Delaware Political Weekly: Jan. 8-14, 2016

Delaware Political Weekly: Jan. 8-14, 2016

10 Comments
Denise D. Bowers has filed to run against State Senator Cathy Cloutier for the 5th SD seat in Brandywine Hundred.  Based on registration, this projects as a competitive race. Current figures:  13,703 D; 11,169 R; and 8790 I. Her candidacy does not come without questions.  She is a 21-year veteran of the Wilmington Police Department, although it's not entirely clear that she was on duty for all that time.  She filed at least two legal actions concerning her job during her time on the force.  The first deals with compensation for a scar on her knee, aka a ' serious and permanent disfigurement'.  The second was a prolonged litigation concerning her 'involuntary retirement' from the force. In fact, even though she allegedly was a police officer until 2008, it is not clear whether she was on the job after 2005, when she suffered the knee injury mentioned in the second suit. A swift Google search also reveals several actions brought against Bowers and her husband for unpaid taxes on rental properties in Wilmington.  OTOH, Bowers is president of the Northwood Civic Association and is currently the State Director of the Treatment Access Center, the liaison between the Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health and the courts system.  I'm sure that some of you must have met her.  I need feedback, pipples!
Friday Open Thread [1.15.2016]

Friday Open Thread [1.15.2016]

4 Comments
Steven Stromberg writes about how negative the tone of last night's debate was:
With only a few weeks left before the first primary contests, the GOP race has devolved into a competition for who can squeeze the most political advantage out of voter fear, no matter how over-the-top they sound and no matter how much damage they do by darkening the national mood. Sen. Ted Cruz (Tex.) “won” the latest round of this increasingly disgusting show, with Donald Trump and Sen. Marco Rubio (Fla.) coming in second. But being the most effective at exaggerating the dangers the country faces and preying on voter anger is not an achievement; it is a moral failure. [...] Here is a dose of reality: It is possible to disagree with the GOP base and be a patriot. The nation faces many challenges, but it is stronger economically and more secure from various foreign threats than nearly everywhere else in the world. In many ways, Americans are better off now than they ever have been. The continuing desire of non-Americans to move, work and do business here is a sign of strength, showing the appeal of the United States rather than demonstrating weakness.
It don't think it is possible to be a member of the GOP base and be a patriot. To be a member of the GOP base requires you to be a bigoted fascist. America goes to war against bigoted fascists. It does not call them patriots.