Commenter anon points us to two articles in today’s News Journal about 2 local politicians in contested Democratic primaries. The first is Sheriff Mike Walsh – the NJ asks if we even need an elected sheriff:
Sheriff Walsh has apparently been trying for a decade to shed the responsibilities of transporting the state’s prisoners to and from correctional facilities for New Castle County Courthouse appearances. His agency also transports patients who are committed by the state to mental hospitals.
But Sheriff Walsh wants out of the transportation business to dedicate all his time, and deputies, to processing residential foreclosures and delivering other legal documents for the courts.
…
What doesn’t make sense is continuing to have an $80,000-plus-per-year elective officeholder in charge of overseeing housing foreclosures and serving subpoenas.
We have long advocated abolition of the office. The days of an elected sheriff are over. The office should be made appointive, with the judiciary making the selections. This has been done with other county offices, such as prothonotary and register in chancery.
What do you think? Do we need an elected sheriff, especially if the job is losing responsibilities?
The second is an article on Velda Jones-Potter and it makes some serious allegations. Velda Jones-Potter is getting a paycheck from both the city of Wilmington and the state of Delaware.
State Treasurer Velda Jones-Potter has been paid $108,400 in consulting fees by the city since 2007 to teach leadership skills to 40 city employees, according to city records.
The $150-an-hour contract with the city and the treasurer’s consulting firm, Jones-Potter & Associates Inc., began in October 2007 and continues today. She was appointed treasurer in January 2009, a full-time position that pays $110,000 a year.
Gov. Jack Markell, who appointed Jones-Potter, said he was surprised.
“This was the first that I had heard of her having a contract for ongoing consulting work with the city,” Markell said in a statement Wednesday. “I would certainly expect that the treasurer would have ensured that any work done for the city would not in any way impact her primary responsibility, which is to serve Delaware’s citizens as their state treasurer.”
According to the article having a 2nd job is allowed as Treasurer along as it doesn’t use state time or resources. Her contract is approved through the operating budget voted on by the Wilmington City Council, to which her husband belongs. [edited for clarity – UI] Jones-Potter’s response is pretty weak:
Jones-Potter said she thinks someone sympathetic to Chip Flowers, her opponent in next month’s Democratic primary, leaked the news of the contract.
Go read the whole thing. Perhaps now Jones-Potter’s refusal to debate makes more sense. However, if she expects to win the primary and win in November, she needs to answer these questions.