Vance Phillips to Run. ‘Disrepute’ Named His Running Mate.
Apparently there are self-appointed grown-ups amongst Sussex County Rethuglicans. Party leaders (an oxymoron, I know, but bear with me), endorsed a resolution stating that they would not “endorse or support” Phillips should he run for reelection to Sussex County Council. The News-Journal quotes Sussex Republican Chair John Rieley as telling Phillips in a letter:
“This situation has the strong potential to bring disrepute on the party if we do not take a proactive moral position and are seen as lending support to your candidacy.”
Sometimes the jokes write themselves. The Sheriff of Nuttingham. Bodie. Disrepute has, to put it mildly, not been a stranger to the Sussex County Republican Party. But, I digress.
Of course, this has offended others in the Party. And, at least one of them, one Stan King, has a point:
Some of the same people who pushed so hard for past primaries so every voter’s wishes get represented are afraid to let those voters decide by primary if Councilman Phillips is to continue representing them. The folks that worked so hard to displace the so-called elites have become the elites.
None of this stopped Phillips from filing yesterday. So far, there isn’t a credible R challenger on the ballot. One Harry Orvin Strickler of Frankford has filed, but does not appear to have been recruited by the Anti-Disreputers. Nor does he appear to be in possession of his senses.
The D’s have a primary between Brad Connor, Mayor of Dagsboro, and Robert Wheatley, who has served for 20 years on the Sussex County Zoning & Planning Commission. Neither has been known to bring disrepute to their Party.
2. Dog Bites Man. Bonini Will Not Run For Treasurer.
This, of course, was inevitable. A guy who has gotten paid for 20 years to do nothing was not about to risk that gig for another job where he’d basically do nothing. Since he would have to give up his Senate seat to run for Treasurer, Colin Bonini was never gonna run for Treasurer this year. Now, he’s made it official. Gotta love this:
“I think it is vitally important to have a fiscal conservative in the Senate and am hoping to continue to be that voice,” said Bonini in his email.
And this:
“Colin Bonini has long been a champion of ensuring that Delawareans have a tax policy that is fair to all of its citizens, and to reducing the size and cost of state government,” said Copeland’s statement.
Ri-i-i-i-ght. As long as ‘reducing the cost and size of state government’ doesn’t mean that he can no longer collect dollars for meetings that he didn’t attend. Here’s what I’m talking about: This and this. And lest we forget how much Bonini needs his Senate gig, who could forget this? Which led to this. Guess I could go on, but, if I haven’t definitively proved to you that Bonini is a phony about basically everything, I guess I never will.
3. Coons Has An Opponent.
And I’m gonna vote for him. Andrew Groff has received the endorsement of the Green Party of Delaware. I’d feel more comfortable with him as a senator than I do with Chris Coons. Of Delaware’s congressional delegation, Coons was the one who I thought had more progressive leanings. Maybe he just knew how to throw out progressive dog-whistles, maybe he deep down had some progressive instincts, I don’t know. But his vote against Debo Adegbile was that of someone unfit to hold office as a D. At a time when Rethuglicans all over the country seek to deny people their right to vote, Coons’ vote against probably the most effective legal voice challenging voter disenfranchisement defined himself as unfit to hold office. Coons bought into the Fox race-baiting ‘Mumia’ meme, which had nothing to do with Abu Jamal case and everything to do with keeping a voting rights expert away from the job of protecting voting rights, and sought final counsel from…cops. Not civil rights leaders, but…cops. Hell, even Carper shrugged his shoulders and voted for Adegbile, correctly pointing out that he was simply doing his job as an attorney while working on the Mumia appeal, but Coons said that the cops would be so upset that this guy wouldn’t be able to do his job because he wouldn’t be able to work with…cops. I’ve been around a long time, but this was the single worst rationale I can ever remember for a cowardly vote. We can’t count on Coons and, as progressive Democrats or even just Democrats, we should at least be able to count on him. Which is why he won’t have my vote this Novermber. BTW, Coons filed this week, for those of you still interested.
4. Wil McVay Runs…For Only One Office This Time.
He’s filed for the 31st RD seat held by Democrat Andria Bennett. He ain’t winning in that district: 7351 D; 3475 R; 3424 I. Yep, a D-majority district.
5. Filings.
Rep. Michael Barbieri (D-18th RD); Sheriff of Nuttingham Jeff Christopher (R-Sussex County).
What’d I miss?