The short answer? They lied. Pete told everyone he was running against Val. Val told everyone she was running against Pete. Then, suddenly, miraculously, on Saturday, they were a team again. It caught most of the caucus flat-footed as there were several scenarios that had been prepared, or at least talked about, to install a more progressive leadership team.
From all reports, it was a long and contentious caucus, with a Festivus-like airing of the grievances where Pete and Val nodded their heads and said they would change. After 14 years in leadership. Right.
Despite getting snookered, the votes were almost there for a leadership change. I’m told that, had Becca Cotto defeated Deb Heffernan, had Shane Darby defeated Nnamdi, and had Frank Burns prevailed, the votes were there. Which reminds me: Matt Meyer, go fuck yourself! Ditto for everybody else who carried this chemical industry enabler on their backs. You’re all chemical industry enablers now.
I don’t have a firm confirmation on this one, but it’s a doozy: Speaker Pete allegedly said that he’d serve as Speaker for one year, would then resign from the General Assembly, and that Val would become Speaker. Needless to say, no such binding contract will ever be signed. Can anyone, under deep cover, either confirm or deny this rumor?
Progressives are aiming a lot of arrows at Sean Matthews, who allegedly played a key role in the scheme to keep the Toxic Twosome in power. He will no doubt be rewarded handsomely for his perfidy. Time for him to be primaried and defeated. I’d rank him somewhere around #6 of those who should be challenged on my initial list:
1. Franklin Cooke
2. Lumpy Carson
3. Stephanie Bolden
4. Nnamdi
5. Bill Bush
6. Sean Matthews
7. Deb Heffernan
That’s just for starters. Will need more time to think about it.
So, what does this mean? It likely means more of the same. Committees engineered to stop progressive legislation from advancing, even after it passes the Senate. Little or no action on police accountability. Little or no action on environmental protection with both Val and Deb playing gatekeeper on such bills. No protection for renters. Maybe, just maybe, legalized pot can overcome the Governor’s likely veto, but I’m not holding my bong breath.
But, most of all, it means that the House will be in the thrall of the impediment known as John Carney, whose views are completely unlike those of, say, the Delaware Democratic Party. The Senate wrested its independence from the Blinkered Bean-Counter last term. The House could have, but opted not to.
One final note, something I’ve emphasized time and time again: You can’t believe anything Pete ‘n Val say. Nothing. Hopefully, the new caucus members have learned their lesson.