Please excuse me while I jump into the Wayback Machine to pay a visit to January 2017 in order to do a cut-n paste. Be back in a jif…
…I’m back. Man, Nemski was really on fire early in 2017. But, I digress. OK, the General Assembly convenes for its first session tomorrow. So, first order of business, that cut-n-paste from 2017:
“The first day invariably consists of ceremony. The swearing-in of the members, lots of family and friends in the respective chambers, and usually a reception to follow.
For newbies, here’s what to expect in January. The General Assembly will be in session for three weeks and nine sessions, weather permitting. Governor Carney will present his State of the State address to a joint session. Before the month is out, the governor will present his proposed budget for FY ’20. Delaware’s fiscal year runs from July 1 to June 30. The submission of the budget sets the stage for six weeks of Joint Finance Committee hearings. State agencies come before the committee to present their budget priorities.”
Now that we’re on the same page, what can we expect during January? Clearly, the General Assembly will pass this second leg of a constitutional amendment codifying the equal rights of women in the Delaware Constitution. Only real question is whether anybody will vote no. Several downstate Rethuglican troglodytes voted no last time, so there will likely be a sprinking of nays. Nevertheless, this will be passed with great fanfare. While I support the bill, I would be remiss in pointing out that this is largely symbolic, which won’t in any way put a damper on the self-congratulation that will follow. Not to mention the presence of this milestone in political brochures.
I know what to expect in Carney’s State Of The State except for how he addresses one specific issue. How does he propose to fix the ongoing conflagration that is the state’s corrections system? The rest I think I know: A too-cautious short laundry list of one-time initiatives, a promise of fiscal austerity using Ken Simpler’s magic ‘budget-smoothing’ tricks, a warning about creating any new programs that will require ongoing budgetary commitments, and, of course, an insistence on ‘living within our means’ with an emphasis on not raising taxes on those very few who have been the sole beneficiaries of the so-called recovery. In other words, well, word, well, non-word, “Bleccch”.
Here’s what I think should and could happen in January: Leadership in both houses should introduce and pass legislation striking Melanie George Smith’s self-serving sustainability bill from the Delaware Code. And, in a message to the gun nuts that the General Assembly isn’t playing around any more, they should, and just might, pass the bill that Greg Lavelle and Dave McBride buried in the Senate last year. It would also give Laura Sturgeon a great chance to shine. This is one reason why I anxiously await the Senate Committee assignments. I don’t think McBride can bury the bill this time. Doubt that he wants to.
Here’s what should, but won’t happen, in January. Both Mike Ramone and Nicole Poore should be subject to ethics investigations. These investigations won’t happen. Why? Can you imagine Ethics Chair Val Longhurst, who finally converted her legislative clout into a position as the head of the Police Athletic League, agreeing to investigate Ramone’s self-dealing on that e-stock exchange business? No. But I think Ramone’s misdeeds, in particular, deserve at least a look-see from the AG’s office. Maybe Kathleen Jennings will break the Justice Department tradition of looking the other way when it comes to political misdeeds. Not holding my breath, but who knows?
That’s it for now. We have a couple of house committee meetings scheduled for Wednesday, so at least we’ll have something to discuss, presumably along with Senate committee assignments. See you tomorrow.