legislators, including the sponsor of the bill, pleaded with him to introduce his own bill regarding the public schools. Many offered to co-sponsor the bill with him. He declined and, in so doing in a House at that time controlled by the R’s, single-handedly delayed a bill that would have brought said victims closer to closure. I don’t think I’ve ever said he’s in the employ of the church (lower case c intentional), his relentless attempts to create false analogies suggest that terms like ‘in thrall of’ or ‘under the spell of’ are appropriate. Although some might consider my calling him ‘Monsignor Lavelle’ a sign that I think of him as an employee…and maybe I do. Paging Dr. Freud…
Finally, it’s taken three tries to post this thanks to the criminals who run COMCAST. Worst service provider since…Rollins Cable.
El–would you please refer to Carson as “Lumpy”, so we in his area know who you are talking about. I don’t think we ever knew his real name. And it was good enough to get him elected. Don’t confuse the voters.
Based on voting for ‘Lumpy’, they’re easily confused already.
You got it.
Two of the five now have opponents, including Lumpy. A Karen Minner has filed as the R candidate in Carson’s district. And, as previously noted, Stephanie Bolden is primarying Plant.
Two of my faves also got challengers today. Karen Peterson faces a Robert Johnston. And Terri Schooley faces Bill Stritzinger, who (pre-Rollins) was floated as a trial balloon opponent for John Carney.
Castle has filed, Atkins has filed, Cook has filed, and that Cordrey guy will challenge Vance Phillips.
Oh, and in a titanic battle of the e-mail addresses, SPRINTCAR74@COMCAST.NET takes on SURFNSUDS@HOTMAIL.COM in the Republican Primary for NCC 1st Councilmanic District. Voters, choose your poison.
Ah, damn, El, you saw that already. LOL. I just now noticed it myself.
BTW, RD2 is now a three-way primary.
Hazel Plant is a very ill woman and shouldnt be in the race. However, some of the sick comments here are unbelievable. Re: The State of Delaware, pedophilia or rape….they have lots to be worried about. Have any idea how many disabled kids have been raped, or those living in group homes? The State doesnt want the responsibility of having to “pay off” the child or its parents. Guess Lavelle thought that one through! Always watching the States behind, while those in greatest need of protection fall through the cracks.
Cordrey is a career county employee and a conservative, property-rights Democrat. He’s running as a team with Atkins, if that tells you anything. So don’t look for any progressivism in Sussex … yet again.
Essentially, what Sussex is seeing is a Phillips-Hastings ticket vs. an Atkins-Cordrey ticket. Phillips and Hastings, who are pals, hate Atkins, and the feeling is mutual. It’s going to be a major, major fight down there.
Phillips is radio-active within the party down there because of the Urquhart/Rollins race. I doubt Hastings will want to be seen in the same room with Phillips.
So we’re going to have to agree to disagree. I’m not saying you’re wrong, I just interpret his motivations differently (in fairness, that’s always what he told me his motivation was; he didn’t arrive at it recently). That doesn’t mean I’m right, or that he wasn’t carrying the diocese’s water.
anon @10:56 – You forget Phillips and Hastings go way back. Hastings was Phillips’ first campaign manager. I’m sure Vance encouraged Greg to re-run against John, so John encouraged Denny to run against Vance.
Never a problem, Geezer. Without principled disagreement, blogs wouldn’t be worth reading.
Especially as opposed to, say, mindless regurgitation of talking points, the bane of my existence. The Libertarians are doing it now, too. Before, you could at least count on interesting idiosyncratic individual opinions from the L’s, but they appear to have been taken over en masse by some disaffected Rethug wordsmith.