DL Open Thread: Thursday, July 10, 2025

This reminds me–‘Coonsie’ is up in 2026.  His main selling point has always been that he’s effective in ‘reaching across the aisle’.  Granted, primarily to benefit the banking and pharmaceutical industries that fill his election coffers, but still.

He, to put it mildly, is not someone well-equipped to battle the Fascists who run the country now.  We need someone to step up to challenge him.  He will NEVER be up to the challenge.  So, challenge him.  All of his inherited wealth and corporate cash will be no match for a grassroots challenger.

Gov. Abbott: Forget The Floods, Redraw The Congressional Lines.  Texas gonna Texas:

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) has instructed the Texas legislature to consider congressional redistricting during a special session set to begin July 21, citing the Trump administration’s concerns.

The agenda set by Abbott on Wednesday states that the session will consider “legislation that provides a revised congressional redistricting plan in light of constitutional concerns raised by the U.S. Department of Justice.”

During the last round of redistricting in Texas, Republican lawmakers created new opportunities for themselves in South Texas, where they have been increasingly targeting Hispanic voters. After the new maps went into effect, Republican Monica De La Cruz captured a district previously held by a Democrat.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-New York) criticized Abbott’s decision to include redistricting in the special session.

“Hundreds of people have died or are missing as a result of the deadly flooding in the Texas Hill country. There are real questions about Governor Greg Abbott’s failed leadership, lack of preparation and the reckless decision not to bolster the early warning infrastructure in flood prone communities,” Jeffries said in a statement. “Instead of aggressively addressing the failures of his administration, Governor Abbott and shameless extremists are conspiring with Donald Trump and House Republicans to try to rig the election and disenfranchise millions of voters.”

ICE Barbie Too Busy Cosplaying To Provide Emergency Aid To Texas:

As monstrous floodwaters surged across central Texas late last week, officials at the Federal Emergency Management Agency leapt into action, preparing to deploy critical search and rescue teams and life-saving resources, like they have in countless past disasters.

But almost instantly, FEMA ran into bureaucratic obstacles, four officials inside the agency told CNN.

As CNN has previously reported, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem — whose department oversees FEMA — recently enacted a sweeping rule aimed at cutting spending: Every contract and grant over $100,000 now requires her personal sign-off before any funds can be released.

“We were operating under a clear set of guidance: lean forward, be prepared, anticipate what the state needs, and be ready to deliver it,” a longtime FEMA official told CNN. “That is not as clear of an intent for us at the moment.”

For example, as central Texas towns were submerged in rising waters, FEMA officials realized they couldn’t pre-position Urban Search and Rescue crews from a network of teams stationed regionally across the country.

In the past, FEMA would have swiftly staged these teams, which are specifically trained for situations including catastrophic floods, closer to a disaster zone in anticipation of urgent requests, multiple agency sources told CNN.

But even as Texas rescue crews raced to save lives, FEMA officials realized they needed Noem’s approval before sending those additional assets. Noem didn’t authorize FEMA’s deployment of Urban Search and Rescue teams until Monday, more than 72 hours after the flooding began, multiple sources told CNN.

Wilmington Vs. Weed.  Delaware’s Worst Governor Ever lives down to his reputation:

The city of Wilmington issued a cease and desist on July 8 and revoked the permits of Best Buds, which is run by CT Delaware LLC. There is a letter taped to the door of the former ice cream parlor storefront, located at 1404 N. Dupont St. Best Buds planned to open as a medical marijuana dispensary before converting to a recreational one, while still serving medical customers.

The letter, signed by the city’s director of Land Use and Planning, Elliott Larkin, and the commissioner of Licenses and Inspection, Gabriel Pabon, said Best Buds’ permit was revoked because the “permit approval was based on a misrepresentation or incorrect information contained in the application” and because of a recently approved ordinance prohibiting recreational marijuana retail in that part of the city. The letter said Best Buds told the city it would operate as a medical dispensary.

Mayor John Carney and the City Council settled on marijuana retail zoning in Wilmington in early May, mainly limiting potential businesses to the east side of the city and special cases on the Riverfront. The zoning was purposefully designed to keep dispensaries away from densely populated residential neighborhoods, like the vibrant Trolley Square.

Best Buds was issued its conversion licenses in 2024 and has done all of the necessary paperwork, according to state Marijuana Commissioner Joshua Sanderlin.

The chairman of CT Delaware and Best Buds, Ernest Talbert, said they secured their zoning approval in April 2024, their conversion license in October 2024 and their business license in March 2025. The business license came weeks before the city government had a zoning ordinance for recreational marijuana businesses on the books.

I simply can’t overstate the sheer idiocy and willful ignorance that John Carney is capable of.  So I won’t try.

Which Reminds Me:

Delaware Gov. Matt Meyer could make it easier for Delawareans throughout the state to walk into a nearby store and buy recreational cannabis in the coming months with a flick of his pen.

Meyer is weighing whether to add his signature to legislation that would set state standards for where recreational marijuana stores could be located within the state’s three counties, overruling restrictive local ordinances. Opponents of the bill say it’s the role of local governments to make zoning decisions.

SB 75, sponsored by state Sen. Trey Paradee, D-Dover, would ease local government zoning restrictions on recreational cannabis facilities after some areas banned retail pot stores completely while others enacted strict limitations on site locations.

My position?  Signed the goddamn bill.  Stat.

Submitted Without Comment–Nikki Miller and Alonna Berry.  Meaning, I’m not gonna say what I’m thinking.  You can, though:

Campaigning is well underway for Republican Nikki Miller and Democrat Alonna Berry — both former educators and Sussex County natives — who have just over two weeks before early voting begins for the 20th District House seat special election.

“For me, running as a Republican is to be able to have those conservative values, as far as it goes with preserving the way that we live at the beach and in Sussex County and also financially,” Miller said.

But Miller says her candidacy also extends beyond party lines, putting constituent needs at the forefront her campaign platform.

“When I’m in a school, I don’t care about a parent’s political party, I care what’s best for students, I care what’s best for our staff, I care what’s best for the parents — It’s not what’s best for a party, and the same will go when I’m elected,” Miller said. “I’m going to vote and make decisions based on the constituents, and that will be my priority, not what party I’m affiliated with, but what the people of District 20 want and need.”

Berry has a near-identical mentality, saying she will vote on behalf of the Milton-area community and not on behalf of the Democratic Party if given the opportunity to serve in Dover.

“I think the last two elections have been a proof point in this district around what the values of our constituents are and where they want to vote. And so it only felt right to step up in the seat of the Democratic Party, and I’m grateful to be nominated to do that. But my my role, in any role for that matter as a legislator, is to respond to the needs of the of the community and of the people,” Berry said. “And for me, parties are not associated with that. My goal is to go out and listen and hear what people need and be the person at Legislative Hall and in Dover that can be the support that they need and bring those changes back to our community.”

What do you want to talk about?