DL Open Thread: Thursday, May 22, 2025

Worst Bill In History Passes House.  C’mon, you knew they’d find the votes, didn’tcha?:

The House early Thursday narrowly passed a wide-ranging bill to deliver President Trump’s domestic agenda, after Speaker Mike Johnson put down several mini-rebellions in Republican ranks to muscle the legislation to its first major victory over unified Democratic opposition.

The early morning vote was 215 to 214, mostly along party lines. The legislation would slash taxes, steer more money to the military and border security, and pay for some of this with cuts to Medicaid, food assistance, education and clean energy programs, adding significantly to federal deficits and to the ranks of the uninsured.

Trump Rails Against Non-Existent ‘White Genocide’:

Once a racist…

Judge Blisters DOJ In Baraka Case:

A magistrate judge upbraided federal prosecutors Wednesday as he granted their request to dismiss its trespassing charge against Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, calling the government’s abrupt about-face “a worrisome misstep” in a case that has stoked a political firestorm.

“An arrest of a public figure is not a preliminary investigative tool. It is a severe action,” U.S. Magistrate Judge Andre M. Espinosa told Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen Demanovich during a virtual court hearing. “It should only be undertaken after a thorough, dispassionate investigation of credible evidence.

“The apparent rush in this case, culminating today in the embarrassing retraction of charges, suggests a failure to adequately investigate,” Espinosa continued. “… Your office must operate with a higher standard than that.”

It won’t.  In fact:

President Trump has kept up a steady bombardment of suggestions, requests and demands to arrest, investigate or prosecute targets of his choosing — the former F.B.I. director James B. Comey, various Democrats, officials who refuted his election lies, Beyoncé, the Boss.

But Mr. Trump’s directives have so far hit a stubborn snag. Few, if any, of those singled out have done anything to invite conventional prosecutorial scrutiny, much less committed prosecutable crimes to warrant an indictment under federal law.

But a Trump loyalist, given new, vague and possibly vast power, has found a workaround.

In recent days, Ed Martin, the self-described “captain” of the Justice Department’s “weaponization” group, made a candid if unsurprising admission: He plans to use his authority to expose and discredit those he believes to be guilty, even if he cannot find sufficient evidence to prosecute them — weaponizing an institution he has been hired to de-weaponize, in the view of critics.

“If they can be charged, we’ll charge them,” Mr. Martin told reporters before stepping down as interim U.S. attorney in Washington. “But if they can’t be charged, we will name them. And we will name them, and in a culture that respects shame, they should be people that are ashamed.”

That’s what’s called the ‘de-politicization’ of the Biden Justice Department.

Carney Opposes Rent Stabilization.  Dog Bites Man:

Prospects are uncertain for a Wilmington City Council ordinance that would limit residential rent increases, as the measure does not appear to have enough support on the council to override a possible veto from Mayor John Carney — who opposes the measure outright.

Wouldn’t be the first time that Delaware’s Worst Governor Ever vetoed good legislation.

Introduced last month by Councilwoman Shané Darby, the ordinance is intended to address an ongoing housing crisis in Delaware, marked by rising rents and a shortage of affordable units.

If passed, Darby’s ordinance would prohibit landlords of private rental units in Wilmington from raising rents by more than 3% a year, or by even less during years when the consumer price index falls below that figure.

The legislation exempts places such as public housing units, owner-occupied properties with three or fewer units, school-provided student housing, and new buildings during their first 10 years of existence.

This bill also allows landlords who have owned their property for more than a year to request an exemption to the 3%-increase cap if they can show financial burdens, such as rising taxes, insurance, or government-mandated repairs.

Why the opposition?:

But some state and local officials have openly criticized rent stabilization measures, instead saying that the construction of new homes is a better, long-term solution to the crisis. Those critics have included Carney and Matthew Heckles, director of the Delaware State Housing Authority.

(Furrows brow while thinking deeply…’You mean we can’t do both?’). Not if Buccini-Pollin says we can’t do both.  Asked and answered.

What do you want to talk about?